End of Summer

I am so terrible about taking pictures of the things I do, but here are a few from my summer full of fun!

7 September 2022

It’s been a summer full of fun and new experiences. To start it all off, I moved out to Tacoma in June with some amazing girls and I’m so happy to be close to all the things I love. I’ve also been able to do lots of new markets and pop ups, meeting so many amazing new people along the way. Since the summer is finally coming to a close, I figured it was a good time to reflect and share a little more about all the events and pop ups I was able to do this season.

To kick off my summer, I was able to partner with a very cool tattoo shop in Downtown Olympia this May called Sorry Mom Ink where they gave me space to share some of my earrings. Sorry Mom Ink is full of amazing artist and such sweet people, and I was so grateful they opened up their shop to me and are supporting my small business. This opportunity was brought to my attention by a friend and a very talented artist there, Tasha. Tasha is a first year tattoo artist at Sorry Mom Ink and has been doing an incredible job there. I’ve been lucky enough to have her tattoo me a couple times and I can’t wait to go back and have her do more! She was the one who reached out to me and got me connected with the shop, hyping my jewelry up and supporting me in growing my business. If you guys ever get a chance, you need to swing by the shop in Downtown Oly or even go check out there Instagram @sorrymominkoly. You should also go check out Miss. Tasha’s work on her Instagram @tattoos_by_tashav.

Moving into the month of June, there was so many things happening for me then. I moved into my new place June 6th and celebrated my 22nd birthday on June 19th, and I also got to celebrate one of my bestest friends 21st birthday on the same day! Along with the birthday celebration, I also got to kick off the market season with my favorite market ever, the Tacoma Sunday market. The Tacoma Sunday Market has such a special place in my heart. The people who put it all together and help run it are such wonderful and loveable people. Dese and Richard are the ones who started TS M and opened the doors for me to doing markets, and I am so grateful to have met them and be part of an amazing community they have helped build in Tacoma.

In June, I only did 2 markets for the month, but then July rolled around I was busier than ever! I did a total of 5 markets and pop ups for the month of July. Starting it off, I was part of the Moonlight Night Market on Bainbridge Island. This was my first time ever on the Island and it was one fantastic experience. The drive out to Bainbridge was absolutely gorgeous and the downtown they had was so cute! This market was a little different than ones I have done previously, but it was so much fun and was a great turn out. They already had the tents set up for the vendors (which was amazing!!) and they had the best live dj there for the night. By the end of the night, I was dancing with all the people I met and was just having the best time ever. The following week I was back at the Tacoma Sunday Market and then I popped up at the Lincoln District Food Walk, which was also put on by the TSM team. The food walk had such an amazing turnout and I saw so many new and familiar faces. They also had live bands preforming and lots (I mean LOTS) of food vendors there. I ended up getting a poke a bowl that was to die for!

Then, to wrap up the month of July I was able to do a little promo pop up at one of the Rainer’s games for the biggest market of the summer at Cheney Stadium! This was such a fun experience and was such a good way to connect more with the community. During the pop up, I met Andy, a very cool dude who has his own Tacoma based podcast called The Like It Or Not podcast. Andy was kind enough to let me pop on the podcast that day and I had so much fun doing it, I couldn’t stop smiling. I’ve never done a podcast before and I was pretty stoked I got to be part of one here in Tacoma. Definitely go check out his podcast and Instagram @the_likeitornot_podcast.

Wrapping up my summer with August, I did 3 markets and pop ups for the month. I started the month with the La Paloma Market on N. Proctor. This was my first time at this market and I had so much fun. It was going on at the same time as the big art fest and the Proctor Farmers Market, so it was one jam packed day! The La Paloma Market was started by Molly, who is such a lovely lady and who has just opened up the cutest little shop on N. 21st Street called La Paloma Tacoma. Molly is all about providing a space for underrepresented groups in the community and has curated such a beautiful little shop. Go check out her shop on Instagram @lapaloma_tacoma or go see the shop for yourself one these days!

The second to last pop up I did for August was at Parable Tacoma, a space that offers so much to our community. I’ve had the pleasure of working with Parable last year at one of their other pop ups and was so pleased that they asked me back to celebrate their one year anniversary. They had live music, amazing local artisans, and some of the best food vendors around the Tacoma area popping up and celebrating their one year. When you get a chance, you should check out their shop or one of their many events they put on, just pop in on their Instagram @parabletacoma.

The last and the biggest market that I have ever done was the Tacoma Sunday Market at Cheney Stadium! There were over 100 vendors, live music, a party deck, and so many food vendors making this market so amazing. Again, the TSM team put on such a fantastic event and created something so memorable for the community. I am so fortunate that I have been able to be part of so many wonderful events and have had the opportunity to connect with so many incredible people along the way. Each event this summer offered my business and myself a way to grow. I have made some great connections and feel like I am now part of such a cool community. All the people and all the markets I have done this summer are helping me grow and is guiding my vision for what I want for my business and myself.

I want to give the biggest thank you to all that have supported me through this amazing summer and I am so grateful to have met such amazing people along the way! I can’t wait to see where things go from here, hopefully things keep going up. I have a couple events lined up this month in Renton with the Black Love Market and will keep you all posted on where I’ll be next.

With so much love,

Kabenzie :)