Shift Stirrers
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Shift Stirrers
Shift Stirrers - Lygon St Market - The day the battery on the camera died
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In this "Out and About" episode, we headed to Lygon Street Market on Easter Sunday with big plans to interview makers for their upcoming Mother's Day market - and things didn't quite go to plan! The market was so busy that stallholders were run off their feet selling, our camera battery died mid-interviews, and Michelle was juggling her own stall while trying to film. But here's the thing: a market too busy to interview people is actually the best kind of problem to have. We managed to chat with Urban Dogs about their beautiful leather work and organic dog treats, Three Bees Honey (run by a former radio announcer!), and spotted stunning glass fish, handmade fingerless gloves, dried flowers, and so much more. This episode is our honest take on what creative markets are really like when they're thriving - chaotic, inspiring, and full of talented makers who genuinely love what they do. Plus, we're giving you the inside scoop on Lygon Street Market's Mother's Day edition (Sunday May 3rd) and what makes a good market from both a visitor and maker perspective. Sometimes the best podcast episodes come from embracing the chaos rather than fighting it!
Thank you so much for listening to The Shift Stirrers podcast.
If you enjoyed this episode, please hit that follow button so you'll get notified whenever we release new content. We'd love to hear from you—feel free to reach out at theshiftstirrers@gmail.com, or you can find our individual email addresses and websites in the show notes below. We love questions.
You can also connect with us on Instagram @shiftstirrers.
If you found value in today's conversation, we'd be incredibly grateful if you could leave us a review or rating on your podcast platform. It really helps others discover the show. And if you know someone who would benefit from this episode, please share it with them.
Until next time, keep stirring things up.
Ah just a quick disclaimer - Michelle and Rosemary are not experts in any of the discussions today. We present this podcast in the interest of getting curious about change.
You can purchase Rosemary's books on Amazon
https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0FS275RHJ
Our other contacts
theshiftstirrers@gmail.com
https://rosemarypattisonart.com/
https://michellebenson.com.au/
https://www.instagram.com/rosemarypattisonart/
https://www.instagram.com/michelle_benson_art/
Music by Sound Designer Erin Krejany
https://www.linkedin.com/in/erin-krejany-186829355
Thank you so much for listening to The Shift Stirrers podcast.
If you enjoyed this episode, please hit that follow button so you'll get notified whenever we release new content. We'd love to hear from you—feel free to reach out at theshiftstirrers@gmail.com, or you can find our individual email addresses and websites in the show notes below. We love questions.
You can also connect with us on Instagram @shiftstirrers.
If you found value in today's conversation, we'd be incredibly grateful if you could leave us a review or rating on your podcast platform. It really helps others discover the show. And if you know someone who would benefit from this episode, please share it with them.
Until next time, keep stirring things up.
Ah just a quick disclaimer - Michelle and Rosemary are not experts in any of the discussions today. We present this podcast in the interest of getting curious about change.
You can purchase Rosemary's books on Amazon
https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0FS275RHJ
Our other contacts
theshiftstirrers@gmail.com
Welcome to the Shift Stirrets. Before we dive in, we acknowledge the traditional custodians of the lands where we record. Michelle and Rosemary work on the lands of the Bun Worung and Warangeri people of the Kulin Nation. We pay our respects to elders past, present, and emerging. As we talk about transitions and shifts in our own lives, we recognise that First Nations people have been adapting, surviving and thriving on this continent for over 65,000 years. The world's longest continuing culture. Sovereignty was never ceded, always was, always will be.
SPEAKER_04Well, Rosemary, we've been out stirring the shift again. We have roaming around the streets. Yes, our first outs and abouts interviews. We went to Street Market, oh sorry, to Ligon Street Market for this. And um I'm gonna ask you, Rosemary, why do we stir the shift?
SPEAKER_02Well, oh my god, I I'm always forgetting. I need you to remind me.
