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We Love … Barista Oat Milk Lattes If for all your own reasons you don’t drink cow’s milk but you love your creamy frothy fabulous coffee espressos. Then like me you have probably been thinking, “surely someone can make a milk than doesn’t come from a cow, but makes that perfect creamy texture and flavour I love”.
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The happy answer is, they have. The Alternative Dairy Co.’s 100% animal free Oat Milk barista only line puts the power back into the hands of your café-meister’s expertise. Now they can make it, just the way I like it. … and I love it.
Selena
Junkies editor Cover Concept/Photography Nadun Basnayake Clicksation Photography (@clicksation) Dress Designing/Styling Anna Mango & Tarja Martin Siskosisko Design (@siskosiskodesign) Model Adri Vargas (@adri.rvargas) Hair and Make-up Samantha Feld-Holmes (@sfh.mua) contents
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innovate 42 Emerging Trends in Sustainable Design 69 Better Than New
wear 12 Zavi grow 28 Seed Storing Diary 76 Go Plastic Free Get Luffed
habitat 70 Happy Human Hang-Outs
create 30 Weaving a Magical World 38 Vogue Gone Rogue 48 Re-Tyre Shoes 60 A Life of a Thousand Soles 84 Wild Sisters
explore 46 Taipei Travel Adventure 90 Main Road Resurgence nourish 80 Gardener’s Revenge
discover 64 CafĂŠ Happiness
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cover story 52 The Salvage Sisters unite 20 COP-25 24 A Tale of Community Cohesion 40 Keeping It Local 96 Standing Strong Together
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Editor From You News Subscriptions Things We Love Books
From the Editor Welcome to our first edition for 2020. What a year it has been so far, full of sadness, fear and overwhelming uncertainty. The devastation and loss emanating from the bushfires caused much heartbreak for many Australian families, businesses and communities. We have experienced our precious bushland razed and our wildlife perish. Now we face threats to our health, with the virus challenging communities across the globe and our supermarket shelves cleaned out of basic provisions, as people brace for an uncertain future. But through times of crisis, the best aspects of human nature can emerge. It is imperative that we pull together and look after each other. The word that resonates with me is resilience, as it embodies all the principles of sustainability: creating an environment of selfsufficiency, growing our own food and sharing it with others, sharing our resources and our skills with neighbours and our community. Thinking globally and acting locally is the key message in many of our stories in this edition, as they focus on exactly these principles. Our article on empowering communities through local workshops is an excellent example of how to nurture resilience skills. We also learn of the concerns and commitments of some very determined and impressive young students who traveled to Europe for the COP 25 global conference on the Climate Emergency. Our cover story features two Finnish sisters, Sisko-Sisko, whose creativity and ability to see waste as a resource, and particularly as inspired fashion, is captured in a stunning and thoughtprovoking photoshoot. 07 >
We showcase some award-winning housing designs from across the globe and share with you our adventures in Taipei, that we undertook while it was still a good time to travel of course. As we head into the months ahead, stay safe, look after each other and take some time to enjoy the little things that make your heart sing and, check out below for our very big news. Enjoy,
Selena
Our big news is … this is your last edition of junkies.
Win a Munash Organics Pack
But the good news is, we will be back next edition more power-packed than ever, full of inspiration and great resources, under our new name: ReThink I am sure you will agree, there is no ‘junk’ any more, everything has to go somewhere, so it is time to ReThink. Tell us what you would like to see and be able to access from now on in this magazine and online and you could win a beautiful pack from Munash Organics. Send your letter with your contact details to: hello@junkies.com.au or via lovely ol’ snail mail to: PO Box 509, Buninyong VIC 3357
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INDOOR PLANT FOLIAGE SPRAY and INDOOR PLANT SOIL FOOD
ReThink < 08
ReCycle
ReDuce
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ReUse
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Editorial Editor and Chief Junkie Selena Buckingham: selena@junkies.com.au Editorial Team Copy Editors Michelle Coxall: theknownworldbookshop@gmail.com Kirien Withers: kirien@junkies.com.au
HI Junkies, I have always been an op shop junkie! When I visit a new town, it’s the first shop I look for. Rarely do I ever buy new clothing, footwear or accessories. My Makers magazine came in the mail this week and gosh, it is a wonderful publication.
Hello Junkies and a huge thank you for such a fantastic mag. < 10
My dear friend bought my daughter and I a Junkies mag each as a present. Well we cannot put them down. We are totally hooked. We love re cycling and always have done. We simply love re purposing anything we find. So much so they all say oh what are you up to now!!! I just have to pop in pics of our latest makes!!! Mine the driftwood and hubby the re purposed drain thing! So again thank you. I have found a mag that relates to our house hold. You have a dedicated follower now. Cheers Jude, from Burnie, Tas.
Contributors Selena Buckingham, Jo Canham, Bella Day, Kirien Withers, Michelle Coxall, Nicole Azzopardi, Bryher Mckeown, Lou Ridsdale, La Vergne Lehmann, Vibhuti Vazirani, Syren Strong. Design Content Design and Layout Karen Klaich: info@designlab.biz
Kindest regards, Allison
Photographers Bella Day: bella@junkies.com.au
Hi Selena,
Illustrator Brenna Quinlan: brennaquinlan.com.
My copy of The Makers arrived today and it is simply stunning! Such a variety of makers in a superb presentation. Love having the contact detail page too. It is worth all the hard work you and the team have put into it. Will it become an annual edition now? Janice
Advertising Partnership Junkie Kirien Withers: kirien@junkies.com.au Website junkies.com.au Subscriptions junkies.com.au/subscribe
Hello Junkies Team, Please more ‘how-to’ as often us recyclers are chasing our tails to resolve reuse problems, when someone else has the answers. I call this ‘recycling knowledge and skills’ to make life better for all.
Social Media Facebook facebook.com/junkiesmagazine Instagram instagram.com/junkies_magazine
Thank you, Peter and Cheryl
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Dear Junkies Creators & Collaborators,
Print Finsbury Green (World’s best practice ISO90001:2008 Quality & ISO 14001:2004 Environmental Management Systems certification; providing carbon-neutral services)
Thankyou so much for being creative and brave, for putting in the effort to bring together such genuinely interesting and positive news. I usually feel slightly drained after reading magazines, but I feel hopeful and happy after discovering your magazine in my local library. I hope to get this into our school library too. Well done Junkies crew. Cindy
Distributor Australian & NZ Distributor: Gordon and Gotch, Ovato Services For retail distribution and sales hello@junkies.com.au Disclaimer
Junkies Magazine takes all care but accepts no responsibility for unsolicited materials. Junkies Magazine holds copyright to all content unless otherwise stated. While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the information in this publication, the publishers accept no responsibility or liability for any errors, omissions or resultant consequences including any loss or damage arising from reliance on information in this publication.
Send us your letter, we love to hear from you. Check out page 7 for our big news and your chance to WIN a great prize with your feedback.
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Show your soil the love, it will reward you! 100% natural, non-toxic and safe to use
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ZAVI Sustainable fashion is the way of the future
Words by Vibhuti Vazirani
Lyocell is a fibre made from sustainable tree and plant farms, using trees and plants that have the ability to regrow quickly, such as eucalyptus. Lyocell is also manufactured in a closed loop process, meaning the water and chemicals used in processing are used in a closed loop until they are used up.
ZAVI is a sustainable fashion brand for men and women. ZAVI’s vision is to provide a sustainable and conscious alternative to fast fashion shopping by making sustainable fashion desirable and affordable.
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We make to order, and we produce and ship out within the next two days to keep waste low. We also have a custom-fit option. However, this is not a scalable option. As our business grows, we will have to produce more stock. We hope that when this does occur, we can keep supply less than demand to avoid waste.
ZAVI’s approach to fabrics has always been very practical and functional. Our current collection is made from 100% biodegradable and natural fabrics. When it comes to fabrics, “natural” isn’t always necessarily a good thing. For example, viscose and rayon are semi-synthetic fabrics, meaning they are made from wood pulp; however, they use trees, which are sacred to us, and we believe they should not be cut down for fabrics; they also require a large amount of chemicals in their processing. So although a lot of brands claim viscose is an “ecofriendly” option, the reality is slightly different.
All of our packaging is biodegradable. Our plastic replacement is made of vegetable starch, so it’s 100% biodegradable and will break down within three to six months depending on soil conditions; it can also be dissolved in boiling water. At ZAVI our mission is to beat fast fashion by providing a sustainable alternative with great design, quality and price, as we believe only Sustainability is Sustainable.
Our current collection is made from 100% sustainable materials, including hemp, bamboo, organic cotton, vegan silk and lyocell.
We need a better approach to save our earth. Fortunately, today’s youth has recognised this and are highly conscious of their choices and their impacts on the planet. Through the world of social media, individuals are promoting and supporting others to make better choices. A great example is veganism: many people, especially young people, have adopted veganism. This is a sign that we are moving to more conscious choices, and this will apply to fashion choices, too.
Hemp is a great sustainable option as it regrows quickly, doesn’t require a lot of water and it is also pesticide free. Hemp is a very strong fibre – you can really grow old with our hemp shirts, which will stay strong for years. They also hold colour really well, without colour fading or running. Hemp is also a natural antibacterial and highly absorbent, so it’s highly recommended for summer to keep you feeling and looking fresh throughout the day. The most amazing thing about hemp is that it acts as a natural UV protector, so it’s a safe and smart option.
The widespread understanding of how bad plastic is for the planet has gained traction in the last few years, and this will also occur with polyester. It will take some time for the majority of the population to understand its impact and to make changes in their buying habits. A key factor for this change is price; prices for sustainable items need to be affordable for consumers. However, for brands like ZAVI to have more competitive prices we need to be able to sustain ourselves by maintaining a cheaper supply chain. This is not possible at the moment as the fabric and garment manufacturing industry is highly synthetic-driven, so this is where the cheaper prices lie. One of our major challenges is sourcing sustainable materials at affordable costs. In the future, we hope to improve our supply chain and reduce costs, so that we can offer customers a sustainable and affordable choice, thereby offering a realistic alternative to fast fashion.
Bamboo is the fastest-growing plant and needs no active human intervention, so there is no fear of depletion. Organic cotton is grown with one-third the amount of water used for regular cotton. It is also grown without pesticides and fertilisers, so it doesn’t retain chemicals that may be toxic and carcinogenic. It is, however, more expensive; because of the absence of pesticides, it is slower growing than regular cotton, and hence takes more time and energy to produce. Vegan silk is made without boiling the live silkworm cocoons. Our manufacturer in a village based in India uses abandoned silk cocoons to weave this silk. The torn fibres are handwoven to create longer fibres, hence this silk may not seem as “clean” as regular silk.
shop-zavi.com wear
News The future of recycling in Victoria It is an exciting time for recycling in Victoria, with kerbside collection reforms, a container deposit scheme and now a new Circular Economy policy. Recycling Victoria embodies targets to help Victoria meet its circular economy goals. These targets complement those in the National Waste Policy Action Plan 2019 and the national commitment to halve food waste generation by 2030. They include: • • • •
Diverting 80% of waste from landfill by 2030, with a strong commitment to go beyond 80%, and an interim target of 72% by 2025; Cutting total waste generation by 15% per capita by 2030; Halving the volume of organic material going to landfill between 2020-2030, with an interim target of 20% reduction by 2025; Ensuring that every Victorian household has access to food and organic waste recycling services or local composting by 2030.
Some of the key actions of Recycling Victoria to meet the goals and targets include:
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Reforming household recycling in Victoria, with every household having access to a standard four-service system of glass, food and organic waste, co-mingled recycling and residual waste collections; The institution of a container deposit scheme for Victoria, commencing by 2022/23;
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The implementation of a new waste and recycling act and waste authority to make sure our recycling system is reliable and transparent; Instigating measures to reduce risks to the Victorian community and environment from high-risk and hazardous wastes; The establishment of a Circular Economy Business Innovation Centre to help businesses reduce waste and generate more value with fewer resources; Building stronger markets for domestic materials through market development and infrastructure support.
Ballarat Begonia Festival A highlight on the Junkies calendar in March is the Ballarat Begonia Festival. This festival, which has been running since 1953, offers something for everyone, from children’s activities, gardening tips, and displays, to live comedy, craft and garden markets, food and beverage outlets, floral demonstrations, exhibits and more. We are always particularly interested in the talks presented by our favourite TV gardener, Costa Georgiadis. This year Costa delivered one of his famous talks in his inimitable infectious way about his passion for plants and people and how to create a holistic, sustainable, and productive garden. This year we also caught up with La Vergne, from Grampians Central West Waste & Resource Recovery Group, and Paul, aka Captain Compost, who presented an excellent talk with Costa about ‘Keeping it Local’ – in your home and your community. Celebrating the idea of Thinking Globally and Acting Locally, we got plenty of ideas and tips on composting, worm farms, reducing single-use plastic, recycling, and reducing our waste impact.
Paul Lehmann (Captain Compost), Costa and La Vergne Lehmann. news
Captain Compost and Granny Skills guru Rebecca Sullivan were also on hand to answer questions and provide helpful tips with some yummy apple tea and homemade soap on offer, proving once again how much fun reducing your waste-line can be!
New App to help us be more sustainable One Million Women (1MW) – a climate change action and sustainability focused behaviour change organisation – has developed a great app that helps anyone to make changes in their lives and become more sustainable.
gradually lead you on your way to a low carbon lifestyle. It’s all about acting locally and thinking globally: these are actions you can do at home, in the community, or online. The app:
We often say that you cannot manage something unless you can measure it. The same can be said about our individual efforts at being more sustainable or thinking globally but acting locally. But what if we could start measuring all the changes that we make in trying to be more sustainable? This new app does just that. The 1MW app gives us the tools to cut carbon pollution in the key areas of our everyday lives, focusing on home energy savings and clean energy options, minimising food waste, reducing overconsumption, investing and divesting (our money) wisely, choosing sustainable fashion, low-impact travel and much more. Every day, the app will provide you with a number of actions to choose from, from easy actions to big long-term decisions that
• • • •
Gives users a choice of actions to take daily Shows users their weekly carbon score Includes hundreds of tips to help users through each action Shows in real time the impact we all have when we act together
The 1 Million Women app is free to download because we want to empower as many people in our region as possible to act on climate change and be more sustainable. Download the app at: 1millionwomen.com.au/campaigns/1-million-women-app/ 17 >
2 Billion Bees Project BEEROLE recently launched the “2 Billion Bees Project”, a social campaign that has created a buzz among communities concerned about a viable environment. Our goal is to save the bees and the planet.
