Grandma Funk

Vintage Garage - Collingwood

2011-12-29T03:36:00.000-08:00

Finally, now I have some spare time! Have been running around like crazy, these past couple of weeks. Restocking & merchandising my stockists. Grandma Funk has been stocking at Vintage Garage since September. The store features over 30 independent vintage labels, with so much to select it's enough to browse for hours. The owners Marissa, Lisa & Sean are really fun people. I know really understand what Marissa & Lisa first told me when I went to check out the shop "were all like family" We all have so much fun in the shop, the laughs are endless & our get togethers are always memorable! If you are after anything vintage this is a massive # 1 stop! Located on 318 Smith St. Collingwood. The choices are endless but best be quick, stock moves fast :-)

FACEBOOK SALES LAUNCH

2011-11-29T01:49:00.000-08:00

A photo shoot was always on the to-do calendar! Finally, it all came together in November. I scoured the talent via my facebook page, advertising for models. Grandma Funk introduces you to their beautiful models Skye and Kendall. Both will be regularly featured in future GF collections. We all had so much fun! The location was held at my stockist Vintage Garage, 318 Smith St, Collingwood. Marissa was kind enough to allow my entourage to shoot on the premises. Amy owner of Fantail Vintage were also on premises to shoot the models for their collection.

The day did not start out promising....the weather also progressed to rain! It did not bother me at all, rain hail or shine we got to work. Skye & Kendall had an absolute ball playing dress ups. I styled the photos myself with the help of my gorgeous assistant Emma because I am snowballed with so much work! especially since facebook sales have launched. The GF team are very pleased with the photographs and response from our customers. Sales side, is an absolute hit! Never imagined it would take off so quickly.

I have so much thanks to Hello Sailor Vintage Fair. Grandma Funk's continued retail pop up presence at Melbourne Central is enabling me to take this business to its next level! Since my launch in July, my customers have followed me on facebook and continue to buy whenever I am there. Some have even recognised my label from Vintage Garage & Currency Vintage. Customer loyalty is so important, especially in this retail game!

Kendall White

Skye Young

There's so many new projects in the works! Looking forward to showcasing it all to you in the upcoming few weeks! xoxoox

Strawberry Fields Music Festival

2011-11-17T03:20:00.000-08:00

http://strawberry-fields.com.au/site/

Grandma Funk is looking forward to participating in Strawberry Fields Music Festival. It is going to be a massive action packed event. Can't wait for the road trip, GF has been planning this for sometime now. I'm taking an entourage of staff and yes, were going to be camping Yay! The event will take place between the 25th - 27th of November 2011.

Here's an extract from the website :
"This years line-up features a plethora of local and international talent. Everything from electronic jazz, deep house and techno, dub, dubstep, reggae, psy, experimental and glitch are covered over the three days of music. More artists are being added to this list on a weekly basis so check back to keep up with what is going on!"

Tickets are almost sold out! Here's the link for the location. http://strawberry-fields.com.au/site/news/about-us/ If you dare to venture on this road trip, be sure to visit my Grandma Funk pop up stall. I will have a limited edition collection of vintage mens tees & band tees available, to cater for the guys! One of GF's favourite independent labels "Her Pony" will also be there. Check out Lauren's beautiful collection via http://www.herpony.blogspot.com/

Until next week's event, I have heaps of tasks to finalise before the event. Tomorrow, I'm off to restock my stockists Currency Vintage & Vintage Garage. Can't wait! Also, have a secret project in the works...will update everyone via facebook when details are confirmed xo

Currency Vintage Stockist

2011-11-15T20:25:00.000-08:00

One of initial aims, when I began this business was to find stockists willing to take on Grandma Funk. I found details via facebook of an awesome independent vintage shop, Currency Vintage located on 246 Brunswick St, Fitzroy. At the time, they were looking for independent designers & vintage collectors to rent out space in their shop. I could not believe my luck, this was a major break in stepping into the retail industry.

Grandma Funk has been stocking there since August 2011, starting with just one rack. Now GF stocks 3 racks there, pay them a visit as there's lots of other gorgeous vintage collectors there also. When you step in, just look for GF's signature logo there's a sign there where you can find my latest stock. There's loads to buy & choose, the selection is endless....vintage skirts, re-worked pieces, accessories & my latest collection of straw woven clutch bags.

I have invested a lot of time refining my collections there & making the most of this fantastic opportunity. The lovely owner Danielle is there most days of the week, she has a great eye for detail. Mel who also works there on a part time basis, recently launched her kidswear range Junkyard Vintage. Mel's collection is beyond cute! There's plenty of others collectors that are worth mentioning too, Shappere, Hobo, Grandma's Finest, Coco Vintage & Replay (men's t-shirt label).