SPEAKER_04Okay, so our our aim on our podcast is to make people curious about changes that they can make that would move them from the corporate to the artisian creative lifestyle that they long for. And everything we do is to get you curious about that. So I'm Michelle Benson. And I'm Rosemary Patterson. And we are the shifts. We are okay. So I'm going to call this episode Light on Street Market when the battery dies and the creatives are too busy creating. Cool. Because it was just like it was incredible. We went to the market on um Easter Sunday, and because we had uh spoken to lovely Adam and said that we would like to do a podcast based on the Mother's Day market that's coming up this Sunday coming. And we went with all our equipment, we were gonna interview lots of people and get lots of things done, and I was running a stall there, and it was really tricky because the market was so busy. Yeah, so it was so busy they couldn't talk to us. Yeah, and and I was running my stall, and the mistake I made is I didn't get anybody looking after my stall, so we actually had a situation where I'm continually looking back to see if anyone's at my stall. Um, for those of you who don't know Ligon Street, it's a beautiful little market, it's off Argyll Place, and uh just that's just off Ligon Street, and it's like a uh a treed courtyard just near all the Ligon Street shops, and it's just stunning. Uh uh in uh for those of you who aren't in Melbourne, uh we have along that on that Ligon Street run, they have, I think it's in the April, no, it must be in the March, they have a naked pushbike protest go along there because the the protest is about the fact that if you saw a naked bike rider, you would not miss them. But when they're you know wearing their day glow clothes and all of that sort of thing, you miss them and there's a lot of bike accidents. So it's a fun process. Next year, remind me we'll both go in it. Oh my god, no, I don't think I could ride a bike totally naked. I do ride a bike, but no, I don't think no, not for me, but it's it's a worthy cause, and yes, I think it will be a bit uncomfortable, Rosemary. It's a lovely area. Lion Street is it was originally an Italian area in Melbourne, and there's a lot of beautiful Italian coffee shops and pasta shops and lovely shops, but there's also now, you know, there's your big shops along that street as well, like Elk and Country Road and all of those shops. So, yeah, it's a nice little area and it's a lovely market to have a stroll around. It's very pretty all year round. It from an artistic point of view, it's one of my favourite markets to actually go and work in.
SPEAKER_02Awesome. And Michelle, I go back to the 70s for Livon Street, where from Melbourne State College we used to go out there for lunch. Yeah, when I was at RMX, I think Genevies. The cafe was called Genevieve's, I think.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. Yeah, and it's always been a bit eclectic um and a bit quirky, um, but it's lots of fun. So we went along, it was busy, we couldn't get people to interview them because either I was busy or they were busy, and we also had a situation where our battery died. So, learning point there on the camera is to make sure that I take my second battery so that we do have enough time. But we did manage to catch up with people. The first people that we caught up with were Urban Dogs. So Rosemary did the interview. Rosemary, what was your your impression about that? I'll actually just run this interview now.
SPEAKER_03Talking to us, we're so lucky. Um, tell us about your name and what you sell.
SPEAKER_00So I'm Katie Art. I'm a dog trainer with Urban Dogs HQ in Brunswick.
SPEAKER_03Wow.
SPEAKER_00And my dad makes collars and leads and belts. Um, but mostly the collars and leaves for the dogs that I work with. And we thought that it was a great idea to bring it along to the market. I need to give you the keep going.
SPEAKER_03Um, awesome, so Mother's Day's coming up. What's going to be special for mothers?
SPEAKER_00Well, the dog mums out there. Yeah, yeah. We've got all sorts of treats that they can give to their to their um to their dogs, but also we've got belts for humans. So the humans are made out of Australian leather. We recycle buckles that we've found at hop shops, and the dog mums, there's plenty of styles out there for the dog mumps. And mum's without dogs too.
SPEAKER_03That's fantastic. Now, what's special about Lionel Street Market?
SPEAKER_00We love coming to this market because it's local to us. Our facility is in Brunswick, so this is the only market, almost the only market we come to. We love it because it's local and we see lots of our clients here. And um and also the vibe is just great. It's so brand to see it. And especially as we're coming into autumn, we're gonna have the changes of the colours of the leaves. Yeah, the boginfilly is gonna be um looking stunning shortly. And the music, and it's just the vibe.
SPEAKER_03Awesome! So thank you so much, have a wonderful day, and I just love your stream. Thank you. Thank you.