What can you do with one dollar? You can buy a small cup of coffee, a sandwich, or a soft drink. Or you can save 100 bees from disappearing and you can give them the opportunity to thrive.
Few people realise the vital role that bees play in our lives, and the important part they play in a world endangered by pollution, the fast economy and bad management. We have decided it’s time for a wake-up-call and to start acting.
Just click the save the bees button at the top and bottom of our www.beerole.com website page, support the cause and help us spread the word.
Save 100 bees for 1 dollar. How can that be possible? you may wonder. Well, with a perfectly integrated communication plan and a simple management process, we promote the protection of bee families, facilitating the access of beekeepers to hives, thus stimulating the production of best quality honey. Our goal is to donate 200,000 hives to 100 affected countries with a simple click. With two billion bees we could save the entire planet. We encourage state-of-the-art technology to facilitate the protection of bee families.
Tell your friends and let’s be part of a global social movement. Help us save the only planet we have! Join the movement and be part of one of the biggest challenges ever: saving the bees and our planet. Become a member of the Beerole family and contribute to the planet’s well-being. It’s your turn to act NOW! Remember – not all superheroes wear capes.
Our goal is to create 200,000 homes for bee families, to pollinate large areas so as to encourage and protect this special species. We also focus on community building, to give everyone the chance to help save the planet.
news
Calendar of Events
Month of April • Adopt a Greyhound Organisation: Adopt a Greyhound One of our favourites in this edition’s calendar is, for many adorable reasons, adopt a greyhound month. Greyhounds are very gentle dogs, but unfortunately the racing industry breeds far too many every year. They are often exploited and mistreated by an industry that only has use for them while they run profitably. If the greyhound is not profitable it is often killed. It is a sad fact that only a fraction of the approximately 20,000 greyhounds bred each year survive, and even fewer are re-homed.
Wednesday 22 April International Mother Earth Day
During April Adopt a Greyhound will be offering discounted adoption fees, and all dogs will come with a full health check, and will be desexed, vaccinated and heart worm tested.
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Organisation: United Nations The proclamation of 22 April as International Mother Earth Day is an acknowledgement that the Earth and its ecosystems provide its inhabitants with life and sustenance. It also recognises our collective responsibility, as called for in the 1992 Rio Declaration, to promote harmony with nature and the Earth to achieve a just balance among the economic, social and environmental needs of present and future generations of humanity.
Adopt a Greyhound is a fully registered charity that relies on donations, which are tax deductible. So go ahead and donate... you know you want to! And if you are unable to adopt, foster a dog, or physically volunteer, consider the Helping a Hound program, or purchase some merchandise. Every cent helps Adopt a Greyhound find loving homes for more greyhounds all year round.
un.org/en/observances/earth-day
Greyhounds need little exercise and generally spend about 18 hours a day sleeping, making them very suitable for people in small apartments. adoptagreyhound.com.au Donate online.
Month of May Supermarket Free Month • National Go Supermarket Free this May to support local business, farmers and suppliers. Change your habits and buy local! Email: lucy@supermarketfree.com.au supermarketfree.com.au
news
Sunday 10 May Mother’s Day Classic
Monday 4 May International Respect for Chickens Day
National Breast Cancer Foundation
They are the closest living relative to the Tyrannosaurus rex and they out-number humans on this earth by more than 6 to 1. Inquisitive, intelligent, affectionate and fun loving, the 43 billion chickens on this planet have their special day on May 4th, which is International Respect for Chickens Day!
An annual tradition, the Mother’s Day Classic fun run and walk provides the community with a great way to celebrate Mother’s Day and raise funds for breast cancer research. Email: administration@mothersdayclassic.com.au mothersdayclassic.com.au
makeitpossible.com/facts/what-is-factory-farming. php#chickens
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3-9 May International Composting Awareness Week Centre for Organic & Resource Enterprises (CORE) International Composting Awareness Week is a week of activities, events and publicity to improve awareness about the importance of this valuable organic resource and to promote compost use, knowledge and products.
Month of May RSPCA Million Paws Walk RSPCA
compostweek.com.au/core/
The Million Paws Walk is a fundraising event for the RSPCA. The RSPCA investigates more than 50,000 incidents of animal cruelty or neglect each year. Donate online.
*Many of these events are contingent on mass assembly restrictions as per the Corona virus pandemic.
millionpawswalk.com.au Donate online. news
(UNFCCC’s) 25th Conference of Parties (COP 25) In December, as four young Tasmanian climate activists, we were given the opportunity to travel to Madrid to attend the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate’s (UNFCCC’s)25th Conference of Parties (COP 25). Words by Bryher McKeown and the Tasmanian Youth Delegation to COP 25 Photography Supplied.
As youth, we found the event to be both empowering and daunting. The conference gave us the opportunity to meet and collaborate with other young activists from around the world. We watched educated adults neglect the perspectives of young people and First Nation Peoples. Our generation has been defined by past neglect and the spread of misinformation. We were born into a world in which the global community was just beginning to watch the climate crisis unfold, and we live every day knowing that without action the already extreme weather patterns will become catastrophic. We fear that one day we will die in a world that is crumbling under the weight of this emergency.
Toby is an 18 year old climate activist from Huonville, in Southern Tasmania. From an early age he has been passionate about empowering youth to achieve climate justice for those disproportionately affected by climate change. He is also the founder of the Tasmanian Young Climate Leaders Program, which facilitates conferences to empower young Tasmanians to become activists in their own educational communities. < 20
As an aspiring doctor, Bryher is particularly passionate about the often-forgotten effect that climate change has upon the health of both individuals and the broader society. She is currently studying a Bachelor of Health Science at the Australian National University in Canberra.
We found shared hope at COP 25. Sharing stories, experiences and successes facilitates discussions of hope as countries begin to respond. Youth all around the world are rising to the climate challenge. The young people we met at COP25 are more determined than ever to solve the problem. In many countries young people face large barriers in being able to protest against their governments’ environmental neglect. We met attendees of COP 25 who have been incarcerated for engaging in peaceful climate activism. Our COP experience taught us the importance of climate justice and the need for climate activists to stand in solidarity with those most affected by this climate emergency, who are inevitably those who have contributed the least to it.
Mia is a law student at the University of Tasmania. She has an interest in the international legal responses to the climate crisis and how the whole globe can unite to save the planet. The fourth member of the Tasmanian Youth Delegation was Chloe. Chloe is a dedicated year 12 student who volunteers her time to empower youth to become activists and have their voices heard by large corporations. Chloe works tirelessly to give young Tasmanians a platform at lobbying events in Northern Tasmania.
As our forests burn, our oceans rise, hurricanes build, coral bleaches and smoke infests the air for many across the planet, more and more individuals are gaining a first-hand experience of this crisis. Through our shared experiences at COP 25 it has become painstakingly evident that the world facing children born today bears little resemblance to that of our parents’ generation. Climate anxiety is growing. Childhood should be carefree, filled with backyard cricket and neighbourhood friends; now for many it is filled with climate anxiety and a growing frustration and distrust of governments around the globe. Youth are the leaders in this time of crisis because those who should be leading us have neglected their roles. A global systemic and ideological shift is necessary to solve climate change. Countries must take responsibility for their own emissions and break down current political barriers in order to unite against climate change as it affects everyone, everywhere.
Our small delegation was formed as a result of the Tasmanian Young Climate Leaders program in 2019. As like-minded individuals, we attended COP 25 to broaden our understanding of issues surrounding climate change and its impacts. Climate change is an intersectional threat that is harming the environment, health care, the economy, cultures, and the political environment, and its effects must be mitigated as quickly and effectively as possible. Navigating the United Nations as a young person in today’s hostile, changing, political climate is a complex prospect. COP is an annual UN conference that brings together tens of thousands of delegates and individuals from around the globe to discuss and debate international responses to climate change, with particular reference to the the Paris Agreement. unite
“Youth all around the world are rising to the climate challenge.”
“We live every day knowing that without action the already extreme weather patterns will become catastrophic…”
Left to right: Bryher McKeown and Mia Partridge. unite
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Once we had junk now it is time to rethink Your next Junkies magazine will not be Junkies it will be
ReThink REDUCE REUSE RENEW RECYCLE
Once it was wise and clever to remake, reuse and recycle. Now it is essential. ReThink will help us all rethink the future one person, one change, one action at a time. The Junkies you love will still bring you the content you love… and more… we are evolving to keep us all empowered and enjoying being at the forefront of positive change.
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WIN all Isabell Shipards books and DVDs Subscribe today and you could be the very lucky winner of a complete set of Isabell Shipard’s famous herbs and self-sufficiency books and DVD’s, the time has never been more important to have her extensive knowledge at your fingertips. As Isabell always said, “Planting a garden with herbs and food potential is one of the most valuable things we can do”. With over 30 years of extensive research, knowledge and experience, Isabell was one of Australia’s most knowledgeable and sought after authorities on herbs, her fame included 10 years on ABC Radio for Herb- of the-Week and supplying herbs for Jamie Oliver.
You will gain expert knowledge and practical instruction on growing herbs, collecting and using herbs and spices, on fruit trees, rare edibles, seed varieties, sprouts, culinary herbs and medicinal herbs, natural herbal remedies, alternative herbal medicines, natural herbal pain relief, herbal nutrition and Self-Sufficiency and Survival Foods.
Subscribe now junkies.com.au/subscribe …and if you visit herbsarespecial.com.au/junkies/ when you place an order, you will gain up to a generous 30% junkies reader discount.
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Our upcycled magazine, website and social media communications will bring you even more exciting initiators and creatives, interesting news, great resources, lots of how-toâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and inspiration to enable you to act, be supported and inspired the make the changes we all need to make to live ever-more sustainable lifestyles. Subscribe now. 23 >
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junkies.com.au/subscribe Our lucky subscriber will also WIN $100 value of herbs, plants, seeds, herb teas and more from Shipards Herb Farm. For 35 years the Shipards family herb farm have specialised in plants and seed varieties of rare and medicinal herbs; spices, rare Asian vegetables, high protein plants, exotic fruits, legumes, aromatics, animal fodder plants and more. Self-sufficiency, health and wellbeing are their passion. Take advantage of a shopping list from a farm that has been featured on Gardening Australia, The Great South East, the ABC and more, all sharing the practical uses of herbs.
Visit Shipards Nambour farm, call them on 07 5441 1101 or visit herbs-to-use.com
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A Tale of Community Cohesion: Together We Can Create Change On a Saturday morning after a hectic week, a bunch of strangers gathers in a central Ballarat hall with one mission on their mind: self sufficiency.
Words and Photography by Lou Ridsdale
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with new skills (or enhance the skills they already possess), all in an endeavour to make the world more ecofriendly.
Taking their seats, they acknowledge their neighbours with a shy nod. The class commences. What happens in the next hour or so is quite remarkable. Facts, figures, demonstrations, and hands-on immersive experiments occur. Amid the laughter and chatter, notes are furiously taken as knowledge is imparted via videos and photographs. This knowledge will empower attendees to apply all they’ve learned when they return home. And the best bit: the shy glances that first occurred have turned into big wide smiles, and an obvious rapport has been formed. In a society that favours connection via screens over face-to-face interactions, this is an unusual experience for some.
Junkies hosted one of the more memorable workshops, with a great gathering of craft-orientated eco-warriors who learned how to DIY their own seeds and garden diaries out of old recycled books, diaries and photo albums. Selena and Freya based the workshop on a previous article on seed saving, and it worked an absolute treat. Other crafty/art themed workshops hosted by Food Is Free and run by amazing facilitators have included Ephemeral Art run by Colleen from Fifteen Trees; Garden Photography with Smart Phones plus Botanic Art Drawing by Louisa West; Origami Seed Packet Making with Leigh; Family Crafts by Anna Paxton; and Christmas Wreath making from Botanics by Fi Walsh.
So, what is going on here?
Other workshops include Seed Saving, Backyard Chickens, Asian Dumpling Making, Companion Planting, Herbs, Permaculture Kitchen Design, Soil Testing, Plants and Pets, Indoor Plant Health, Recycling, Beekeeping, Worm Farms, Organic Pest Management, Kids’ Gardening and Vegetable Fermenting, to name just a few.
Food Is Free Inc. has delivered numerous workshops and events geared towards empowering the members of the Ballarat community with the skills and knowledge to grow their own food, lead sustainable lives, and carry out good environmental practice – and we’ve loved every minute! If you’ve ever been part of a community gathering like this, you’ll be familiar with the positive energy it generates.
Workshops on garlic growing, Asian greens gardening, edible flowers, jam making, recycling and gardening, fungi, growing olives, quinces, teas and global medicines, and various kids’ workshops that encourage nature play are planned.
Food Is Free Inc. is a shining example of how communities can work together via gardening and food sharing, whilst fostering safer neighbourhoods, developing skills and facilitating empowerment, in addition to building confidence and a stronger, healthier population.
Our motto is: “Save money, do it yourself and leave behind a better planet”. Empowerment leads to a confidence in attendees that was not present prior to the event. The Christmas Wreath Making workshop, for example, was held a few weeks prior to Christmas, often a stressful and chaotic time. The hall was filled with people taking a little time out of the hustle and bustle of Christmas
Since October 2019, Food Is Free has hosted over 40 workshops, with 30 to take place before May 2020. Over 700 people have attended, and we anticipate that we’ll reach over 1000 by the time we finish. That’s 1000 people committed to supporting a self-sufficient environment, who wish to empower themselves unite
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“The shy glances that first occurred have turned into big wide smiles…”
unite
shopping and menu planning. Christmas wreath making with natives proved to be really meditative! Stressed frowns were turned upside down once the workshop kicked off. One lady who voiced self-doubt prior to making her wreath, and even openly berated herself for ‘doing a lousy job’ as she started the wreath’s structure, was positively beaming with pride at what she had created and chatting happily with her fellow wreath-makers at the conclusion of the workshop.
