Preston’s first Makers Market goes down a storm on the Flag Market

The Harris looks on as the Makers Market takes place Pic: Tony Worrall

Preston’s first Makers Market launched on Saturday with great success.

It was perfect weather to browse stalls selling unusual handmade gifts such as jewellery crafted from recycled piano strings, and books with pictures carved into their pages.

Shoppers could buy feather earrings at one stall and original watercolours from another. In fact the diverse collection of stalls meant that a well-organised person could potentially do their entire Christmas shopping in one fell swoop.

Every seller at the Maker’s Market clearly puts their heart and soul into their wares. I almost walked past V.R.J.J. candles but the lady who makes the candles invited me to smell a few. They were all beautiful; containing only soy wax and natural essences such as rhubarb, blackcurrant, bluebells and sweet peas. It was worth stopping and talking to the stallholder as the candles were far superior to the ones found in big supermarkets.

VRJ Candles selling their wares Pic: Blog Preston

Another stallholder sold carefully polished, individual wooden items including doorstops and chopping boards using woods that had been host to various fungi, which resulted in piebald colouring and interesting patterns through the wood.

The market was also a foodie heaven. Dotted throughout the crafts were some wonderful stalls selling hearty pies, local cheeses, curries, raclette, pickles, filled Bretzels, (bun x pretzels) Greek sauce and every type of cake and biscuit imaginable. Some of the stalls had samples on the counters, and were doing a roaring trade.

Bhajis and samosas at the Makers Market Pic: Blog Preston

Everything I tried was delicious, but a number of items really stood out. Dewlays rioja red wine and caramelized onion cheese, The Cheshire Pie Company’s pork pies, Cinderbake Kitchen’s brownies and The Fudge Hub’s salted caramel fudge.

There were also two local companies selling gin, vodka and gin liqueur. Goosnargh Gin’s Dark Sky was fabulous, with a herbal and aniseed flavour that tastes unusual but perfectly balanced. I also tried Riverside Spirit’s Passion Fruit Gin liqueur which was sharp and sweet, and would work well with lemonade.

Even man’s best friend wasn’t forgotten. The effervescent Vegan Poochy Treats stallholder very kindly let my dog sample the peanut butter and oat treats, and Millie and Ruby’s Dog Bakery gave him a pick ‘n’ mix of different flavoured treats. They were all a great success.