Meet Amy and Laura from Secret Book Stuff

We loved this post about Olive Tree stallholder Secret Book Stuff and we wanted to share it with you! We love knowing the stories behind the people who make up our market community, especially when it involves people finding each other through their joint passions. So here’s the story of Secret Book Stuff .“Okay, the secret part of Secret Book Stuff has been out for quite some time, but it’s time to make it official! Meet Amy and Laura: writers, bibliophiles, and partners in (book-related) crime. Between them, they have 1611 books. Yes, you read that number right. But anyway, here’s the grand old story. Twelve months ago, Amy launched Secret Book Stuff as a random act of kindness project to spread the love of literature and create a little more magic in people’s lives by wrapping her own pre-loved books (the ones she was willing to part with) in eco materials and dropping them at cafes, bus stops, door steps, schools and hospitals. She started selling them as gifts online to raise money for local charities close to her heart, like Newcastle Basket Brigade and Ronald McDonald House. Meanwhile, Laura was drowning in her own teetering book piles and Secret Book Stuff caught her attention. Long story short, Laura loved books. Amy loved books. Suddenly, they fell in love… and decided to combine their book collection (although Amy insists they have coloured stickers inside the covers to make sure they know who owns each book) and run Secret Book Stuff together.” Meet Amy and Laura this Saturday August 4th at The Olive Tree Market.

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 Put August 4th in your little Black Book and Join us at Olive Tree.

Whenever we think of market day we can’t help but start dreaming of all the beautiful work we will be bringing you very soon at Olive Tree! So here is a little inspiration to get you planning your market trip next Saturday August 4th to Olive Tree! Make sure to stop in and meet newbies A Sweet Ride Called Clyde! Delicious goodies to melt your mouth! Discover leather accessories by Tamboon Leather Co, stunning jewellery by Krura, and we are excited that our friends from Clay Canoe will be back, after being away on adventures in the Northern Territory. And for lunch make sure to stop in to catch up with the boys at Bao Brothers for some Taiwanese Street Food. Tell your friends and see you soon market lovers!

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Olive Tree Pops Up on July 14th at Maitland Regional Art Gallery

This Saturday Olive Tree pops-up with our Winter Seasonal Market at Maitland Regional Art Gallery We invite the community of Maitland, and visitors to the region, to join us at this amazing regional gallery, to experience our talented local creative community.

Learn the stories behind the makers carefully created, innovative, handmade pieces, sample gourmet artisan produce and street food, and be inspired by the buzz of people who love what the do!  

A few of our creatives sneak peaks you’ll find this Saturday:

The Salty Crown
If you are a lover of hats then you have to visit The Salty Crown! All of their hats are hand designed and hand crafted and made to be unisex and from bio-degradable and renewable 100% Australian wool felt. Eco-friendly whilst fashionable. 100% in our books!

Lisa Sanasi Ceramics

We love the soft blush colour- and the organic shape of her Pebble Drop Earrings created by Lisa Sanasi Ceramics. Each piece is made by hand in the artists studio, and we know she will be popular this Saturday at Maitland.

Covered in Crumbs

Why not treat yourself to one of these delicious desserts by the talented bakers at Covered in Crumbs. Almost too good to eat, but we’ll risk it!

ICO Studio

ICO Studio is the pseudonym for artist Beck Dixon’s creative pursuits. Beck creates bespoke handmade- one of a kind objects and artworks- that really make a statement. Handcrafted in her home studio, in the coastal town of Terrigal, each piece has it’s own identity and character. Beck has exhibited throughout her career as an artist & educator and is sure to be a hit on Saturday!

Mop and Dolly

Leesa Sitouu of Mop and Dolly does cute so well! We know her up-cycled winter blanket jackets for the little ones will be hit. Each one is unique, with hues to match any colour palette.

Desert Sunday Collective
Winning over local audiences with their amazing ferns, potted succulents and cacti. Creators Andrew and Amanda have an infectious enthusiasm for these green lives. They recently have had major success with a hugely popular pop-up events in Newcastle and The Hunter. Make sure to come early on Saturday, as this duo was super popular at the Spring Seasonal Market.

Our Winter Pop Up Olive Tree will feature our carefully curated line-up showcasing incredible performers, songwriters, and up and coming local musicians. This time it’s Sunday Morning Sidewalk, Vince Redgrove, Martin Rotolo and Huckleberry. It’s the perfect way to get your dose of the best live music outdoors under the beautiful gallery trees while enjoying a coffee or brunch.

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The Lost Collective debuts at Olive Tree.

We are really excited to introduce debut stallholder Brett Patman- the photographer behind Lost Collective to Newcastle this Saturday at Olive Tree! The Lost Collective is a photographic project borne out of Brett’s  fascination with abandoned buildings and disused industrial architecture. He documents rarely-seen locations that once played a major role in their community; from power stations to hospitals, including Tin City in the Stockton sand dunes, and the project has photographed sites across Australia and Japan. The artists work has been featured in well known publications like the Sydney Morning Herald, Yen, Smith Journal and Collective Hub among other publications.

Lost Collective also works to locate former workers and locals, in order to piece together the forgotten history of these once grand locations and tell their story to new generations. So if you have an amazing location, or story workers story you know of, make sure to let Brett know. This is one amazing artists not to miss!

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The Olive Tree Market runs creative workshop every seasonal Pop-up Market at Maitland Regional Art Gallery. This time Reba Dafter, of Pretty Burd, will run a ‘Create a Resin Art Work Workshop’ . A visual asrtist from the Central Coast NSW, Reba studied Fine Art at the University of Western Ontario, and is a teacher, mother, and lover of all things PRETTY! Reba started Pretty Bürd in 2013 which has expanded to facilitate workshops Australia wide since 2016. Here’s what you can expect at the workshop on July 14th. We look forward to sharing the wonderful experience of working with this medium and assisting you in creating your very own artwork!

WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION:
You will be guided through the process in a hands-on workshop and create your very own resin artwork. You will be provided with a 50cm round (or hexagon) panel and dyes, pigments and pearlescent powders needed to create artworks with resin. Reba will be demonstrating how to work with the resin and how to mix colours and techniques for applying and creating designs. Your finished artwork will require a drying period of 24 hours so will need to be collected from the venue after this time.

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APPLY NOW! Calling all makers, designers, artists, and food and drink purveyors! Winter Olive Tree Market Applications are now open for the July 7th date of Olive Tree at Civic Park as well as our Winter Seasonal Olive Tree at Maitland Regional Art Gallery on July 14th 🍂 We can’t wait to see your work!

If you haven’t been to Maitland Regional Art Gallery (MRAG) you have to! The award winning regional gallery has an amazing program of exhibitions and public programming- the gallery is currently featuring HUNTER RED-Razzamatazz .The Hunter Red suite of exhibitions represents a collaborative vision shared by Hunter-based galleries: Lake Macquarie City Art Gallery, Maitland Regional Art Gallery, Newcastle Art Gallery and The Lock-Up Contemporary Art Space. HUNTER RED: Razzamatazz features theatrically vibrant, collected artworks from our region. Coinciding exhibitions at MRAG include: Wendy Sharp| secrets, Jen Denzin and Mandy Robinson | All that Glitters and Luminous Maitland.

The Olive Tree Market is held seasonally, in the beautiful grounds of Maitland Regional Art Gallery, which is located at 230 High Street Maitland. Take a quick 30 min drive from Newcastle and 2 hrs direct on the M1 from Sydney and spend the day discovering the market, gallery and the historic city of Maitland.

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