Zaphir’s debut stall at the wonderful Fonthill Estate

What an amazing experience to be part of the MyTime young carer’s charity event this June. This was the first time Zaphir had created a stall and exhibited its pieces for sale, and it was quite the experience!

When creating a stall, a theme, a concept; you suddenly realise that it is not just about the pieces you make, but that you are creating an entire brand. Obviously creating a website goes a long way towards realising this, but there’s something about bringing together a tangible stand to a public event that really focusses the mind. So many small decisions to be made that contribute to the overall look and feel; what kind of tablecloths to use? How to display things as best as possible? How to avoid plastic when it seems like 99% of jewellery displays on offer are made from acrylic? After some serious research, I found a wonderful family that visits Indonesia every year and buys handmade, beautiful wooden stands direct from the craftspeople who made them. Over 20 years they have formed a great relationship with them, and the stands are really beautiful. Win Win!

I signed up for the stand around 3 months prior, and having a deadline like this meant that I went into jewellery making hyperdrive. Fortunately, this corresponded with springtime and all the wonderful, natural inspiration that comes with the garden bursting into life. I created over 25 pure silver leaves to make into pendants and earrings, and enjoyed every moment of working with the natural materials, as well as deciding whether or not to add gemstones or let the leaf speak for itself.

Then it came to the actual day. We were checking the weather forecast almost obsessively, and it was to be slightly cloudy but pretty windy. This was spot on - and oh my; the wind was a constant challenge. It seemed to know the absolute worst time to hit, knocking several stands over and sending earrings flying all over potential customers. Fortunately the wind died down fairly quickly, and we were able to get into the swing of it, selling 14 pieces on the day and helping contribute towards the amazing £8k for charity that was raised in total from all the stands and entrance fees.

In summary, it was a wonderful experience, made even better by the positive comments from everyone who came to see the stand. Now we have all the exhibition infrastructure ready to go, I can’t wait to find another event! Watch this space…