Free Inc. operates over two sites: Food Is Free Laneway and Food Is Free Green Space, both within a short walk of each other in Ballarat. Food Is Free Laneway was established in 2014 and operates as a food security platform to eliminate food waste. It facilitates visitors to leave home-grown food (herbs, vegetables and fruit) in share baskets for others to take and enjoy, along with some other gardening orientated items such as free seeds/ seedlings/gardening books/gardening pots; it also encourages self-sufficiency via education and assistance. Food Is Free Green Space, across the road from the Laneway, was launched in 2018; its purpose is to grow food en masse, as well as to serve as an outdoor classroom for workshops, tours and events.
Many of the attendees in the Botanic Art Drawing class were initially quite concerned about being judged for their attempts, but the orientation speeches stressed that we endeavour to create safe spaces at Food Is Free Inc. No one is critiqued for their work; the emphasis is on relaxing and having fun. As the drawing chops started to flow, you could see everyone really relax and it became a very joyful session. As everyone became immersed in their drawings, you could almost hear a pin drop. However, this changed to rowdy hilarious rapture as attendees congratulated each other on their drawings at the workshop’s conclusion.
Workshops have been funded by a state government grant via the Department of Premier and Cabinet called Pick My Project. Our commitment to empowerment via education on food security, food waste, and self-sufficiency will continue into 2020 and beyond. With so many people committed to, or at least curious about, leading a more sustainable lifestyle, the future is very bright indeed. This community spirit and shared responsibility for taking care of our planet suggests we are in good shape to create a better future.
Another positive was to observe the friendships that were formed, phone numbers being exchanged and coffee appointments being made by attendees. That is real community connection, something Food Is Free Inc. works hard to promote.
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Food Is Free Inc. is a grassroots, community-led not-for-profit group benefitting people, particularly those experiencing disadvantage, and has a core purpose of assisting and promoting food security, plus community cohesion and inclusion. Food Is
Lou Ridsdale is the Founder/Director of Food Is Free Inc. More info: foodisfree.com.au facebook.com/foodisfreelanewayballarat
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“Food Is Free Inc. is a shining example of how communities can work together…”
unite
Seed Storing Diary Looking for a great at-home project? Creating a seed diary will delight your inner gardenista and can creatively engage the whole family.
Words by Junkies team Photography Supplied
2. Organising and cataloguing your seeds. • colour of flowers or blooms • style; i.e., English cottage garden, Native Australian, bird attracting, etc • type; i.e., ground cover, shaded area, or full sun • edible; i.e., herbs, vegetables, fruit trees
Akin with most gardeners, you will likely have a drawer full of random seeds. We spend many gardening hours attending to our much-loved plants, weeding, composting, fertilising, watering and making it all look pretty. Why not take some time to step back inside for a bit and document this beautiful pastime to create a keepsake that can be enjoyed for years to come.
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3. Possible headings • What’s in my garden? • My favorites • A year in my garden • Seasonal planting
Everything you will need for this project you will probably find lurking in your cupboards and drawers. Go hunt for those stashed small bags, or even empty seed packets, some colouring pencils, notes, scissors and some glue. For this sample project we used a photo album from the op shop, small paper bags and some sticky notes we found in the drawer, plus a lace doily to make our seed dairy look special.
4. Facts & figures • date seeds were planted • height that plant grows • the amount of space a plant will need • the type of soil it will thrive in (include some details from the original seed packet, or if the seed is from your own garden, look up information relevant to its habitat and requirements) • where to plant
Seed Storing Diary This diary makes the perfect keepsake gift that can be handed down through the generations, passed on to family members and added to along the way. Perhaps it can be given to your children when they buy their first house, or as a special gift on a wedding day. Not only is it a thoughtful present, it is also a tangible record for the gifter of the many hours of pleasure that has come from cultivating plants, watching them thrive and then reaping the rewards from seeds every year.
5. Nuts & bolts • watering needs, types of companion plants, what fertiliser to use, possible diseases or pests it could be susceptible to • when will it flower? • note any medicinal uses or cosmetic applications 5. Additional information • include a picture of what to expect when it blooms • note the date you planted it and keep a progress report • include a picture of the plant in its position at its best
Even if you don’t give your Seed Diary as a gift, it’s great to have a handy reminder of what’s in your garden, a journal that evokes the many hours of joy that went into its creation. Here are some ideas on how you might organise your seed dairy and the headings you could use.
6. Personalise your diary! • perhaps use a photo of your house and garden for the front cover • include a little bit of family history and information; i.e., this plant was a wedding gift from our neighbour, and it has been in the garden for 20 years • these seeds were collected from grandma’s garden • this seed is from the apple tree where we buried Bessy the cat.
1. What sort of diary will it be? • a gift for your children’s first-home garden • a wedding gift • a moving-out-of-home gift • your garden journal
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Weaving a Magical World Cartoonist and illustrator Shelley Knoll Miller weaves together her first love of illustration into her new love for creating beauty from sea debris and milled wool offcuts.
Words by Shelley Knoll-Miller Photography Supplied
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hold a group exhibition that encouraged artists to create art with plastics, old nets or beach rope that had washed ashore. I decided to try weaving with a huge broken net, using an old iron cray pot rim as the frame. The first task was to chop the net into small workable lengths. The net was thick, weathered nylon and really difficult to cut. I found that reflecting on the damage the net could have done to marine life made my hacking efforts very satisfying! Vengeful crafting, ha!
Shelley combines the fishing nets and debris that are collected on volunteer “beach patrols” with alpaca wool offcuts, weaving a magical world where her illustrations can come to life. Junkies delved a little deeper into the world of creative detritus.
Tell us a little bit about your work as an illustrator and cartoonist.
That satisfying, rewarding feeling remained so I’ve just kept weaving. I’ve since gone on to create many weavings, using rope and nets collected by my local Beach Patrol group.
I’ve worked as an illustrator and cartoonist for over 20 years, including editorial cartoonist positions with the Melbourne Age newspaper and the Darwin Sun, and freelance illustration work for publishers and magazines such as The Big Issue and Eureka Street.
Tell us more about Beach Patrol. Beach Patrol is a chain of volunteer community groups that comb the beaches picking up anything that will harm local marine life. There are 45 groups in Melbourne, covering over 150 km of beaches. Beach Patrol 3280 actually records what they find to a database, which scientists use for tracking and research purposes. It’s a lot of work done by committed volunteers. I don’t do much of this work; I mostly just use what they collect.
In 2016, I started to become interested in children’s picture book illustration, and that’s now my main focus. My first illustrated picture book was Shoo Grumpers Shoo, written by comedian Josh Lawson and published by Scholastic in 2018. I’ve spent the last year writing children’s picture books and incorporating weaving into my illustration work. What led you to become interested in weaving?
Apart from the nets and rope you find washed up on the beaches, what other materials do you use in your work?
I’ve crocheted for years, experimenting with different materials like wire and recycled plastic bags, and doing big-scale projects like large rugs and floor cushions. My foray into weaving began when a local group of artists in Warrnambool, frustrated at the amount of pollution washing up on our beaches, decided to
I also use barnacles and seaweed, as it is often tangled up in the rope when it washes up. I was delighted when I discovered the Great Ocean Road Woollen Mill. They run a small herd of alpacas, operate a small woollen mill, and sell their own
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â&#x20AC;&#x153;Reflecting on the damage the net could have done to marine life made my hacking efforts very satisfying!â&#x20AC;?
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computer, drawing with a tablet. In some ways, you have to work that way because it’s a competitive market and it’s so much quicker to edit changes if you are working digitally. But whilst appreciating the ease of working, most of us miss the physicality of brushes and paint, the scratch of a pen across a page. Bringing weaving into my illustration work has brought a lovely tactility back. It’s been a delightful, if somewhat unexpected, journey.
yarn. My favourite yarn has come from their ‘bargain box’ of milled wool that was a bit irregular and so not quite up to their regular standard. I’ve also discovered several local spinners of sheep’s wool, seeking out those that produce yarn with a really ‘homemade wobble’ to it! I also scour op shops for leftover yarn. As a frame to my works, I’ve regularly used copper pipe, experimenting with ways to give it that lovely green patina. The physicality of collecting my resources, and the chats and connections along the way, is sometimes as pleasurable as the work itself. It’s particularly rewarding to collect the rope and nets from Beach Patrol, as they are reluctant to throw it into landfill but, of course, can’t store it all either.
Do you think your eye for detail as a cartoonist and illustrator has helped you and maybe inspired your weaving work?
How did your love of weaving and your illustrations work merge into your work featured here?
Working as a creative for a long time always hones your visual skills. It’s all the same process of looking at your work, tilting your head to the side like a confused dog, and asking yourself “What does this work need to be better?”.
Several months after starting to weave, I realised that I could incorporate my new hobby into my existing practise as an illustrator. I began combining weaving and illustration, for example using the weavings as a backdrop for a strange alien planet or the sea-bed for a family of seals. My first efforts proved popular on social media, so I just kept experimenting. As well as exhibiting the original weavings (which sold out), I have since written a picture book based around the illustration weavings. It’s a space adventure to a strange alien planet and the weavings form the planet’s surface.
I think 20 years working as an illustrator has taught me to be more patient. I used to get really frustrated at my efforts and then overwork things or make hasty decisions, when I really should have just set the page aside and slept on it. You really can look at something for too long and it sort of muddies your vision. So I’m thankful that I am more patient now, in that each weaving takes a long time to complete. Chopping up a weaving in frustration, and then waking up in the morning and seeing a solution that I could have tried, would be incredibly frustrating! shelleyknollmiller.com
I love how tactile these weavings are, both to look at and to work with. Most professional illustrators these days work on a create
“Planting a garden with herbs and food potential is one of the most valuable things we can do.” Isabell Shipard
learn about … Self-Sufficiency • essentials for a 3-month period • preservation and storage of foods • hardy survival food plants • getting to know and use edible weeds Herbs • strengthen the immune system • contain pain-relieving properties • support the innate healing process • be used in arts and crafts Sprouts • are ready to eat in 3-5 days • grow in any climate at any time of the year • rivals meat in nutritive value • can grow indoors within minimum space • multiplies 400% or more in 5 days
This is an essential book for everyone who intends to make a serious effort to survive any food crisis. It is full of the most detailed and valuable information on a great diversity of survival foods, and how to produce them. Isabell has the greatest knowledge of reference and experience on this subject that I have ever known or met in all my travels, teaching and consulting on permaculture around the world.
Geoff Lawton Director, Permaculture Research Institute
Check out our free information on Herbs, Sprouts and Self-Sufficiency
and get up to 30% off use Coupon code: Junkies for a limited time, only at
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Saltbush Kitchen The Australian Store. Australian Bushfoods Saltbush Kitchen, of Bunninyong Victoria will take you on an Australian culinary bushfood adventure of spices, herbs, salts and syrups, immersing you in a sensory experience of sounds, tastes and aromas. Visit the store in person or online and discover an incredible range of native foods. One subscriber can win, a Bushfood Spice Pack of 5 spices which can include lemon myrtle, wattleseed, strawberry gum, aniseed myrtle, pepperberry, native thyme, kunzea, mountain pepper, saltbush or peppermint gum. Valued at $32. saltbushkitchen.com.au
A Hand-Made Bespoke Signature Shoe < 36
Rachel Ayland of Bangalow Shoemaking is a hand crafted shoe and boot maker. Rachel will make her Signature Shoe for one lucky subscriber. A variety of colours and finishes are available, the pictured shoes have a leather upper, sole and heel, but she has vegan solutions you will be very proud to wear. She says, “the shoe has a timeless style inspired by renaissance fashion. Whether in leathers or vegan, the heel can be low or medium height. The cuff is secured with two easy press studs on the outside can be adorned for a unique touch. This androgynous style is easy to slip on, loved and admired by all genders. I look forward to hearing from the winner and creating their unique Signature Shoe.” Valued at $550
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Warndu Mai Good Food Cookbook Warndu Mai (Good Food) contains over 80 illustrated and accessible recipes showcasing Australian native foods, using ingredients such as kakadu plum, native currents, finger lime and pepperberry, including seasonal availability, hints and tips, to create unique dishes and so much more. A must have for every kitchen. One subscriber will go in the draw to win. RRP $45 warndu.com
Gemma Vendetta Pack A growing awareness of nasty chemicals in hair and beauty products led Gemma Vendetta to develop her own range* of mineral cosmetics without nano-particles, harmful fillers and binders, free from parabens, synthetic fragrances and mineral oils. Make the switch to simply high-quality, high definition, safe, gender-neutral, 100% vegan and cruelty free mineral cosmetics for those who care about themselves, our animals and the planet. One lucky subscriber will win Gemma Vendetta’s all- natural lip gloss and awesome bronzer blush valued at $90.95 gemmavendetta.com.au
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KHANAN-Handmade garments Win your very own custom made Arlo Romper. Based in Lennox Head, Northern Rivers NSW, Khanun is a sustainable clothing label proudly making ethical handmade garments. The Arlo Romper is our popular signature piece that you can dress up or down and wear anywhere. Our fabrics are found and vintage sourced Australia-wide so each piece is unique you will never see another the same. Value $87. Browse our collection at khanunbymimi.com or insta @khnunbymimi
Natural Sanitiser Treasures Based on authentic aboriginal native botanical wisdom and wellness lore, Li’Tya skin, body and hair care range imbued with a wisdom spanning thousands of years, Li’Tya’s co-founder is the custodian of the Ya-idt’midtung, The Philosophers’s, traditional knowledge. Aboriginal Australia used Eucalyptus and Lemon Myrtle for protection from contacting or spreading infections. Eucalyptus is potent, medicinal and thorough in killing infections. Lemon Myrtle has an earthy lemon aroma and is powerfully anti-viral and anti-bacterial. Both rapidly destroy airborne and surface germs and viruses, as well as harmful bacteria, on contact. Blended with organic aloe vera, for hydrating, healing and repairing your skin leaving it feeling soft and nourished. Four lucky subscribers will each receive a pack of two LI’TYA HAND SANITISERS valued at $25. litya.com/shop
Modern Mending Erin Lewis-Fitzgerald’s new book is a comprehensive guide to mending your clothes, combining practical know-how with whimsical creativity. The light-hearted, creative vibe flowing through this book proves mending can be artistic, stylish, maybe quirky, and add to a garment’s charm. One lucky subscriber will go in the draw to win this great book. RRP $35 modernmending.com
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Want more warm hearted can-do, how-to inspiration? We have you covered with our back issues packs for your creative home-time pleasure. Have a look online and choose which pack you would like delivered straight to your door. junkies.com.au/buy
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Keeping it Local – In Your Home and in Your Community. Words by La Vergne Lehmann Illustrations by Brenna Quinlan
We often hear the phrase ‘think global, act local’, but what does that actually mean for everyday life? Big concepts like climate change can be overwhelming for many people. After all, this is an issue that will impact the entire planet! And we only have one of those that we can all live on! < 38
So it is true to say that each person, on their own, has a limited impact. But add all those ‘limited impacts’ together and you start to build a much bigger impact across the region, the state, the country and the planet. We all have the ability to change and control what we do at home and the same can be said for our local community, to a slightly lesser degree. In short, we all have a role to play in reducing our impact on the planet.
