Handmade finds

In my efforts to find free wifi in the city, I signed up for a library card at the State Library of South Australia (it was super easy to sign up). I love it! I've been getting magazines from there pretty regularly, and across from the magazines, is a manga section. Did you know Marvel released a comic book version of Pride and Prejudice? Awesome! And someone else turned Midsummer Night's Dream into a graphic novel.

Anyway, back to the magazines. There's an arty Australian women's magazine called "frankie" that I've really enjoyed reading, but the branch I go to only has, like, 3 copies. But it's cool! They're big on photography, handmade items, and whimsical art. Each issue has a page devoted to stuff you should buy, but instead of high-street brands or designer labels like Louis Vuitton, most of the 'brands' are Etsy shops. A magazine that tells you to shop on Etsy! They feature lots of interviews with indie bands I've never heard of, and shopkeepers who run cool little stores in more cosmopolitan places like Sydney and Melbourne, but it's fun to look at the pictures. The magazine is overall pretty hipster, but I guess I can't really deny that I enjoy a bit of the hipster lifestyle. Only a bit, though.

Wait, there was a point to this blog post, wasn't there? Oh yeah, "frankie" mentioned a cool second-hand store in Adelaide called Irving Baby. I went to check it out. They bill themselves as "vintage," but that is a term used very loosely these days. There was some 70's and 80's era stuff in there, but a fair amount of modern second-hand clothing as well. They also sold handmade jewelry and bags, which I found more interesting. In the end, I couldn't resist buying a pack of original art stickers. I love the yellow catwoman!

by Lauren Carney

On my way from Irving Baby to the library, I passed this place.

They had loads of different handmade arty objects for sale, including jewelry, wallets, ceramics and glassware, paintings, illustrations, sculptures, textiles, and generally gifty things. They also sell t-shirts celebrating South Australia with jokes only an Adelaidean would get. I found some super duper cute Henna-painted ceramics, but they were sadly a bit out of my (unemployed) price range.