SPEAKER_02Great, and now what was your impressions about that? Well, I loved how enthusiastic they were, and a very professional stand, the section for their belts made by the father, and all the products look really good quality, and they were really happy to chat. I think they were really famous podcasters, and we little podcasters went up, and she has done podcasts where people come, thousands of people come and watch, I think. So I was a bit intimidated, but it was so much fun. Yes, what about you?
SPEAKER_04Well, um, I well, I am actually Fleur and I have a uh Fleur being my dog, have a lovely relationship with that stool because they make beautiful organic dog treats. And Fleur loves their smoked muscles, I think it is. Uh yeah, she's a sucker for that. I actually think that she's addicted to those little smoked muscles. She'll do anything for a smoked muscle, but they also sell lots of other dog treats as well. What a trim! Their collars and their leads and their belts, the leather work that's there are absolutely beautiful. And they said that there's not only things that can be bought for Mother's Day for people, but there's for the dog mothers as well. So, I guess if you have a dog brother in your life.
SPEAKER_02Would you think the muscles are too good for flour and you might eat them yourself? No.
SPEAKER_04So, Rosemie, this is only your second visit to the the Light on Street Market, am I correct? Yes, it was my first visit. Oh, it was your first visit? So you had a walk around. Can you give me an impression of your feelings about the market and the vibe at the market?
SPEAKER_02Yes, I love that market. Rose Street Market's quite different. So you have to park quite a long way and do a walk, but roastry market's great because it's under all undercover. This market quite different. It's almost European, as you were saying about Ligon Street, with the um sort of paving and then the trees around and umbrellas and stalls and things like that. So, yes, everyone was lovely, and well, I'm not sure if we're up to my favourite one, but I loved the glass, the glass fishes. And I said to those stall holders, reminds me of when I was in Greece and they said, Well, actually, we're Turkish. I think I'm right, I think I'm right. Forgive me if I'm wrong. Over to you.
SPEAKER_04Well, they were lovely people. I mean, you know, there's uh there's a lot of jewelry stores there. There's also a lot of beautiful, like little food stalls that sell beautifully crafted biscuits and things like that. There's a lot of artists there. There's a lady who makes the most beautiful bookmarks that's always there. The next store we went and talked to was the lady at the Three B's Honey, who actually had a very interesting career herself. She was actually a radio announcer on one of the local radio stations. And this is her interview.
SPEAKER_03Hi. Hi, is this for your podcast? Yeah. Oh yeah. Well, you're promoting yourself. Yeah, oh yeah, don't worry. I I do radio, so.
SPEAKER_01Oh, do you? Which one? Um, I do uh at the moment I'm doing Wednesday breakfast on 3CR. Oh, wow. Fantastic. I used to work for the ABC. I used to set I set up a pirate radio station once.
SPEAKER_02Oh, wow. Amazing. Yes.
SPEAKER_04Oh yeah. I'm very funny.
SPEAKER_02No, but oh my god, so many different types, and I asked her what her favourite was. So obviously it's much more complex than I'd realised, you know. I just thought there was one B1 honey. But it just was such a beautiful store, well displayed, and it's local honey, which there's something about I wouldn't have the guts to even talk about, but the health that you get from local bees is apparently fantastic.
SPEAKER_04I in my in my other world, in a world that I don't live in now, I would love to have bees keep bees and be a beekeeper. I think it would be lots of fun. But I live in a very small house, so I don't have enough room to be a beekeeper. Having said that, my favourite of their honeys is the ginger honey. Ginger honey. Yeah, it's beautiful. It's really lovely. It's very nice on crumpets. I'm sure it's nice on crumpets. And as you can all see, where my money goes that I make at the market, it goes back into other market stores. Yeah. Now, the next inter we did do another interview that unfortunately has not come through on our um video, and that's we we interviewed a lady who made dry flowers, and her flowers were absolutely stunning. She will also be there on Mother's Day, and she's actually she gets all the flowers and dries them all herself. I had some gerbers in my vases, and she actually was going to take them home and try drying those. I don't I'm I'm hoping to see them and see how they've turned out. Yeah. Yes. Um, what what we really went to Lygon Street though was to to actually see what would be available for Mother's Day. So the market is on the let me look at the date, it's actually on the 3rd of May, Sunday, the 3rd of May. And you can go there and you can get some beautiful presents for your mum the week before Mother's Day. So you're all prepared for the Mother's Day. For the Mother's Day. So it's not on Mother's Day. No, it's the week before Mother's Day. So it's this this coming Sunday. Great.