Buying less stuff is another way you can make an impact on reducing your waste in the No Waste Challenge. You can do this by: • Not buying new • Repurposing items that no longer have a current use • Repair things if they are broken so you don’t need to buy another • Make your own • Swap with others • Join the sharing economy through libraries – books, toys, tools, seeds, things!
We can start by taking the No Waste Challenge. You might not get to ‘no waste’ but how about giving it go. Let’s start with food waste – it doesn’t get any more local than that, really. We know that around 25% to 30% of all food goes to waste, meaning it is never consumed. Sure, some of that is at the producer level but consumers need to lift their game, too. Here are some great tips for reducing your household food waste:
Reduce your use of single-use plastics. We have all been caught up in the convenience of single-use plastics. After all, it is so much easier than having to remember bags, coffee cups, drink bottles etc, and there is no washing up after a BBQ or picnic. But all of this convenience has consequences and that means more litter along the roads, waterways and recreation areas and more waste going into landfill.
• Make a list before you go shopping and stick to it – if you need some help, check out Sustainability Victoria’s Love a List campaign at: sustainability.vic.gov.au/Campaigns/Love Food-Hate-Waste/Love-a-list • Grow your own – you are less likely to waste something you have spent time and effort growing. • Preserve and pickle produce – make jam, sauce or pickles, or just preserve the whole fruit. • Love your leftovers – some things taste better a day later and make a great lunch, while other things need to be reworked. • Check out some great recipes for leftovers at: sustainability. vic.gov.au/Campaigns/Love-Food-Hate-Waste/Leftovers
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Start with reusable alternatives – they may need washing but they will last longer Make and take your own – lunch and snacks Always carry your own cup, bottle, cutlery, bags, plates etc Buy in bulk, with your own containers, rather than purchasing things in prepackaged materials
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This is all about behavior change – changing some pretty ingrained habits that we have all become accustomed to. They won’t cost you much to change but you will feel good knowing that you are doing your bit by Keeping it Local. It is also worth remembering that it is a journey to become more sustainable. It takes time and we all need to make conscious decisions about the choices we make. If you keep that process simple and commit to making one change at a time then it is less overwhelming and you’re more likely to stick to something. But you also need to progress on that journey and build on those achievements. You might start with a small veggie patch and a couple of fruit trees. As you grow this over time, you will eventually produce more than you need. At that stage you might start making some jam and preserves, and sharing them with friends and family. Before you know it, you have found ways to compost your food scraps to improve your soil, and reduced both your food bill and the amount of packaging that goes into your bin. You are probably eating healthier and enjoying more time outside in your garden. Does it get any better than that? Just remember that the No Waste Challenge journey is a lifelong one. Continue to challenge yourself and remember that when it comes to waste there is no magical land of “Away”. unite
Vogue Gone Rogue We hear a lot of talk about the problem of single use plastics and most of us relate that to plastic bags, bottles, plates, cutlery and so. But single use plastics occur at a much bigger scale in other parts of the countryside as well.
Words by La Vergne Lehmann Photography Small Dog Design
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opposed thing to waste plastic in a remote paddock? High-end glamour, of course, and given that Ag plastics are a sort of textile, the idea was born.
Travel over any part of the Victorian wheat belt these days, and you’ll notice a phenomenon that even as little as 5 years ago was barely on anyone’s radar. Sometimes you see them as flashes of white out of the corner of your eye on a long car trip. Other times, they will be more in your face, large strips of shredded plastic, impaled on barbwire fences in the corners of paddocks. They are grain bags, and they are, to put it mildly, a problem.
This idea, Vouge gone Rogue is an invitation to the fashion industry and beyond to come up with ingenious ways to transform agricultural plastic film into items of clothing or an accessory that may inspire a scaled-up and commercially viable re-use of the plastic. Run as a competition, entrants may be eligible to share in a prize pool of $1500 and gain significant local and Statewide exposure.
Grain bags are huge, single use plastic bags up to 150 m long, used to store cereal crops in response to bumper harvests or to allow farmers play the market and wait for prices to rise. As with any disposable plastic, it has both good and bad aspects. Good, because it is a cheap and easy solution to a pressing problem; bad because little consideration is given to what to do with the plastic at the end of its life, resulting in a widely distributed, low value resource.
In a nutshell, we are trying to get people to come up with ingenious ways to use agricultural plastic film in making an item of clothing or fashion accessory, with the goal of inspiring a wide scale, ongoing re-use of the plastic. There are secondary benefits too, for example, the raised profile might inspire somebody not directly allied with the fashion industry, something like a concreter using the plastic to line an excavation, or similar.
Because of their low value, a lot of grain bags meet with an unsavoury end, which as anecdote has it, involves a dark night, a splash of diesel and a match. As well as wasting a resource, this can put a plume of toxic smoke across valuable agricultural land, with obvious consequences.
The original working title was ‘grain bags to glad rags’, mainly because it rhymed, but in bandying the idea around, it became obvious that not many people knew what either grain bags or glad rags were. So, after a few iterations, the Grampians Central West Waste & Resource Recovery Group, industry officer, Stuart Horner came up with Vogue gone Rogue, and took it from there.
Some ad hoc solutions have been tried across Victoria, often involving local distributors, but none have really been up to the full magnitude of the task. In reality, a Statewide solution is required which, as its first step, needs raising the public’s awareness of the problem.
The competition will run from April 1st until July 10th. The winners will be announced and exhibited as part of Ballarat Ethical Fashion Week, at the opening event on Saturday the 2nd of August.
The question was, how do we get this issue into the public eye? The thought was that we needed to smash it up against something that was the total opposite. What is the most diametrically
Details of the competition can be found at ballaratethicalfashion.com.au/voguegonerogue
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Emerging Trends in Sustainable Design Junkies was proud to be chosen as part of the local and international media contingent invited to this informative and stunning gala event in Taipei, Taiwan, December 2019.
Words by Golden Pin Design and Junkies. Photography Supplied.
ethos. Materials are one of the most crucial elements in circular design, focusing on sustainability and the three Rs (Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle), as well as biodegradable qualities. In the practice of circular design, designers must consider the full lifecycle of products to create a holistic cycle, as opposed to the linear model whereby a product’s lifecycle ends with waste and refuse.
We had the pleasure of spending several days experiencing the best of the Golden Pin Design Awards. With over 7000 entries, the standards in design excellence from the winning designers were exceptional. We spent a very busy two days, beginning with the forum of global design experts, followed by the awards ceremony, and finishing the program with interviews with the judges as well as the winning designers.
Golden Pin Design Award and Golden Pin Concept Design Award 2019 Final Selection jury member Luisa Bocchietto (Former President of the World Design Organization) embraces the movement for sustainability in product design, but feels that the industry still has some way to go, and that institutions must continue to push designers in this direction. Golden Pin Design Award 2019 Final Selection jury member Shikuan Chen (Chief Design Officer of Corp. Experience Design Compal Electronics Inc.) observed that an increasing number of designers are incorporating circular design principles into product design.
“Design for sustainability” was the leitmotif of this year’s award ceremony, which focused on the design industry’s role in implementing the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals under the theme “Gala @ 23:59”. The award ceremony’s creative director, Keng-Ming Liu (Founder and Creative Director of Bito), curated the entire event around this theme, from the key visuals to the opening ceremony video. The Golden Pin Design Award 2019 Final Selection jury, comprised of 10 global design experts, identified a number of design trends among this year’s winners, which emphasised the pivotal trend of circular design in response to the global environmental crisis.
The Golden Pin Design Award 2019 Best Design and Special Annual Award for Circular Design, W Glass, is made of 100% recycled glass. It is designed by Kiwico Corporation and manufactured by Spring Pool Glass, Taiwan’s largest glass recycling company. Golden Pin Design Award 2019 Design Mark and Finalist, Rice Husk Beach Toys, is a set of biodegradable beach toys made from rice husks. Dot Design Co. Ltd. developed the product together with circular design consultancy, REnato lab.
2019 was a winner in the sustainability stakes, but it also set a new benchmark for the Golden Pin Design Award and Golden Pin Concept Design Award. The two awards received a combined total of 7937 entries, a 5% increase on the combined total number of entries in 2018.
Circular Design Other design awards around the globe are likewise championing sustainability, social design, and circular design by nominating exceptional projects for special awards. For example, Germany’s iF Design Award bestows the iF social impact prize twice annually,
As everyone around the globe faces up to the environmental crisis, circular economy has emerged as the leading solution, and designers are adopting this principle as part of their design innovate
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championing design projects that address the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Another world-renowned design award from Germany, Red Dot, has recognised products for incorporating sustainable materials such as Kaffeeform Material by Kaffeeform – a coffee cup made from coffee grounds, KUNGSBACKA by IKEA – kitchen furnishings made from recycled wood and PET plastic bottles, and Tresta by Katharina Hölz – biodegradable homeware products made from natural adhesives as well as pomace (grape waste from the winemaking industry).
“[The Awards]… emphasised the pivotal trend of circular design in response to the global environmental crisis…”
Currently in Taiwan, local institutions are working on programs to revive historical architecture, particularly those from the early 20th century Japanese colonial era. Many buildings from the era are made out of wood, which means they fall into disrepair much faster than those built from brick or concrete, and are therefore in desperate need of preservation. Architects focusing on these renovation projects often bring their own contemporary touches to the architecture and interior design, which results in experimental fusions of the old and the new.
Golden Pin Design Award 2019 Best Design winner, JCA Living Lab, is a century-old Japanese dormitory in Taipei, which was renovated by JC Architecture and features the design firm’s signature interior-exterior layers via glass interventions in its architecture. JCA Living Lab was also awarded Interior of the Year at the Netherlands’ INSIDE World Festival of Interiors. Golden Pin Design Award 2019 Design Mark winner, RiRo 26, is another Japanese dormitory built in 1940 and located in Kaohsiung. The renovation project was led by GCA studios and supported by the Kaoshiung City Government Bureau of Cultural Affairs.
Final Selection jury member, Tony Chi (Founder of tonychi), is interested in design that demonstrates self-reflection and a great sense of purpose from the designer, or as he calls it “the silent voice”. He referenced the trend of design for preservation in the award, praising it in both tangible and intangible forms, relating to heritage and urban renewal.
Our experience of the two days spent at this event has reinforced for us the integral role that design plays in shaping not only cities, homes, parks and gardens, but also the social and personal interactions that we sometimes take for granted when occupying the spaces we live in, and the ecological choices we need to make in our designed world.
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Taipei Travel Adventure Taipei is not only a leader in sustainable design, it’s a place where visitors get to enjoy fabulous food and hospitality.
We also visited one of the local teashops to sample the brown sugar bubble milk drink known as “bubble tea”. This signature drink translates into English as “frog knocking against the milk”. What you get is a cup of boba pearls, caramel, cold milk, and the additional choice of ice.
Taipei is a food mecca and happy hunting ground for gourmands from far and wide. The delicious dishes on offer are extremely cheap, both street-side and in the vibrant local night markets. There are many traditional local Taiwanese specialities. We were curious to explore these culinary delights after noticing queues of people patiently lined up in front of food carts on the streets. The culinary highlight, however, was being jostled amongst the salivating crowds whilst inhaling the aromatic aromas wafting from the Shilin Night Market. Never has such a tempting array of taste-bud-tantalising deliciouness been presented in such a concentrated area.
One of the many highlights of our visit was the Songshan Cultural and Creativity Park, home of the Taiwan Design Museum, and the venue of the Golden Pin Design Awards. Set in a lush tropical garden, this old tobacco factory is now an avant-garde artists’ hub with an amazing post-industrial architectural aesthetic. It draws Taiwan’s cutting-edge creatives to its exhibition spaces and art workshops, and features a design market where artists exhibit and sell their works. The Taiwan Design Museum is a great place to spend a couple of hours exploring the latest design trends, and the beautiful grounds afford moments for quiet reflection.
Words and Photography Junkies team
The Museum of Contemporary Arts, another star in Taipei’s cultural firmament, affords a sometimes confronting mix of permanent and temporary exhibitions. We were profoundly moved by an exhibition on the catastrophic earthquake that explore
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destroyed many areas of Taiwan in 1999, killing thousands, and causing billions of dollars’ worth of damage. Old Taipei is next to the Danshui River. This area used to be the major trading area for Chinese herbs and medicine, and today is home to shops plying a colourful array of dried goods, fabrics, herbal teas, and many other fascinating craft and gift shops.
