I first took satin&tat to the markets in 2015.

I really had no idea what I was doing. I just had a table full of handmade collage work and hoped people would like it.

What followed was years of early mornings, packing and unpacking, loading the car, setting up, pulling everything apart again and doing it all over the next weekend.

I did a lot of markets.

Some were brilliant. Some were freezing. Some were hot enough to make me question every life choice that had led me there. There were markets where I sold out of things and markets where I sold almost nothing. There were beautiful conversations with customers, friendships with other stallholders and plenty of lessons learned the hard way.

And somewhere along the way, I became pretty good at it.

I learned that a successful stall isn't just about having great products. It's about how you present them. It's about making it easy for someone to stop, look and understand what you're selling. It's about having enough stock, but not bringing your entire studio with you. It's about knowing what to say to customers, what not to say, and what to do when the weather, the crowd or your carefully planned setup decide to do something completely different.

I also learned that markets can be exhausting.

For years I could handle the physical side of it. Eventually, that changed. Being diagnosed with MS meant that the long days, early starts, loading the car and being on my feet for hours became much harder. I had to step away from something that had been such a big part of my creative business.

But I didn't lose all those years of experience.

Instead, I turned them into To Market, To Market, a practical guide for makers and artists who are either thinking about doing their first market, or want to make their existing stall work harder.

It's essentially everything I wish I'd known when I started, gathered together in one place!

I may not be doing markets anymore, but I still love talking about them. And I still get a little excited when I see a really good stall.

To Market, To Market is only available from theartofmarkets.com.au

PS. visit @theartofmarkets on Instagram for market tips and tricks