SPEAKER_02Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_04What is it? It is the third day. The date, right?
SPEAKER_02So what are we doing, Michelle? We're walking around, you're our um producer. We're walking around. Are we going to be live on Insta?
SPEAKER_04We're going to do some Insta things. And in fact, um, because I've got a store there, if it's as busy as it was last time we were there, Rosemary will be walking around on Insta and saying hello to people. And we will put those straight up on Insta so that you can see them straight on Insta. Shift stirrers on Instagram. And right, as I said, I keep going back to how busy that market was. It was, I had actually, as a as a person, as an artisian attending the market, I had actually thought it wouldn't be busy. I thought, oh, be quick quiet, we can run around, we'll have time. And it was it was chuckers with people. So a lot of people actually go to that little market and actually see things. So, okay, how do how do we turn failure into content? Because we actually did the market. We have lots of experience. We haven't turned failure. Yes, we're very good at failure. You don't learn from success, Rosemary. You learn from failure. That's right. Give us give us more failure. Okay, we went to the interview, and the market was almost too busy for us to do interviews, which was absolutely fantastic, which means that it's a thriving market with customers everywhere. This is a really, really good sign for those who are actually wanting to do a market and wanting to be involved in getting their work out there as a little bit of a way to make money to transition them into doing that creative career. What I loved, Rosemary, was actually seeing everybody's displays and seeing how they set up. Like the jewelers, the jewelers, the jewelers get there at eight o'clock in the morning and they are setting up from eight o'clock in the morning, and sometimes they're not set up by ten o'clock because they're getting everything out and displaying it beautifully. In fact, I when I first started doing markets, I thought, I'm glad I'm not a jeweler. I couldn't be bothered actually setting up all those things. So, but it's nice to see they're all different. We talked to a lot of people on this podcast about what a good market makes from a visitor's perspective. And I think it is variety, quality, vibe, accessibility to food, which there is because there's some food trucks that go there, and a good layout.
SPEAKER_02I love all the displays, and I started off with I didn't realise it's important to display your work so well. And I started off with absolutely rubbish setup, Blackburn Market, and people gave me feedback. You need boxes, you need, you know, and I ended up with a market umbrella. And so I'm a good appreciator of um people's markets because especially with the jewelry setting it up, and it's still 10 o'clock, you're putting it out. Wow.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_02And the beautiful glass, which I'm going to next Saturday Sunday when we're there, the fish hanging from the I loved all that. Go and look at that.
SPEAKER_04If we hadn't run out of battery, we would have interviewed them because they were really lovely. There's also a lady who makes handmade knitted hats and fingerless gloves. I am a fan of fingerless gloves because I do get very cold hands. So even from a typing perspective in winter I will wear fingerless gloves and at my computer be typing with fingerless gloves on. So that's something I'm I love too. Best time to visit anytime after 10 o'clock and up until 3 o'clock. It's open and it's a really good time to visit. It's easy to get to because there's a tram that goes up Ligon Street. There's a number six tram that leaves, it actually starts in, I think it's Armadale and it goes all the way through, all the way up Ligon Street. So there's that tram. You can catch it from the city, or you can actually catch it from up in Armadale. There is also it's easy, it's easy to walk to. There is maybe not on Ligon Street, but there is a large parking facility just around the corner from the market, and there's parking right in front of the market in um Islegyle Place. So yeah, it's there's there's a lot of parking around. Resmi, if you could tell somebody one reason to go to Ligon Street Market, what would it be?
SPEAKER_02Look, I think it's um very inspiring to see things that people make and have the guts to actually set up a market stall and sell and just to see the hard work and the quality and really beautiful work that people create and take there to sell. It's very inspiring. What about you?