“We were profoundly moved by an exhibition on the catastrophic earthquake that destroyed many areas of Taiwan in 1999...”
The retail sector of the city resembles most big city skylines and offers much the same sort of retail experience. We found it had its own kind of charm, and in amongst the high-rise buildings were pockets of unique beauty, quirky subterranean malls and the ineffable Taiwanese spirit of enterprise. The people of Taipei are very welcoming, and although English is not widely spoken, it was relatively easy to get around. Ok. We got lost – more than once, often whilst navigating Taiwan’s Mass Rapid Transit, or Taipei Metro – but sometimes it’s that process of lost-ness in a new place that gives rise to some of the best adventures and encounters. Inevitably the kind Taiwanese folk took us in hand and helped us on our way, demonstrating the courtesy and hospitality for which this island nation is renowned.
For more information visit: travel.taipei/en explore
Re-Tyre Shoes Shoe Maker Melissa Rose, is a self-confessed hippie, with a passion for tyre-kicking sewing and design.
Words and Photography by Anna Turnock
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later they opened their first store, Valentina Rose, on the main street of Margaret River.
Mel was born in Tom Price, in outback Western Australia, famous for Karijini National Park, and grew up in Bunbury, 170km south of Perth. She hails from a family with a long love of motorcycles, and proudly wears the name ‘biker chick’; she still loves to take a spin in the desert.
Life was fun and exciting in Bali for Jim and Mel. Jim was thriving making wine, the girls were attending a Balinese school and meeting amazing like-minded families, and Mel’s fashion line Valentina Rose was taking off back home in Margaret River. Mel even went back to study full time for two years while running her fashion line and being a full-time mum to two busy, beautiful girls. She took a degree in Business & Contemporary Marketing online and passed with flying colours.
Mel hooked up with her childhood sweetheart, Jim, and together they travelled around like classic hippies. They had two children, Willow and Stevie. They were happy building their life together, nurturing their businesses and being parents to their beautiful girls in Margaret River.
“Mel expends a huge amount of effort into sourcing her materials sustainably and ethically.”
Mel was in the throes of getting her kids’ clothing and bamboo MOD nappies business up and running in Margaret River when Jim was offered an alluring career working as a winemaker in Bali. The young family jumped at this once-in-a lifetime opportunity. They packed up their life, home and businesses, and went on a pretty amazing adventure. They were sponsored by the Balinese owners of the winery and were welcomed with open arms into a new and loving community. Mel comes from a long line of dressmakers, designers and tailors; her mother and grandmother were into fashion and she grew up designing and making her own clothes. She even recently discovered that her father’s family were tailors, so I guess you could say that sewing was in her blood.
Mel soon recognised the potential of turning Valentina Rose into a collective store; this way she could split the running costs with the other artists and collaborate on a new creative level. Pretty soon Margaret River Artisan Store was born. Each member of the collective spends time in-store working directly with the public, and has their own space to showcase their products. Mel is still the owner and manager of this great space, which has been evolving and growing over the past five years. Mel expends a huge amount of effort into sourcing her materials sustainably and ethically.
While Jim was busy with the challenges of his new job, Mel cast around to find something to occupy her. Her mind was racing with ideas to create work for herself since she could not legally get a job in Bali. She got in touch with some friends back home in Margaret River and developed a clothing brand. Three months create
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â&#x20AC;&#x153;Each pair of shoes is made with love and respect for people and the planet.â&#x20AC;?
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Always looking for new adventures and ideas, by chance Mel met Adrian Ellis, the owner and production manager of an Indonesian shoe company that made ethical and sustainable shoes, reusing and upcycling car tyres for the soles. Mel loved this concept and she immediately wanted to discuss with Adrian the possibility of bringing these shoes to her store in Australia. Adrian suggested that she do this under her own label, with designs that suited her market.
about the impacts of fast fashion, in addition to supporting a beautiful and enterprising single mamma. Since relaunching Re-Tyre shoes, in the small space of one year, pocket rocket Mel has achieved a lifetime of accolades. Her store Margaret River Artisan won the Micro & Magnificent Award at the Margaret River Region Business Awards 2019. Re-Tyre shoes received the Arrived and Thrived (best new business award) and the Environmental Excellence Award.
Six years had now passed and the family was still living in Bali. Mel decided that her heart and her girls needed to return home to Margaret River. She set about pouring all her love and energy into her shoe line. Last December she relaunched as Re-Tyre Shoes. Each pair of shoes is made with love and respect for people and the planet. Old tyres are used for the soles and she also incorporates organic cottons, handwoven and naturally dyed hemp, inner tubing for straps and even, in the new slides, handwoven Pandan leaf waste products.
Mel is passionate about helping and mentoring other entrepreneurs. She volunteers on the local Chamber of Commerce to which she was recently appointed president in order to help build a thriving business community in Margaret River. retyreshoes.com
In addition to being 100% vegan, environmentally friendly and ethical, the shoes also fulfil another important criterion in Mel’s ethos – they are zero flat shoes, which means they are perfect for people who love to wear no shoes, those ‘barefoot hippies’ who often find the need to wear shoes but would prefer not to. They can be thrown on and off easily, are durable and comfortable and look great. Not only are customers buying a cool pair of shoes, they are also buying into the story and starting to think create
The ‘Salvage Sisters’: SISKO SISKO* For sisters, Anna and Tarja, waste is a beautiful thing, something to be valued and reimagined, providing endless opportunities to create, remake and transform. (*Sisko = sister in Finnish) Words by Anna Mango and Tarja Martin Photography Luca Podigo and Nudan Basnayak
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desperately trying to get out the message of how much we humans throw out, rather than sorting it and reusing it, and we need to change that.
Growing up, Tarja and Anna were taught a ‘reuse it, mend it, or sell it’ mantra, so salvaging and repurposing is truly in their blood! The sisters live and breathe recycling. They hope that their art created from waste promotes conversation and inspiration.
You are both accomplished artists in your own right. How have you found the experience of working together as sisters?
Anna and Tarja were constantly amazed at the amount of street waste they saw in their home town, Sydney. They set about repurposing it and filled their home by salvaging everything they needed. The more they collected the more the art ideas came. They started creating art, sculpture and fashion, both individually and together, throwing themselves into colourful, imaginative, stylish and eclectic art projects. They are proud to be a part of a growing movement of ‘waste reimagined’, a creative global family.
A: Great, good and annoying! Normal sibling stuff, but we do instinctively know how to tap into each others’ thinking and wavelength. Brainstorming great ideas is the result. We both take our art professionalism seriously and we tend to work at our best when making our own work or collaborating together. We work together preparing the art pieces, which can be labour intensive, but we love it! We are both extremely creative in our own right, but together we are dynamite!
Anna is a well-known award-winning multidisciplinary professional artist, working in the mediums of painting, sculpture and fashion. She has been an artist her whole adult life. Anna started drawing at three years old, on one wall in her home! Tarja is a child-care facilitator who works with children on art and craft projects.
T: In 2019 we won the major award at the Ku-ring-gai Sculpture Competition, Sydney, with a delicate piece made from wire, chandelier crystals and broken pearl necklaces titled ‘Dewdrops and Spider Webs’. It was such a surprise and a validation of our work.
What sparked your love for the potential and promise that comes from working with waste materials?
Tell us about the creative processes involved in creating your artwork together. T: As sisters who have been around each other for 60 years we can work quickly and have similar thoughts about a concept or construction. We don’t have to finish sentences or explain a word – that’s the great part of working together. We think similarly about style, fashion, and the details, and that makes the piece even better.
A: Our Aussie father Neil Allison, who is well known for his recycling projects, inspired us as children. He saved everything, and discussed wastefulness a lot, especially his time growing up in the great depression. This rubbed off on to me and Tarja. While pollution from humans is ever-growing, we are compelled to use ‘existing materials’ in our creative projects. We are cover
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fashion
‘[The sisters] are proud to be a part of a growing movement of ‘waste reimagined’, a creative global family.’ Tell us about some of the great finds you have had from your scavenging adventures.
Tell us about some of the other interesting collaborations that you have had and what you have made from them.
A: Over time we’ve found three beautiful vintage rocking horses, classic old books (even one that was one of our childhood favourites!). We’ve also found art deco glass carafes, all of our furniture... I could truly go on and on about the gems we have saved!
T: We love collaborating with other artistes. It’s exciting to create art collectively for love and passion, not for money. It allows a pure creativity to flow collectively. Our fashion shoot debut came about when Anna was approached by Tais, a hair salon owner, to do a photo shoot for a competition. This resulted in ‘RAJU’, an avant-garde collection with the primary materials being recycled tyre inner tubes. This is where we met Luca, an enthusiastic dedicated adventurous creative director and photographer (and lovely human being!) who is in Sydney.
What was the inspiration for the dress that was made out of leather shoes? T: We kept seeing many shoes in council cleanups. Pvc and leather shoes kept popping up and this made us think about leather and its long life and durability. We wondered if we could reuse it. We found, sprayed, cut and cleaned the leather uppers, and we loved the variety and patterns on each shoe. The first garment was the apron skirt followed by the bodice. Anna wanted to enter it in SWAP (the Sustainable Waste Art Prize), and so we set ourselves a goal of doing that. Our friends were polarised by the thought of used shoes, but they loved the finished result on opening night at SWAP.
Luca inspired us to create an original collection for a whimsical fashion shoot using plastic rubbish with two wonderful teen models, Honey Poe and Jayla, and this is how the ‘Roska’ collection was born. The ‘Roska’ collection is fun, whimsical, colourful, eclectic fashion for children with plastics as the major element. We want to highlight plastic pollution with these images.
A: We exhibited a dress made from leather shoes and a young artist performer, Adri, approached us and asked if she could wear the gown in a photo shoot. We answered ‘Yes!’ immediately. The shoot was in an outdoor location chosen by photographer Nadun at Lane Cove, Sydney. We made the gown to highlight how materials are being thrown away: leather from shoes, undyed cardboard, waste fabrics, chandelier crystals. The finished images were beautiful and we loved the ‘turn back time’ Victorian feel.
We were captivated by the photos for ‘RISE’. How and why did this particular collaboration come about? A: The Fire Shoot, ‘RISE’, came about after Luca Prodigo contacted us following the devastating fires in NSW. Luca was compelled to express his response to the fires through a photo shoot. He contacted Jessica Mouamba who wanted to do an avant-garde shoot. Her ability to be able to emulate and interpret what
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‘Our art work is spontaneous and impulsive, spurred on by what we see and find. We’re driven by waste’! broken homemade wings, vast excesses of fabrics, curtain pull backs, fish netting, an old dance tutu, dry palm seed branch. All the materials came from domestic trash and from new-building site dumpsters.
Luca wanted to express was amazing. Her performance art was brilliant! Her make-up by Jasmine Hayes worked perfectly. We created all the pieces for the shoot, as well as the props. It was a sad message that we were conveying, but we all devoted ourselves to the creativity of the story. Luca and I knew the photoshoot ‘RISE’ needed to speak about our beautiful country, our beautiful bush, of the loss and the damage. At the time Sydney was experiencing heavy smoke daily, making us acutely aware of the personal loss and the daily hell for those people living in the affected areas, and the living hell for those under threat. We connected with Luca’s vision for Mother Earth, and just went for it. Our use of waste materials highlighted just what we waste in our own neighbourhoods, juxtaposed with the fact that people were losing everything they owned in the fires. We wanted to show the versality of the materials we use in our work, using them in unique, interesting and inspiring ways. This collection truly embodies our ethos that ‘waste is not waste’.
Tell us about your next project, the Bayside Sculpture Competition, Sydney. A: Our entry this year for the Bayside Sculpture Competition is a large-scale soft sculpture installation, made from yoga mats reclaimed from council cleanups in our area. The quantity we found is astounding! T: All the materials for all of the collections have been salvaged and scavenged from the local streets and nearby neighbourhoods, saved from going to landfill, or becoming ocean waste. A & T: Our artwork is spontaneous and impulsive, spurred on by what we see and find. We’re driven by waste!
Did the materials give rise to the idea for the photo shoot or did you have the idea first them proceed to find suitable materials?
See Anna’s and Tarja’s work on instagram @siskosiskodesign
T: The materials are both fantastic and depressing. Everything we used was trash, thrown out and dumped in the inner west of Sydney where we reside: rubber inner tubes, conduction pvc, cover
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A Lifetime of a Thousand Soles Rachel Ayland’s hand-made shoes have graced the feet of many a fine soul.
Words by Syren Strong/Rachel Ayland Photography Kate Holmes
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much higher level, especially in bespoke pattern making and finishing.
At the tender age of twenty, Rachel fell in love with the shoemaker’s craft. A lifetime later her hand-made shoes and boots are in constant demand. We asked Rachel about her life as a maker and her views on footwear sustainability.
When my schooling was complete, I focused on setting myself up as a sole proprietor of a shoemaking and leather working business, which I am still happily running 30 years later.
When did you get the initial inspiration that being a bootmaker is what you wanted to do?
“Humans need to adjust, adapt and get real.”
I was having some time out after completing a science degree and I wandered into a shoemakers’ cottage in Wales. Well, it was love at first sight, I applied for a job there and they took me on a year later.
Have you always been primarily focussed on making shoes and boots?
Did your journey with leather and boot-making emerge from another craft?
Shoemaking has always been my primary focus but over the years I extended my product range to include bags, accessories and some interesting sensual-play items, in response to customers’ requests.
No, I had always made things as a child but I was actually studying to be a scientist before I decided to take the job as an apprentice shoemaker. However, my mother and particularly my grandmother, were creatives, I had just never considered it something I would do as a living. Nor had I been encouraged to do so before I discovered my shoe-making passion.
Quality shoemaking is actually quite hard, and very complex, so if you can tackle that, then most other products are achievable. Are there many women in hand-crafted shoe and bootmaking?
