On August 29, it was time for Z.ART tides to pack everything up and head to Germany! More precisely, to the Thriftpark Festival in Düsseldorf.
For me, this market was something special. Z.ART tides only came to life after I moved to the Netherlands and by now it has become such a big part of my life here in Zeeland. That made it even more special to take my creations back to my home country this time and show what has been created by the sea over the past few months.
Back home
Most of the markets I have attended with Z.ART tides so far have been in Zeeland – a place where shells, beaches and the sea are naturally part of everyday life.
So I was genuinely curious to see how my work would be received in Düsseldorf.
And that turned out to be one of the loveliest experiences of the day: apparently, Z.ART tides works just as well a little further away from the sea.
It was wonderful to see that my creations do not only appeal to people who live directly on the coast or happen to be there on holiday. In Düsseldorf too, people picked out shells, shared ideas and took little pieces of Zeeland home with them.
There is something really special about knowing that my shells are no longer only spread across Zeeland and the surrounding area, but have now also found new homes a few hundred kilometres away.
Friends, family and so much support
Another thing that made this day so special was the people I got to spend it with.
Since moving to the Netherlands, seeing my friends and family is no longer as natural and spontaneous as it used to be. That made it even nicer to have a market day back home and to have some of them there with me.
There was helping, carrying, setting up, giving advice, chatting in between and, of course, plenty of laughing.
Z.ART tides may be my little project, but days like this remind me just how many people are there in the background cheering me on, listening to my ideas, giving feedback or simply being there.
And I am incredibly grateful for that.
Feedback you simply do not get online
One of the things I love most about markets is the direct feedback.
Online, of course, you can see which posts perform well or which products are being ordered. But it is completely different to experience people standing right in front of your stall.
Which shell do they pick up first? Which design immediately catches their eye? What would they use it for? And sometimes those conversations even lead to ideas I had never thought of myself.
At the Thriftpark Festival, I had many conversations like these and received such lovely feedback about my work and the concept behind Z.ART tides.
Especially because Düsseldorf is not directly by the sea, I found that particularly interesting.
It showed me that maybe my creations are not necessarily about living close to the coast. Maybe it is actually the other way around: when the sea is not right outside your front door, it can be even more special to bring a little piece of it into your home.
New contacts and new possibilities
Besides the sales, some interesting new contacts also came out of the day.
I had conversations about custom-made pieces, new commissions and possible collaborations. And these are exactly the kinds of things that I have come to find almost as exciting as the actual sales themselves.
You start talking to people, tell them about your work and suddenly a completely new idea comes out of it.
So some of these conversations will stay with me beyond the Thriftpark Festival, and I am really excited to see what might develop from them.
A truly lovely day
At the end of the day, I returned to Zeeland with fewer products, but with so many new impressions and memories.
I was incredibly happy about every single person who stopped by my stall, bought something, asked questions or simply left me a few kind words.
And it was just as special to bring Z.ART tides back to my home country for once and to spend this day together with friends and family.
Thank you to everyone who stopped by, and of course to my favourite people for all their help and support. 🤍
So perhaps this was not the last time I brought a little piece of Zeeland to Germany.
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