DIY Wednesday - September Events Recap

Oh how time does fly!  Just two weeks ago I was out for one of the busiest weekends I've had all year.  On Saturday Sept. 19th my friend Amy Barber of Sweettooth Bags, and I, set up during Gruene Market Days in beautiful Gruene, Texas.

This was our first time to do this craft show, and it was a lot of fun!  You can shop the handmade market for everything from soaps and body scrubs by Fleegal Farms, to handmade pottery, wood-inlay jewelry, wooden boxes and bowls, metal art and much much more.











The real highlight of that weekend was the We Make Stuff event produced by Candace Carlisle of Electric Promotions.  The event was a fun evening of crafty-demos by The WonderCraft, an exclusive Handmade Vendor Market, and a Fabulous Fashion Show featuring handbag designs by *annemarie*!
Anne Marie Beard and Candace Carlisle at We Make Stuff.







Gorgeous Model from We Make Stuff Fashion Show



The thing I enjoyed the most about the evening was getting all gussied up in my outfit!  A few weeks ago I attended the debut Fashion Show of local Designer Anslee Connell of Savannah Red.  I fell in love with her dresses, and asked to "dress" me for the event.

We found the PERFECT dress, and I have not felt that sexy in a looooooong time!  My amazing hairpiece was courtesy of Sweettooth Bags, and my unusual one of a kind necklace by Spoilt Victorian Child.  Viva Le Austin Designers!



The sassy pictures above are courtesy of Austin's busiest Photo Booth Man... Trevor Ray Thompson.  Allison and I are proud that he provided the photo booth for our first Shop Austin Event, as he is getting all famous now!

The Fashion Show was photographed by John Pesina, and you can see more of the pictures of that here.

October looks to be a fun filled month on the Austin Craft Scene and Austin Fashion Scene as well... look for details on Handmade Happenings™  by The Lone Star Ladies coming soon!

xo, Anne Marie

Sunday Steals!

What's worn out in your wardrobe? Need a new skirt with pintuck detailing, or a snazzy pair of Grecian sandals? Looking for a stellar handbag to complete your fall look?

Girls, Ladies, Fashionistas... if you haven't heard about Le Garage Sale - then you're just not living the Austin way of life!

As I get ready to settle in for a Saturday night of cleaning, I'm looking back on all of the wonderful events of last week, and ahead towards one more day of Le Garage Sale!

Le Garage Sale is a bi-annual shopping event featuring discounted end of season and preview merchandise from Austin's hippest boutiques and designers. Many of the participants of Austin Fashion Week are participating, including myself, and my dear friends Amy Barber of Sweettooth Bags and Diane Petkoff of Tasty Jewelry. This is the ONLY time you can get *annemarie* bags at such a discount!

Come on out to Palmer Events Center on Sunday from 11am to 5pm - the entrance is just $10.00, and the shopping deals are endless!

xo, Anne Marie

Austin Fashion Week: Wrap Up

Ahhhh, the first ever Austin Fashion Week ended last Sunday, July 19th, with the Austin Fashion Awards at the Long Center.

Of course, I am not a "real" writer - because all the "real" writers posted their reviews on Monday - and it's Thursday! I am slooooooowww because I like to party when I party, and then I need to rest. For a full on critique, visit Marques Harper's Blog.

Here is my lowdown:

Thursday Night was my Trunk Show at Urban Groove - and I was delighted to see lots of friends and get my hair, make-up and nails done by the lovely girls at the Salon. They have a great staff of beautiful and sweet women that work there - and I highly recommend their services!







Next we hopped over to Austin Handmade for their Grand Re-Opening party... super fun! They had a special cake made by Sugar Mama's Bakeshop, live music, and DIY demos by The Wondercraft.






Saturday morning was my 2nd event at Urban Groove; it was a special day and I got to reconnect with several old friends. Thanks for stopping by! After loading and unloading my car in the heat of the day, I relaxed for a bit before heading out to the next party!



Camille Jackson, designer of Diamonds and Guns, had her party at Urban Betty Salon - where she provided homemade cupcakes, and they had an awesome DJ spinning tunes with 3 awesome raffle prizes. I got to meet lots of ladies from the Etsy Austin Team, and had two more cupcakes - to end a week FULL of cupcakes!