Did you train under a mentor?
The original Welsh workers’ co-operative where I began my training, was actually all women and I’ve met a lot of female shoemakers in my 37 years of being one myself.
I started at the shoe makers’ co-operative when I was 21 and trained on the job, including learning all aspects of running a small business.
There are a fair number of women shoemakers in England and Australia now, but it is probably different in, for example, Eastern
Years later, after migrating to Australia, I attended private classes with a Master Shoemaker and Teacher, he took my skills to a create
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Europe where traditional gender roles still play out. In the past women stitched uppers and men did the lasting and finishing, but women tackle the whole construct process more often now. Is making boots and shoes by hand a dying profession or is it enjoying a new resurgence with the interest in Artisan made, more sustainable quality?
“...I have taken to sourcing salvaged leather from Australian factory closures, rather than supporting the importation of new materials.”
Shoemaking was a dying profession when factory manufacturing took over the craft, but individual makers survived if they took on niche parts of the market, such as orthopedic wear, for example, or very high class bespoke work. But there has definitely been a resurgence in the past two decades as the interest in Artisan Crafts has increased. How do you think hand-made shoe and boot craft contributes to the ‘quality is more sustainable than mass produced’ argument? Handcrafted footwear definitely contributes to the “quality is more sustainable” argument. Interestingly, my science background was Environmental Science, and as a teenager I was already acutely aware of the ticking clock and humanity’s impact on our fragile earth. So I was concerned about the earth’s resources before I started making shoes, but now it all ties together for me. Making things that last, can be repaired and are made locally is one of the most most sensible actions we can
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take as ethical makers, consumers and business owners. It’s all a way of contributing to a more sane and caring society.
require glue and some synthetic components, but methods used centuries ago can be of assistance in overcoming, at first seemingly insurmountable, obstacles.
In my opinion, if consumers always bought fashion items that were made to last instead of made to throw away, that in itself contributes to lessening the wastage in our society. Footwear made to last reduces unsustainable waste.
Are there new, more sustainable and ethical materials becoming available?
Handmade clothing and footwear can usually be repaired effectively and can last for many years. My customers tend to be people who buy less items but the things they do buy are more precious, unique and longer lasting ... and yes sometimes more expensive initially, but more economical over time.
Lately I have been sourcing interesting materials from new companies such as Pinatex who are making vegan leather from pineapple leaves and hemp canvas being made in Australia. Both of these materials are excellent for my vegan customers. Leather by its nature unfortunately is sourced from a cruel and dirty industry, so these new materials are not just cleaner, but also kinder and more ethical.
Can you comment on the topic of recycling and upcycling shoes and boots? What issues are we dealing with when talking about shoes as waste?
With the wave of exciting new sustainable fashion with its high flying designers and innovative entrepreneurs, I’m sure a lot more materials will be launched in this decade that makers like me can start integrating into their range.
In recent years, as sustainability issues have become more understood and urgent, I have taken to sourcing salvaged leather from Australian factory closures, rather than supporting the importation of new materials. When I do need to source leather, I target local tanneries, supporting local industry helps to reduce my business’s carbon footprint.
As a race humans need to adjust, adapt and get real if we want to ensure our survival here as a species. The fashion industry has one of the largest carbon footprints of all industries. I’m excited to be part of the discussion towards changing that. bangalowshoemaking.com
I have also been exploring the concept of making an organic, sustainable shoe that can be composted along with organic vegetable waste. Achieving this is difficult as shoes generally
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Café Happiness If you love your Café Lifestyle make it eco
Words by Syren Strong Photography Supplied
Aussies drink a lot of coffee and love their cafes and take-aways – wellness and sustainability are the new second-line benchmarks for great café coffee, the first is, of course – taste and texture.
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If this article had been written pre-crisis-commencement the content would be much the same but the setting would be very different. We would have been painting pictures of you hanging out in your favourite café well ensconced with your laptop, co-workers or best buddies. But alas, the ‘crisis-we-had-to-havesooner-or-later’ has us all panting for our take-aways. Forget learning the art of the latte at home, we are supporting our local café’s with our take-away orders while they are closed and, if they are open again by the time you are reading this, well hallelujah! So we drink, how many, cups of café coffee in Australia per day? We don’t know, but we know it is a lot! We do know that Australians throw out an average 2.6 billion coffee cups per year – enough to circle the globe seven times, that was until we began the BYO coffee cup habit, a practice that grew 292% in 2019 alone. The Café Culture in Australia has been alive and well for many years and is not set to change anytime soon. But, the types of coffee we prefer to drink, the nature and source of the milk, the cups we want to drink our favourite joe from and what we do with the waste, definitely are changing and fast. The greatest change in the last few years has been in the milk we choose to froth and creamy our lattes, cappuccinos and viennas with, along with those popular flat whites.
Good for My Wellbeing As we get more sophisticated in understanding what keeps us well and firing on all cylinders, we are creating entirely new heath inspired food and drink solutions that best suit our individual discover
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health and wellness profiles and our lifestyles. Solutions that allow us to continue to enjoy our preferred taste sensations and little luxuries, whilst doing us more good than harm. Plant based milks have been in this category for many years now. Australian icon brand Sanitarium, have been producing plant-based health foods for over 100 years in Australia and were the first to introduce plant-based milks here over 30 years ago. That was when soy milk began its rapid rampage into our kitchens and cafes. Enter the Soy Latte.
Organic, all Australian production and manufacture, with no GMO ingredients are of course highly important on healthy Australians’ tick box list and are also are all ticked by Alternative Dairy Co.’s market leading Barista brand.
But whilst soy milk continues to be popular, plant-based milks with even greater health benefits than soy, and without the potential downsides, are rocketing in popularity, the first contender was almond milk but the latest solution is taking out all the top awards – oat milk.
St Ali perfectionista coffee roasters say, “Dairy milk finally has a challenger, it highlights the coffee, doesn’t overwhelm it and it really does texture and pour like dairy milk.”
But Does it Taste Good? Plant based milks until the launch of Barista Oat Milk challenged barista’s ability to provide the perfect milk-based coffee for their customers. But the Alternative Dairy Co. has apparently ‘nailed it’.
Developed with the direct input of baristas and café coffee drinkers, it is not surprising that baristas and their customers are very happy with the result.
For coffee drinkers and baristas, the best on market oat milk, which happens to be Sanitarium’s, Alternative Dairy Co. Barista, a café only plant milk line for… baristas! Barista Oat Milk simply works, beautifully, both for great latte, cappuccino and Vienna taste and texture and for good health, and it is uniquely carrageen free, allergen free, low in sugars and fat, high in protein and has more calcium than cow’s milk. Perfect for us health nuts!
Café coffee drinkers are a demanding bunch, that morning coffee particularly, has to be just right. altdairyco.com/barista-hub
The Cups, The Cups, So Many Cups
Most Sustainable Statistically, at this crisis time for planet earth and her inhabitants, more of us are interested in sustainable solutions than we are in either more specific animal’s welfare or our own health and wellbeing. If we don’t upgrade our practices to support, rather than degrade, life on earth, there may be no habitable earth for our future generations to live on.
Oh so many cups! Those billions of take-away coffee cups weigh a far heavier footprint on the earth than their actually volume weight. It takes so many manufacturing resources, toxic chemicals, energy and waste processing for so many single use cups it is ridiculous. Thankfully many solutions are in train, including the highly visible well-rounded solution HUSKEE CUPS. If Barista Oat Milk is the perfect healthy and sustainable milk for your café hit, the Huskee Cup is its perfect twin.
Plant based milks win profoundly over dairy milks on sustainability markers, and oat milk wins out of the plant based options. Growing oats uses seven times less water than almonds or dairy, uses less land and produces less greenhouse emissions. discover
The cups are BPA free and made entirely from non-toxic ingredients, with the primary ingredient being coffee husks, at Junkies we love turning a waste product into a new product, very clever, Huskee! The design of the cup, saucer and take-away lid is sophisticated, elegant and practical, both for café’s and at home. They stack and clean perfectly.
Ethical Eco Coffee Now, what about the coffee itself. The instant and supermarket brand coffee industry leaves a lot to be desired in the eco and ethical stakes. The problems include primarily worker slavery, fair price for harvest and the use of cheap synthetic pesticides. Coffee from these sources tastes bad, so you generally won’t find it served in your local café.
Even better is the Huskee Swap. When your usual take-away café becomes a Huskee Cups café, you order your coffee and give them your current cup, they fill a new one for you and away you go. No waste or inconvenience at all.
Café’s pride themselves on offering quality coffee from smaller supply chains, brands and roasters. Whilst specialty coffee brands and roasters make up a very small percentage of the industry, they are growing and importantly, are often in touch with the entire coffee cycle in their supply chain from farming, to processing and roasting. Small holder coffee is 80% organic, often simply because they can’t afford pesticides, but increasingly as a choice because organic coffee can achieve a higher price as demand grows.
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Regrounding the Grounds Coffee grounds are super-good for the ground. As a compost component plants love them. Reground Waste Minimisation services are on a mission to get every café’s coffee cup grounds back into… the ground!
Supply chain familiarity builds relationships that foster goodwill and honour all players in the coffee supply process. Increasing numbers of café’s and roasters now proudly display their source information, with pictures of where the berries are picked by hand. Where these farms have better provisions for workers, native trees for shade, and a fair price for labour, you will be able to see as there will be big smiles all round.
It works like this, baristas pop the grounds into their usual waste chute, that gets emptied at the end of the day into a Reground pick up wheelie bin, the van comes around and takes it away to be distributed amongst registered end-users, from community gardens to nurseries, to you and me for our vege gardens. Every year Australia produces an estimated 75,000 tons of spent ground coffee waste. The majority of this goes directly to landfill where it contributes significantly to climate change through the production of methane – a greenhouse gas which is 34 times more potent than carbon dioxide. So far, at the time of writing this article, Reground had saved 485 tons of coffee grounds from landfill. That is a lot of not-really-waste that never became waste at all. Get on board.
If you are an avid café coffee customer, get familiar with where your coffee comes from and support ethical coffee sourcing. The café coffee culture is well on its way to being sustainable, ethical and able to contribute to individual, community and environmental wellness. Ah, that makes me feel so much better about my morning Café Coffee habit!
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Better Than New Reimaginarium Is the place where you can do more than just imagine, you can create.
Words by Ryan Mischkulnig Photography Supplied
When this current storm is over, and we are allowed to embrace and enjoy each other’s company again, wouldn’t it be great if there was somewhere we could come together for a more sustainable future? Reimaginarium is working to create that somewhere. The plan is to open a space that allows visitors to Dream, Buy and Do, all in the name of Reuse. Shoppers will be able to sit down together in the cafe and dream up exciting repurposing projects, buy from an incredible range of handcrafted reclaimed goods, and do their own reimagining or bring in goods to be repaired in a dedicated reuse workshop. Sound lovely? Something you’d like to see happening here in Australia? Head to better-than-new.com.au to support efforts to make it a reality. 69 >
Reimagining Radio Enjoying getting into your podcasts while you’re bunkered down? Looking for an environmentally friendly way to turn up your favourite episodes? Perhaps you’re looking longingly at that old bakelite radio up on the shelf imagining what it would have sounded like in its heyday? We have a solution. The Reimaginarium in Geelong has made a name for itself building beautiful bespoke Bluetooth speakers from destitute valve radios. Their Bluetooth speakers do everything you would expect of a new Bluetooth speaker, but by reusing speakers and enclosures from unloved valve radios, they are over 90% recycled by weight.
As well as providing ready-to-use Bluetooth speakers, the Reimaginarium also offers to convert customers’ existing radio heirlooms to Bluetooth, so that they can be enjoyed for future generations. thereimaginarium.com.au
GIVE AWAY
In this edition, Junkies and the Reimaginarium are giving away a Bluetooth speaker conversion, to transform one lucky reader’s languishing valve radio. The winner will be able to send their classic valve radio to the Reimaginarium and have it returned to them as a fully functional Bluetooth speaker – a beautiful way to give a lovely old radio a new lease on life. Valued at over $200. To win this great prize, simply email hello@junkies.com.au with ‘Bluetooth Speaker’ in the subject line.
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Happy Human Hangouts Blossoming positive change in the way we build our habitats
Words by Kirien Withers Photography Dan Banko Heron Hall Designer: Jason F. Mclennan
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Leading Benchmarks
By the time you are reading this article you might be wishing that your own home was a happier Human Hang-Out than you have found it to be, whilst spending so much time in it. You will not be the only one.
Lifting our sights above our own immediate comfort levels, what thought-leading changes and advances are afoot in the creation of new built environments? Arguably, leading the new thought process is the International Living Future Institute (ILFI), founded by Jason F. Mclennan, who is also the founder of the Living Building Challenge.
Escalating awareness of the planetary resources potential use-by date has been rapidly evolving the way we design, build and fitout the places we hang-out in to live, work and play.
The Living Future Institute is an NGO that has as its focus the creation of communities that are: socially just, culturally rich and ecologically restorative.
Pre-crisis, individuals, developers, industries, architects and builders have all been scanning the possibilities for greener and more sustainable solutions for creating live, work, play environments.
The Living Building Challenge is defined by its architect and designer founder as:
We don’t know yet how the current crisis and its profound shake-up of our identities as planetary citizens, environmental custodians and local community and family members will reshape how we think and how we evolve. But one thing is for sure, when it comes to our home’s liveability, we will be acutely aware of its shortcomings.
…the creation of a building that functions as cleanly and efficiently as a flower. Just like a flower a building should: Harvest all its own energy and water Adapt to climate and location Operate pollution free Promote health and wellbeing Be comprised of integrated systems Be beautiful
“We can be agents of restoration and regeneration, or agents of destruction. I choose the former.”
Certified Living Buildings worldwide now include multi-storey ‘office’ buildings (read: comfortable places to work), numerous large-scale public buildings and complexes, including a major mixed-use development in Melbourne, Victoria that includes a shopping centre precinct. In future editions we will expand on the principles of creating Living Buildings as defined by the Living Building Challenge but in the meantime… here is a taster of what is on store.