SPEAKER_04I think that the artisians that sell there are lovely, they're talented, they're enthusiastic about their customers, they're enthusiastic about what they've made and their own work. It's not just like they've turned up for a job and that's it. Um it's like they actually want to be there. And this market is actually we're talking about the Mother's Day market, but it's actually the first Sunday of every month, except January. So it's it's a market that's running all year round. Yes. So let's get down to our honesty guide. What happened with us? What happened and what was planned? We planned to interview four or five people and put it up online along with our commentary, but we didn't get that far. Only got to two people plus me. Actually, three, but one of them, for some reason, that movie hasn't worked. And what actually happened is that we ran out of battery as well. So, Rosemary, what's your what's your take on that?
SPEAKER_02Well, look, I'm a bit annoyed because I don't see that as a failure, really. I think, you know, it was great, and I don't know why we're presenting it as a failure.
SPEAKER_04Well, we're learning. What do you think makes a good market? I think busy, but what do you think makes a good market? Because busy it means there's that vibe and there's everybody looking and everybody engaging.
SPEAKER_02Look, people need to sell, people need to go home having sold some things. So that makes a good market for the marketeers, the crafters. Well, I think if it's busy and there's lots of variety, but you're the you're the expert on this. Come on, what do you think?
SPEAKER_04I think a busy market makes a good market. Yeah. But I also think it's content. So the content, the quality of the content at that Lighton Street Market is very high. It's as high as Rose Street Market. I think that the Adam and Christian who run the Rose Street Market group actually curate their markets very well. So that they think about the area that that market is in, and they also uh are fanatical on having good quality content at those markets. So I think quality and content and busyness.
SPEAKER_02Yes, you have to put your name down to get into it, don't you?
SPEAKER_04You do, you do. Yeah, most of most of their markets are waitl waitlist-based, and you have to show uh you have to either show your website, your Instagram account, or photographs of your work before they'll they'll let you in. Because they they look at it and go, yeah, wouldn't suit that market, or or even sometimes like we've got too many of that product at that market, we'd like it at some of our other markets. So yeah, it's it's it's good. It is good. I think that the the makers at the market are actually, you know, they're dedicated to what they're doing. There's uh the price ranges are accessible, but there is a mix of some luxury in there as well, and a lot of the work is unique. I will cite my own work. Yes, go, love it. Is that there's my little video in there? Rosemary.
SPEAKER_02Hello, Michelle. I thought I had to turn something off.
SPEAKER_04How are you?
SPEAKER_02What are you doing here?
SPEAKER_04I'm good. I'm selling my ceramics here. I love lying on Street Market. Wonderful. That's one of my favourites. And what do you tell us about your pieces? Okay, um, so I've got some uh beautiful vases I'm doing. I've also got, if I get you to move rosemary, the beautiful sole stones here. Tell us about those. Uh the soul stones are they're going to be sold individually, so you buy a piece and you put them together on the stacker so you can stack your soul one stone at a time. Wow, that's amazing. Yes, and I'll have those so people can buy them for their mother on Mother's Day. Right, so you're back on Mother's Day, aren't you?
SPEAKER_02I'm definitely back here on Mother's Day. What else will people be excited about to see at your store?
SPEAKER_04Well, there's our beautiful bowls and our larger bowls as well that people can buy, but um yeah, um a lot of what I do also is custom make, so people can ask me to custom make something for them. That's awesome, and what do you love about the market? I love that it's ambience, it's got a beautiful feel, it's got lots of customers. It's surrounded by a it's in a courtyard, surrounded by beautiful plain trees, and um it's pretty most of the year. That is awesome.
SPEAKER_03Anything else you'd like to tell us about your stall?
SPEAKER_04No, that's it. Just come and visit me.
SPEAKER_03Alright. Okay, thank you.