Grandma Funk Events! - HELLO SAILOR VINTAGE FAIR

2011-11-15T17:12:00.000-08:00

My gosh, it's been a long time since I have made any updates on this blog. I feel very blessed & so pleased with Grandma Funk's progress. The first post I wrote was all about my ideas. So much has happened, since that time. I will try my best to give you an update on the last few months.

Grandma Funk officially launched @ the Hello Sailor Vintage Fair on the 24th of July 2011, this was part of the State of Design Festival @ Melbourne Central. It absolutely blew me away, the response from customers about my re-worked pieces & collection was beyond amazing. This event in particular, gave me hope that I can actually achieve everything I want from this business. My parents were so supportive & sweet. They helped me transport all of my stock & set up my Pop Up Stall. Of course, my husband Omar was with me too, but he's better at counting numbers. I worked my entire stall myself, it was exhausting but worth every minute of it. Here are some pics, of the event.

I was fortunate enough to secure an spot that had become available for Hello Sailor. It was a massive achievement on my part. My labels arrived just in time, above is a picture of the various sizes of my labels. Our good friends from Media Max designed my logo, we think its pretty funky, creative yet, simple for our customers to recognise. Love Love Love it!!!

The Pop Up stalls @ Melbourne Central are created in such a way to create a professional retail space! All that is left to do, is to make it look pretty. When you have such gorgeous pieces, it isn't difficult to achieve.

This is my beautiful Mother, who took the time from her weekend to help me out. I made her pull a funny face for the camera. It's my Grandma & Mother who really kicked off my love for recycled clothing.

Some photographs of my vintage bags. There's also some samples of bags that have now been released in my stockists. These samples flew out the door. The response from these bags has been really positive. Some feature my own designs & colour combinations with Grandma Funk's signature logo on a metal plaque.

A snapshot of my rack. An absolutely fun day, could not have asked for more. I had so much fun playing fashion stylist with my customers. So many pieces went to new loving homes!

These girls were on their way to High Tea, they were so funky & reminded me of little dolls.
Love their style & overall cuteness.

Freedom

2011-07-20T09:00:00.000-07:00

I first started designing & creating pieces from a very young age. My Lola (otherwise known as Grandma Funk) would make my clothes. I thoroughly enjoyed the outfits she would make me, it felt special and unique knowing that no one else had the same outfit. Most of all it was made with love! I remember my opp shop trips as a child. My Lola & Mum would take me to various opp shops and markets. We would always find treasures to take home. At that stage, the toys were my favourite. I am not sure what started the trend of opp shops with my Mum. I guess it was the affordability factor. My Mum has worked extremely hard to make a life for herself here in Australia. She has sacrificed a lot for me, in a hope to give me a better life. I can honestly say she has achieved this for me and I love her for everything she is. We've had our moments but doesn't everyone?

Arriving to a foreign country as a 5 year old not knowing a single word of English was rather strange for me in certain aspects. I never went to school in Manila (Philippines) let alone even one day of kindergarden or pre-school. My gosh, for such awhile I didn't even know how to write my own name. Turns out years later as I graduated from high school English and Literature were one of my major strengths. I later enrolled to undertake a degree in Media & Communications.....graduating with a Bachelor of Arts Journalism. Journalism is no longer my passion....as you age and learn from your experiences it allows you to appreciate life a little more. I have taken an oath to always be true to myself. I want nothing more than to be my own boss.

Funky People

2011-07-11T16:43:00.000-07:00

Commute

On my way to work, as much as I get irritated with the Melbourne public transport system I have grown a fodness for the 45 minute journey. There is a gorgeous group of elderly men & women who take the train together twice a week. I admire their style, one lady in particular was sooo cute! Dressed in pink trench coat, woolen beret, cute black leather gloves to keep her paws warm :-) and to complete the outfit Salvatore Ferregamo flats. Ahhhhh loved it!

Swamped with ideas

I have been busy brain storming ideas for my label & blog! So many exciting projects to look forward to. I can't wait to show people. I'm currently still trying to get the jist of how a blog operates. It actually makes me second guess why I chose to discontinue with my digital media subject :-( Anyhow, it's all a work on progress am hoping my blog can look a little more creative.

Styling Grandma Funk

This photograph is the second outfit I styled for Grandma Funk. One of my best friends Tristan assisted me in styling her! Poor Grandma Funk Mannequin has larger hips than we anticipated. We giggled as we tried to put the dress on her we even joked "Grandma Funk you have mother bearing hips must be the 12 children you gave birth from the 50s & 60s". All in good fun, can always count on my Tristan to make me laugh. After all...isn't that what friends are for? xoxo