Jason F. McLennan
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Heron Hall Many of our readers will be most keen to understand how to build, or retrofit, a home to Living Building Challenge standards. To begin our exploration in Junkies (soon to be Rethink), Jason F. McLennan has kindly shared with us his own certified Living Building home, Heron Hall. habitat
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Heron Hall is a fully sustainable family home, designed to achieve a minimum eco-footprint, completely off the waste and water grid. It is solar-powered and captures its own rain-water, which is treated on-site with carbon and UV light. The toilets are a composting system, turning waste into soil, with grey-water processed and utilised for drip irrigation. Building materials are naturally sourced and incorporate salvaged and repurposed materials habitat
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The primary construction materials are rammed earth and local timber creating a very low environmental footprint. Rammed earth mimics the way nature makes stone, by compression. At just over half-a-metre thick the walls are not only very beautiful, mimicking the compression layers of the Grand Canyon, but enhanced with central Knauff red-list-free insulation, ensure maximum energy efficiency, temperature and sound insulation year round. habitat
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McLennan has coined the term Salvage Modernism for his approach to utilising re-purposeable found, or hunted for, materials incorporated into modern design. He describes salvage modernism as â&#x20AC;&#x153;where a designer seeks to integrate substantial amounts of reused/ salvaged materials as both artifact and replacement for modern materials, embedded within an otherwise modern architectural designâ&#x20AC;?. habitat
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Passionate about wellness, McLennan encourages all design to be biophilic. Biophilia, or the love of nature sitting behind biophilic design, encourages the interactive nature between humans and the natural world. Heron Hall brings the outside in, allowing the family to see and interrelate with the beautiful natural environment around them. The use of natural materials and finishes not only reduces the potential for off-gassing and toxic residues with their potential for initiating negative health effects, they also enhance the emotional wellbeing of the residents. The home is bathed in natural daylight, with evening LED lighting the choice for maximum energy efficiency, lower cost and residentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; comfort. Lighting is set to reflect the bodyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own circadian rhythms for soft evening enhancement. A Living Building for living comfort and wellbeing. Jason McLennan is also the author of Transformational Thought l and ll, The Ecological Engineer, The Philosophy of Sustainable Design, Zugunruhe and his forthcoming publication Love + Green Building, which will come out this year. mclennan-design.com
living-future.org habitat
Go Plastic Free â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Get Luffed All hail the luffa, the bathroom staple that has won the test of time. Generations have been scrubbing themselves down in showers across the globe with this humble bathroom accessory.
Words by Junkies Photography Supplied
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The luffa plant, as well as keeping us buffed, is helping us become plastic-free in our bathrooms. Most of us have a version, whether itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the round hand-held one with cloth backing or the raw one on a string. So why not grow one in the garden for easy access to this helpful plant.
Planting Guide Luffa plants like a well-drained but moist soil that is full of plenty of organic compost matter. They need a lot of room to roam or a sturdy trellis over which to climb. As they need plenty of sun in order to ripen, they are more suited to warmer climate growing areas.
Luffas belong to the Cucurbitaceae, or gourd, family, along with their somewhat distant cousins, squashes, watermelons, cucumbers, melons, and the hard-shelled gourds. It is often mistakenly thought of as something that comes from the sea, as the dried flesh of the plant has fibrous-like properties similar in appearance to sea sponges.
It is best to start the seeds off in pots in a greenhouse or inside a few weeks before planting time; once the warm weather settles in, plant them in a sunny position. Note: Seeds are best sought from an organic seed company, such as herbs-to-use.com.
Two varieties can be grown: Luffa aegyptiaca (the angled luffa that has ridges running along the length of the skin) or Luffa cyclindrica (the smooth luffa, which has a more rounded appearance). Both plants are vigorous annual vines with lovely yellow flowers. Being a vine, they can be used as a cover for outside pergolas. Not only are they used for their fibrous flesh, the fruit is similar in taste to squash and can be used in salads and other dishes. grow
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Processing your luffa plant After your plant has matured and begins to bear fruit, they are ready to harvest. When the green skin has turned dark yellow or brown and begins to separate from the flesh, and the fruit feels lightweight, it is ready to process. (It best to leave the fruit for as long as possible to get a more fibrous luffa.) Once your fruit is ready, begin by peeling off the tough outer layer of skin; you may need to squeeze the fruit until cracks appear, and you can then continue to peel away the skin. Next, remove the seeds and spread them out onto some wet toweling. (Dry them out at room temperature and save them for planting next year.) Thoroughly wash the sponge to get the sap out by soaking it in some warm soapy water. You then need to dry the sponge out. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best to do this in the sun (which helps to fade the color as it dries), turning it frequently until completely dry. Now youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re ready to use your luffa as you wish. You can leave it whole or cut it into smaller sections for scrub pads. When cut in half lengthwise, you can make your own cloth-backed washer; alternatively, cut it on a crosssection for scrub pads that can also then be made into soap bars.
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Orange and Cinnamon Luffa Soap Ingredients • • • •
1 kg of glycerin soap base 20 drops of orange essential oil yellow or brown soap colourant Cinnamon sticks, grated, or 2 tsp ground cinnamon
Tools • •
Double boiler 6-cavity round silicone molds
Instructions 1
Cut rounds of luffa so they will fit neatly into your molds.
2. Chop soap into cubes, and place them in the top of the double boiler. Heat the soap over medium-low heat until it’s completely melted and clear, stirring frequently. (This can be done in the microwave in 30-second batches until melted.) 3. Once it’s completely melted, add soap colourant and essential oils plus ground cinnamon and stir to combine. 4. Immediately pour the melted soap into the silicone molds over the luffas. 5. Allow the soap to dry completely, then pop your luffa soaps out of the silicon mold. Place them in a mason jar and use them when needed in the shower or gift them to your friends. They are great for those rough patches found around the elbow, knees, and, most of all, your feet.
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Gardener’s Revenge Pie For generations, people around the world have known how to identify, harvest and cook the wild food around them. This spanakopita is one of the many ways to feed your family and friends while getting to know some of the most nutritious and resilient plants around.
Words and Photography by Nicole Azzopardi
Method
This variation of spanakopita was made with young calendula seedlings, a handful of mallow and a cup or two of fresh nettles. Dandelion leaves and flowers as well as clover flowers are also featured.
1. Preheat oven to 180°C. 2. Wash spinach, silver beet or kale thoroughly or drain well if frozen, squeezing out excess liquid by hand. 3. In a frying pan, gently cook onions and garlic until soft and aromatic in approximately 2Tbs of olive oil. Add all the greens and sauté until wilted. Allow to cool slightly. 4. In a mixing bowl, add the cooked greens and the remaining filling ingredients. Stir until thoroughly combined. 5. Unroll filo sheets and place them between two damp kitchen cloths to prevent drying out. 6. Brush bottom and sides of a baking dish with olive oil. 7. Line baking dish with two sheets of pastry, allowing them to fall over the sides of the dish if necessary. Brush with melted butter. 8. Spread filling over the bottom layer of the pastry. Top with two more sheets, and brush with butter. 9. Fold the excess pastry from the sides back into the dish; scrunch and crimp for effect if you wish. Brush folded sides well with olive oil or remainder of the melted butter. 10. Scatter sesame seeds across the top of your pie. 11. Bake for approximately 40 minutes to an hour, or until pastry is golden brown. Remove from the oven. 12. Cut your pie into squares and serve with a Greek salad and a bowl of warmed herby olives from your tree if you are lucky enough to have them!
This dish lends itself to a good degree of flexibility depending on what is growing in your garden. The young leaves of wild brassica and a juicy-looking sow thistle were also thrown into the mix. To this, I added a bunch of kale, but this can be substituted with silver beet or spinach depending on seasonality and availability. Ingredients Filling • 1 bunch chopped spinach, silver beet or kale • 4-6 handfuls of assorted edible weeds found in the garden* • 2 bunches flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped • 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped • 2 garlic cloves, minced • 2 Tbs olive oil • 2 eggs • 200g feta cheese, crumbled • 200g ricotta cheese • 1 generous handful of finely chopped fresh herbs such as dill, thyme, mint, oregano – or a mix of any herbs you have growing in your garden • sprinkling of sesame seeds
Warning: Take the time to learn about your weeds. If in doubt, leave it out. Some edible weeds can be easily confused with more toxic plants. * nettles, calendula, dandelion leaves, mallow and young sow thistle are particular favourites, but small amounts of finely chopped clover leaves and flowers, chickweed and plantain leaves will also work nicely in moderate amounts (plantain can taste a bit grassy in my opinion). Handy tip: If you enjoy the taste of your greens at this point and could eat them as you would a stir-fry, they are ready to be incorporated into your spanakopita.
Pastry • 4-6 sheets of filo pastry** • 100g melted butter
** sometimes I alternate filling and pastry. When I want a quick pie, I am happy with a base layer of pastry, a generous amount of filling and then a layer of pastry to cover. nourish
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Gather and cook: Calendula, nettles, wild brassica, sow thistle, dandelion leaves and flowers all make tasty additions to this pie.
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Get your revenge while befriending some of natureâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most prolific and generous plants around. nourish
Wild weed spanakopita can be made with edible plants available to you in your garden and surrounds. Be sure you source from an area that is unsprayed. 83 >
Next, a local delivery of sheep poo brought the nettles.
From nettles and dandelion greens to young calendula leaves and mallow, the tradition of knowing how to gather and cook edible weeds is shared by cultures all over the world.
Chickweed then appeared, popping up as the weather cools, its little white star-shaped flowers and tender green leaves cascading over the soil like a green blanket.
Indigenous Australians have long known the virtues of wild medicinal plants.
Little by little, my whole patch became overrun by weeds. The Tibetan Buddhist yogi, Milarepa, was found meditating in a cave, his skin having taken on a green colour from surviving on little else than nettle soup.
Showing an elderly and experienced herbalist my predicament one crisp morning, she laughed out loud with glee. “Ooh! They like it in there! Nicole, you can try pulling them out but eating your weeds is a gardener’s best revenge.”
In Greece, down-to-earth dishes made with foraged weeds, or horta, literally meaning ‘greens’, have been a delicious staple for centuries, boiled and doused in zingy lemon juice and olive oil.
So I got to work exploring how to cook with my calendula officinalis, or pot marigold as it’s known, because it has been used for centuries as a green for the soup pot and as a traditional way to soothe the stomach.
Modern-day Michelin-starred French restaurant, Le Cagnard, in southern France took things up a notch when it began offering it’s now acclaimed buttery ravioli, stuffed with either borage leaves or dandelion greens.
I made pasta with nettle pesto – a plant which boasts antihistamine properties; and steeped chickweed in apple cider vinegar and dried hibiscus flowers for rosy and tart salad dressings.
As for me, with half an acre of land out in a little country Victorian town, I’m keeping things pretty rustic, turning a rookie gardener’s mistake into a tasty autumn tradition.
Finally, I took an old family favourite recipe my Grandma Claire often made for me as a child, and took my place beside her and a long line of Greek women who came before me, adding my edible weeds to this spanakopita to suit the forager in us all.
It started when I let my companion calendula plant go to seed in my veggie patch. One plant quickly became two, two became four, four became eight. Now, three years on, I have tiny calendula plants as far as the eye can see. nourish
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Wild Sisters On Victoria’s Surf Coast, doll making is experiencing a comeback with the revival of one of life’s oldest traditions.
Words and Photography Nicole Azzopardi
about the fact that this kind of waste is not going away for a very long time and it’s our personal impact on the earth.” For Katey, fabric holds story and meaning. Working with material remnants and off-cuts allows makers to not only participate in one of the oldest crafts in history by making their own doll, it allows people to also work through feelings of nostalgia, sentimentality, grief, love and attachment. “We all have bits and pieces that we can’t get rid of”, says Katey. “Perhaps it’s your grandfather’s corduroy jacket, or your mother’s lace tablecloth that has a tear in it; finding a way to incorporate the fabrics of our lives in this way is meaningful and important.”
Wooden paddle dolls have been found in ancient Egyptian tombs; African dolls were used as the messengers of gods and ancestors; and in certain Hindu religious rituals, dolls and icons, or murtis, made of pottery, stone and metal, have been featured for centuries. Throughout history, dolls have long been used to help us learn, contemplate and understand ourselves; to express the inexpressible; to comfort and provide joy; and to give form and meaning to that which is in all of us. For Torquay-based textiles worker and artist, doll making is not just a ritual and a pleasure, it’s part of a solution to our climate crisis. Inspired by the Wild Sister Doll project, her workshop series, To Hell or Heaven in a Hand Basket, is about re-using and recycling found materials to teach others the craft of traditional making, as well as bringing awareness to the unsustainable issue of fast plastic. “I wanted to start a conversation about single-use plastic and what it is that we leave behind,” says Katey. “I created what I call a global marketplace of textiles from my collected trims and offcuts for people to rummage through and make their own dolls.” In these workshop settings, Katey offers budding makers the opportunity to create their own eco-warrior doll while contemplating their own plastic footprint as they make it. “I get people to think about what life would look like if we had to live with our rubbish instead of it being removed every week”, Katey says. “We’d probably change our minds about what we are prepared to use. In the workshops I get people to ask themselves: ‘If I was to die tomorrow and my plastic was left in a pile – what would that look like?’. Those who love fake nails would have a pile of plastic fingernails, others would have a pile of soy milk cartons and flavoured mineral water bottles. We talk
“For Katey, fabric holds story and meaning.” Often described as quiet craft, Katey’s doll-making workshops are therapeutic and reconnect us to the maker, creator and artist in all of us. “Working with your hands is an important part of being human”, she says. “When we stitch, when we make, it’s an expression of who we are. When people are working with their hands they are able to articulate their feelings in a way they don’t normally, so stories come from different parts of their lives.” Crafting gets people talking about their passion for making, their concerns for the environment; it strips back some of the intellectualism and feelings of being overwhelmed that is our response to the climate crisis. “And it feels a bit empowering”, Katey says. “It feels good to step through a process of how each of us can learn to re-purpose and re-use.” create
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“When we stitch, when we make, it’s an expression of who we are.”