SPEAKER_04Thank you so much. Bye-bye. Bye. And you can find unique gifts. So really unique gifts in there for people. They're not everywhere else. There is a there is there's a reason they're there. Um, okay, Roseme, this is a short but sweet video, I think. A short but sweet YouTube. But I'm gonna say, I'm gonna actually say one more thing, and that is I'm gonna tout myself here. I am actually for Mother's Day touting my vases. I'm going to say, I'm actually about to do a range of ads that's gonna start going out on Instagram, and it is there's nothing better than flowers in a vase for Mother's Day. So I have some unique handmade vases that I will be available at the Ligon Street Market and also the following week at Heidi Market in Temple Stow and Rose Street Market on the actual Mother's Days. Yeah, you can come come along and visit me at either any of those markets and buy my beautiful vases. So I'd love to meet you too. If you're listening to our podcast, I'd really love to meet you. You can always get a good cup of coffee at Ligon Street as well, because there's there's coffee shops all around. There's also coffee available from some of the uh food trucks, and there's some beautiful that there's a guy that makes deep fried pasta, which is pretty important to start.
SPEAKER_02Now, Michelle, are we publishing this though before we go to the market?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, we are because it's publishing today is Tuesday, and I'm publishing this tomorrow, which is what I'm doing.
SPEAKER_02Alright, well so I'm going to say to any listener who mentions that they heard our our podcast, it comes up to me, they can have my book for five dollars, but I'm selling them for twenty, so I'll sell that's very nice of you.
SPEAKER_04Yes, because Rosemy, Rosemary is putting her books on my stall that day, so she's gonna have a little corner, a little rosemary corner. Um, and we might put some height to it, Rosemary. We might make some height for it so that it actually. Yeah, it looked a bit sad last month. Yeah. Um, all right, Rosemary. So what has inspired you this week?
SPEAKER_02Well, I've always been inspired by people who come from something that's hard and they have success. So today I'm thinking of I think I saw something on Insta and Please Ed Sheeran, don't sue me. But I think I saw that Ed Sheeran was homeless for 2.5 years, and now of course, that pain and hardship caused him to create this beautiful music. And um, I think I saw him at the airport once. I was gonna rush up, but I thought he really wouldn't like old ladies to kiss him on the cheek. Anyway, um I'm inspired by him. It's about sort of one step in front of the other, and maybe not even seeing success, but just yeah, keeping going, keeping going. So that's him, and then I thought I knew you were gonna ask me, so I did look up JK Rowlings and I found out she send um one of her books to 12 different publishers and was rejected. So that inspires me, gives me heart. What about you?
SPEAKER_04Well, actually, last week I met with the Daring Artists Group in person. We actually do online work together, but last week we had an in-person session in Melbourne, and part of that was visiting other artists' studios, which I found very inspiring. We went to one in Warrendy, which had she had the most beautiful burns and plants with that. She's been there a few years, and her plants and everything have grown really big, and that was inspiring because I I as you can see I love my plants. And then we went down to see one in Ligon Street, actually, at the very top end of Ligon Street, which was a beautiful, beautiful space where two women are in a very small space, but small spaces don't stop you being creative. The creative work that was coming out of that studio was great. Everybody came to my studio, then we went to one in Guessworks and we went to another one in Hampton. So yeah, I it was just it was a very, very, very absorbing day, and I was inspired by other people's work. A big thank you to Amy Kennedy for organising that. It was absolutely fabulous. You went on the Friday to the Kim Don uh exhibition from you. Next time we'll be more organised. Okay, alright. Well, thank you everyone, and we'll see you in a fortnight's time. Okay, Rosemary. Just a list uh quickly of the types of stores that are at Ligon Street this weekend. That is, there's candles, there's jewellery, there's homewares, there's artists with both original artworks and illustrations. There's a lot of ceramics, there's clothing, skincare and soap, crocheted and knitted accessories, plus other accessory stores and stationery. We hope to see you there. Thank you. Thank you so much for listening to Shift Stirrers Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, please hit that follow button so you can get notified whenever we we release new content. We'd love to hear feel from you and feel free to reach out to us at theshift stirrers at gmail.com. Or you can find our individual email addresses and websites in the show notes below. We love questions. You can also connect to us on Instagram at ShiftStirrers. If you found value in today's conversation, we'd be incredible, incredibly grateful if you could leave us a review or a rating on your podcast platform. It really helps others to discover the show. And if you know someone who will benefit from this episode, please share with them. Until next time, keep stirring the shift. Just a quick disclaimer Michelle and Rosemary are not experts in any of these discussions today. We present this podcast in the interest of getting you curious to make changes. Thank you.