Some school fundraisers are just magic. The Brunswick Northwest Primary School Spring Magic Market lived up to its name. I wish I had more time to leave the stall and check out the other great stuff on offer. As it was I spent a fair bit of what I earned on other makers’ wares and on delicious cakey type snacks.

I was pleasantly surprised to sell out of my Soy Fish Lamps fairly early on. Did you know you can colour glass by mixing PVA glue, water and food colouring and baking it at 90 degrees celsius for 15 minutes or so? Thusly I achieved my ‘fishes in the watery green reeds’ effect!

The fish themselves are spray painted soy sauce fish (thoroughly washed), collected from the 2023 Darebin Hard Rubbish Heroes pop up shop and are now living in some (thoroughly washed) donated bottles that once smelled very strongly of home-made port.

It’s great to think that these wasteful little plastic boogers might be on their way to being banned across Australia, with South Australia leading the way from September 1 2025. Hopefully other states will follow, but so far only New South Wales has proposed to make the move. I guess that means my fish lamps can only increase in value as they become a rarity item 🙂