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to complete each doll, which includes a crotchet beanie, handsewn dresses and pants – even a matching satchel. “My dolls are sturdily made so they can really take robust play”, she explains. “I remember my grandmother making china dolls like the one she was given as a child, which we still have in the family today. She insisted we not worry about the china because she had memories of other children having to be really careful in case they broke their doll, which really affected her. Her message of not keeping things behind a glass cabinet and really enjoying what we have has definitely made a big impact on me. It’s influenced the way I live today.” For information on how to participate in either Katey McRae’s or Cassandra Theime’s workshops follow them on instagram:
The art of doll making has been passed down to Cassandra Thieme by her mother and her grandmother. Sitting at her sun-drenched kitchen table in the little country town of Moriac, located in the Surf Coast hinterland, Cassandra quietly brings to life the dolls she is commissioned to create in the likeness of her client’s child. “Sometimes I might know the child personally or a parent will tell me about them and give me pictures”, Cassandra explains. “Children learn so much from imitating what they see in family life and dolls are a wonderful way to help them explore that learning.” In our society, children generally have an abundance of playthings but this abundance doesn’t necessarily mean they play with a lot of depth and richness. “I try to create a very unique doll for a child that can become a real friend to them – to step through with them all the things that are so big when you’re little”, she explains. “Things like getting dressed, getting in to a snuggly bed – even going on outings and remembering to bring your bag. I love making dolls children can really see themselves in, connect to, and take with them wherever they go.” Using natural materials – so the doll is lovely for the child to hold as well as being entirely compostable – is essential to Cassandra’s work. It’s common for her to invest up to 30 hours
@little_white_wagon @ plumjam9
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Main Road Resurgence Deeply immersed in Ballarat’s goldmining history, Main Road has been one of the key entrances into the city for over a century.
Words and Photography Bella Day
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adds, “Lots of people are becoming more aware of recycling, especially the younger generations, they love vintage stuff”.
Graced with a virtually intact Victorian streetscape, you can almost hear the clamour of the miners in its pubs, the rowdy – and sometimes naughty – appreciative accolades as Lola Montez performs her Spider Dance, and the hooves of the horses of the mounted troopers as they head to the nearby goldfields to check the miners’ gold licences. Today there is a new rush to Ballarat’s oncenotorious Main Road precinct, as creatives of all stripes head here to stake their claims. I sat down with some of the Road’s newest purveyors to ask them about their businesses and what they love about this quirky strip.
I asked Diane for one word to describe her shop. “Exciting!”, she quickly exclaims. “Well, it is for me anyway, and I hope other people feel that way, too’. I asked her, “What is the most exciting piece in the shop at the moment?”. She pointed to an amazing canary yellow gown, “That piece dates back to the Victorian era, that’s pretty exciting”.
The Building Café My next stop was the Building Café, located at 30 Main Road. I sat down with owner, Brett Hayward.
Dressing Room Recycled My first stop at Main Road was Dressing Room Recycled, at 20 Main Road. I chatted with Diane Opie, and discovered plenty of juicy bits of building history.
“What made us decide to buy the building was seeing the size of the whole thing”, Brett tells me. “We thought, this is such a cool building, we need to make use of this big space. There is so much area behind the front room, that we really wanted to utilise to its full potential. Our plan was to get the café going and then really develop the rest of the space, just breathe more life back into it.”
Diane started her business from home, selling dresses she’d found in garage sales. Her inspiration soon morphed into Dressing Room Recycled, one of the best vintage clothing stores in Ballarat.
I asked Brett which is his most popular dish. “That would have to be our Japanese breakfast”, he smiles. “In a town where smashed avocado is very well represented, people find our special breakfast to be something completely different. Currently we have a tiny kitchen, but we are expanding soon and will be adding more interesting new delights to the menu.”
“There’s lots of history down this street”, Diane tells me. “During the gold rush, the building was known as the New Eagleton Hotel, which was once rebuilt after burning down”. According to Diane, jewellers used to stay at the hotel, one of whom, legend has it, dropped a ruby down the stairs that was worth £3,000 pounds. “And no one ever found it”, Diane informs me. The original staircase is still there today.
“Our café atmosphere is very relaxed”, Brett says. “When people sit down they tend to stay for a while, which is really nice. We want to keep the feeling of the comfort and relaxation that comes with knowing that it’s ok to just sit and chill.”
Most of Diane’s stock is recycled or repurposed. “Some of it is new, but most of it is recycled”, she says. “It’s just such a shame that so many people throw out so much clothing. So many young people come in here and get beautiful clothing that’s well made, for a quarter of the price you would pay in the chain stores”. She
I asked Brett to tell me a little about the building’s history. “We’ve heard heaps of stories”, he says. “People come in and say things explore
The Known World Bookshop The newest addition to Main Road is the Known World Bookshop. This much-loved secondhand bookshop started life as Buninyong Books in 2001. In 2008 it moved to Sturt Street, Ballarat, becoming the Known World Bookshop and establishing itself as country Victoria’s most interesting and eclectic secondhand bookshop. After a short stint in the little goldmining township of Linton, it is shortly to open in its permanent new home in the beautiful 1880’s building at 28 Main Road. The faint remnants of red and white spiralling paint on the old verandah posts at the front of the building are testament to its erstwhile life as a barber shop. But very soon it will have one of country Victoria’s best collections of secondhand. books, from fine literature, history, philosophy and the arts, to beautiful children’s books and more.
“Lots of people are becoming more aware of recycling, especially the younger generations; they love vintage stuff ”. like ‘Oh, I used to live here,’ or ‘my dad used to run a shoe shop here’. It’s wild. It has just had so many incarnations over the years. It was two different bagel shops before I bought it, and a cake shop before that. When I was a kid, it was a T-shirt shop called Space Art where you could get cool band T-shirts.”
Main Bar Also on Main Road is the Main Bar. The central hub of the street, Main Bar is a welcoming gathering place and live music venue that has become a favourite for Ballarat locals. Main Bar has an old-style tavern feel with a separate area for large gatherings and a stage upstairs for regular live music performance. The Main Bar is a must if you love to-die-for pizza and live music.
So what does Brett love about Main Road? “I love that it looks like a movie set”, he laughs. “Especially our side of the street, it definitely has that kind of western movie set feel.” I mentioned to Brett that I heard a South Korean athlete, who won the Boston Marathon in 1947, was filmed in locations across Victoria, including on Main Road in Ballarat earlier in the year. He said, “Yeah, unfortunately we were away the weekend they filmed that, so we missed out’.
Mr. Jones
Ballarat is no stranger to film crews, as locals are well aware. The beloved Dr Blake Mysteries were filmed in various Ballarat locations for seven years, including Main Road.
The final stop on my Main Road exploration is Mr. Jones, located at 42-44. I sat down with Danielle, aka Mrs. Jones, to ask about their building’s history and how she and her husband Damien came to own it.
The Building Café is the only café in Ballarat that doesn’t use single use cups, which has been very well received by the local community. “It makes us feel good about not adding to that mountain of cups that go into landfill”, confirms Brett. *
“Before we bought it, we ran the Lydiard Wine Bar for three years, which gave us some really good experience”, Danielle explained. “We got some great reviews, so we decided to open our own business. The building had been a florist shop for quite a few explore
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liked the idea of cooking”, he said. “I began when I was 16 and simply fell in love with cooking. I’m just a chef who really loves my craft. My passion came from how and where I learned to cook. I started creating Asian food a bit later in my career, after building a strong background in general cooking in professional kitchens, and acquiring a good understanding of food. I found Asian cuisine very exciting – the techniques, the diversity of flavour, the ingredients – it all came together for me and I’ve embraced it”. Let me tell you, reader, that you’ll embrace it too. The food is sublime.
years prior, before that, a bicycle repair shop. When we were doing renovations, we found a trap door; they must have taken the bikes in and lowered them down to the basement to work on them. That was a bit of a surprise, when you are renovating you always find a few surprises here and there and that was certainly our biggest one.” We called our new business Catfish Thai before changing the name to Mr. Jones. I asked her why the building was so special to her. “I remember when our children were little we used to walk past and I just remember thinking how beautiful it was but that we could never do anything with it. But then we opened Catfish and it really started to happen.”
Main Hitters Tattoo Parlor Whilst there are antique shops, vintage shops and a bookshop on Main Road, in addition to several great places to dine and chill out, if you want a permanent souvenir of your visit, drop into Main Hitters Tattoo Parlor for some new ink.
I asked Danielle what drives the couple’s inspiration for their renowned menu? “We try to go to Thailand every second year to have a look at the food and see what’s happening”, said Danielle. “I make the desserts, and I’d have to say our most popular one is our white chocolate mousse with poached pineapple, Asian spices, fresh passionfruit and honeycomb, which we make in-house. Visitors come from Geelong for it, we’ve been making it since we opened Catfish, so it’s always on the menu.”
In summary, if you’re planning a trip to Ballarat, make sure to come on down and check out Main Road. With great dining, live music, fabulous vintage ware, antiques, books and tattoos, it’s a must.
Damien has been a chef for 30 years and has spent many of those years in Thailand and other places in Asia, cultivating his skills before he and Danielle opened Mr. Jones. “I always
*Read more about solutions to single-use cups in Café Happiness on page 64.
You can even come say hi to us junkies at our new HQ. We love the street so much we’re moving in!
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Book Reviews Reviews by Jo Canham - Blarney Books and Art - blarneybooks.com.au
The Big Book of Less Finding Joy in Living Lighter IRENE SMIT & ASTRID VAN DER HULST Irene and Astrid are the founding editors of the very popular Flow magazine, and the books they occasionally release under the Flow umbrella are always appealing in their beauty (the design and paper choices are nothing short of sumptuous) and their practice of being guided by simplicity. This book is a celebration of living lighter, and it is packed full of inspirational ideas on how to slow down a little and reduce our daily burdens. Each chapter has an emphasis on how to reduce – stuff, information, remembering, control, doing, living large and judgement – through small ideas and tweaks that will only enhance the value in those tasks, activities and objects that we choose to keep in our lives. All about slowing down, and taking the time to actually live with and enjoy the choices we make, it adds to the literature on mindfulness. The publication comes with some lovely bonuses – journals, posters, paper accessories and even a tiny fold-out house. < 94
Modern Mending Minimise Waste and Maximise Lifestyle ERIN LEWIS-FITZGERALD Do you know how to darn? This book will show you, step by step. And it will offer you all manner of choices and ideas for fixing just about any kind of damage to practically any garment in your wardrobe. It is not only full of practical advice about stitching and fabrics and required tools, but it also offers lots of creative inspiration. The last third of the book is full of ‘Case Studies’ – illustrated with beautiful photography that demonstrates applied mending techniques. Erin Lewis-Fitzgerald is a Melbourne-based author/mender. You can even sign up for a mending workshop with her – check her website at erinlewisfitzgerald.com for more details. Erin volunteers at her local Repair Cafe, and she also founded Bright Sparks, a not-for-profit social enterprise where you could have your appliances repaired. It’s safe to say that Erin is dedicating her life to repair and mending where possible, in order to keep our ‘stuff’ out of landfill.
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Jackfruit & Blue Ginger Asian Favourites Made Vegan SASHA GILL Sasha Gill grew up in Singapore and perhaps took for granted the phenomenal food choices available to her at that time. It was only when she moved to England that Sasha realised how fortunate she’d been, and she found herself yearning for the spicy and flavourful foods of her past. With her life choice to become vegan, she knew she had to gather some recipes that were failproof and simple. Jackfruit & Blue Ginger is Sasha Gill’s first book, and East Meets Vegan her second. Jackfruit & Blue Ginger, which sports a stunning cover, has some of the easiest and tastiest vegan recipes you’ll ever find. Sasha has divided the book into sections, rendering well-known dishes into tasty vegan versions from the following countries: India, Thailand, Singapore/ Malaysia, China and Japan. You will find a lush butter ‘chicken’ recipe; buffalo wings become tandoori cauliflower wings; pork belly tempts in its sweet potato belly guise; omelettes are made without eggs; and there’s a great recipe for a pumpkin katsu-don. This recipe book has already become a staple in our kitchen, and we follow her on Instagram for more daily inspiration.
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PIP MAGAZINE CLIMATE-CONSCIOUS LIVING HOMEMADE PASTA . REPAIR CAFES . SELF-CARE BACKYARD CARBON STORAGE . NATIVE FOODS LEARN MACRAME . SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD
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Standing Strong Together Illustrations by Brenna Quinlan
These are extraordinary times; our lives have changed so dramatically over the past weeks affecting us on every level: from individuals, families and communities to businesses big and small, and to governments. These sweeping changes stretch world-wide, engendering change on a global level. At this time, we must stay strong and stand together. During this time of isolation, anxiety and more time at home, there are some simple but enjoyable ways we can keep busy and productive. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s embrace the simple things we can do for ourselves, our families and the community we live in.
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Managing Anxiety Maintaining your mental and physical health while staying at home is important at this time. Make sure you look after yourself and take the time to enjoy simple pleasures. Concentrate on slowing down and attaining mindfulness. Make a plan where you carve out a portion of your day to truly relax and then catch up on some jobs you normally donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get the time to do.
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Time in Isolation There are plenty of great ways to keep busy while in isolation. Why not use this time to undertake some ecofriendly tasks that will make you feel like the ecowarrior you are and keep you connected with our earth. Remember, it is the small actions that, together, add up to make a difference to the planet.
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How to Boost Your Immune System Eating good food that nourishes your mind and body is the key to helping build your immune defence systems. Adding some of these regularly to your cooking will add some flavour, plus the added advantage of also containing a number of nutrients that have been shown to possess a number of virus-fighting T-cells, which when released into your bloodstream to help fight off colds and the flu that are caused by viruses.
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