On Sunday Feb. 12, over 40 vendors and patrons were at the Athens Cotton Press for Indie South Fair’s fourth annual Handmade Lovers Valentine’s Market. A variety of handcrafted products filled the rustic space—from handmade candles to screen-printed t-shirts.
Founder and organizer of the fair, Serra Ferguson, started Indie South ten years ago after seeing the need for a handcrafted market in Athens. Ferguson said that the market is expanding regionally, and in the future she wants to appeal to a different crowd by moving toward more specialized products.
Vendors traveled from various places to attend this handmade market—like twin sisters Margaret and Ellen Hinrichs of Geoflora. They traveled from Charlotte, North Carolina to Athens to sell their handcrafted jewelry. Working from their dining room table, the sisters use gem stones, brass and sterling silver to create their pieces.
Photo/Lexi Kim
Small-town screen printer Erin Evans traveled from Covington to sell her hand-drawn prints. Known as her mother’s daughter in her hometown, Evans named her business just that—Jane’s Daughter. She handprints the images by using a linoleum block for smaller items like her handmade pillows or zipper purses. Evans uses screen printing to produce images on t-shirts, like the Gilmore Girls quote “Oy with the poodles already.”
In addition to vendors selling their products, there were also organizations present, like Acceptance Recovery Center, who gave out handmade Valentine’s cards and baked goods for a suggested donation.
The ARC is an Athens based recovery center established in Jan. 2016 by founder and executive director Brandy Anderson. Since the ARC is donation-based, funds raised during the market will go toward providing beds and recovery services to those who cannot afford treatment, according to Anderson.
“It’s an opportunity for us to get our name out there and let people know that we’re here,” Anderson said.
Another non-profit organization at the event was the Shine Project. The organization employs and mentors inner city high schoolers in Arizona and Tennessee to make handmade bracelets, necklaces and rings. The students are paid hourly to make the jewelry and can be awarded up to $5,000 in scholarships, according to ambassador team leader Nancy Gent.
The photo of the first three Shine Project graduates hung next to the jewelry on display made by current students of the organization.
The market also continues to attract University of Georgia students like Mary Hathaway Lipscomb, a freshman social work major from Atlanta.
“I’ve gone to the other ones