Sunday finally rolled around and it was time to strut our stuff on the Red Carpet. Matt Swinney of Launch787, along with Clink Events, did a great job of producing the Austin Fashion Awards. It was so fun to walk down the Red Carpet and get our pictures taken, and sitting at the beautiful Long Center during the ceremony felt so... Hollywood! Especially getting to see my friend Kim Sae-Eua win the MAJOR award of Rising Star! Wow, Austin has never had anything like this, and I look forward to seeing just how big it gets for 2010.




Cheers!
xo, Anne Marie

Austin Fashion Week - First Impressions

Last night was the 1st night of Austin Fashion Week - the brainchild of Matt Swinney, formerly of Rare Magazine. When the list of Participating Designers was announced a few weeks ago - we had a twinkling of an eye to plan some stellar events - and Austinites KNOW how to throw a party at the last minute!

The concept of Austin Fashion Week (AFW) is to showcase local designers, boutiques, salons, models, photographers, and more. Designers are hosted by a salon/boutique for the whole week, with events going on every day. If you like free cocktails and snacks - you're set for the next 5 days! Visit my blog for coverage all week long - and be sure to check out my events!

So my 16 year old niece and I headed out in the heat - in the un-airconditioned HOOPTIE - to check out a few events.




First stop was Thomas Saverio Salon in Northwest Austin. They had a great selection of food and drinks, and were hosting Team Etsy Austin member Cindy Chuang of Sweet Potato Island. Cindy is a newcomer to the Austin Fashion Scene - she joins the exclusive ranks of "best constructed handbags" in town. This group includes Liz Potter of Bolsa Bonita, Wendy Irwin of Ballistic Sweater Girl, and myself.


Cindy's designs were beautifully displayed, and News 8 Austin showed up to cover it!


Next stop was WaterStone Aesthetics, a full service Salon near UT Campus. OMG - best Customer Service Experience I have had in a long long time! Their event was an "educational evening" with free consultations on hairstyling and up-dos. We were warmly greeted by everyone, and I had the pleasure of sitting down with Joe Edwards.




I have a hard time styling my hair in this heat - and Joe showed me how to get a sexy, wavy look with a difusser. I had sworn off diffusers since my forced perm days of the early 90s, but I think I am a new convert! WaterStone is hosting talented designer Kerri Lawnsby of Foxy Fusions - her fused glass work is gorgeous! They are teaming up for what is sure to be a fun fashion show this Friday from 7:30 to 10:30.

So what's on tap for tonight? CHIA's event at SOLA: The Triangle and Tasty Jewelry's Cocktail Party at Sirens Salon - Gotta see my girls! Check out the AFW calendar for full details!

Don't forget to VOTE FOR *ANNEMARIE* as Austin's Best Designer - and check out my events this week!

xo, Anne Marie

New Accessories in my Etsy Shop!

I have been sooo behind in my sewing this year. December was a record month for me - and I literally SOLD OUT of stock!





So I am rapidly trying to catch up, and finally posted some new accessories on Etsy. The fabric is this adorable retro print with dots and circles on a brown background. It was a super seller in December, and just matches everything. Enjoy!



xo, Anne Marie

www.TheBeardedLadiesPresent.com

*annemarie* featured in the Austin paper

The fabulous store where I sell on Austin's South Congress shopping strip, Parts & Labour, was featured in the Austin American-Statesman today.



There is a write up about the store, and pictures of my bags in the print version! Looks like my pic didn't make it on the web, but my good friend Wendy Irwin's bags did! She is the uber crafty owner of Ballistic Sweater Girl.

Off to South Congress today to set up in my booth at Jo's Coffee shop... I am expecting to see all kinds of cool outfits and SXSW brings thousands into Austin for the weekend!

xo
Anne Marie

Get your Shop On!

This weekend has some of the best Holiday Shopping in Austin, Texas. Who wants to purchase cool, one of a kind, modern, reasonably priced gifts? You do??? Well peep the Cherrywood Art Fair! I do this show every year, and we got great coverage in the Austin American Statesman today. Check out the article for shopping details on two other fabulous events - Blue Genie and the Armadillo!

Thornton Road Studio Sale - Saturday!

Come on out to the Thornton Road Studio Sale today! From 10am to 5pm, we will be celebrating the holiday season with handmade art and live music! I am set up at the Cone 10 Studio - which is the very last studio on the left. Check out all these awesome photos of some of the work there.