Knitted niceties

On the weekend I went along to the Malvern Town Hall for the Magnolia Square craft market http://www.magnoliasquare.blogspot.com/ I picked up a gorgeous ecru-coloured cotton pram blanket for a girlfriend's newborn, Lola. The cotton is non-dyed and hand knitted by women in Zimbabwe. The label, Grasshoppers, is run by twin-sisters who are Zimbabwe-born and now Sydney based.

Profits are directed back into the business to grow and develop it for the women working in Zimbabwe, along with it providing an income for some of the poorest in the world. http://www.grasshoppersjumpers.com.au/about.html

Hand drawn handbags

I'm still listening to the lovely sounds of Shrift and currently tuned into their luscious version of the Beach Boys "God only knows". http://www.myspace.com/shriftspace
I'm also very fond of Marimekko and just perused their website to find gorgeous hand drawn pop-art graphics in their new range of bags. http://www.marisnewbags.com/

Lost in a moment

Gorgeous song set to sushi drifting along on a sushi train. Watch for a moment and close your eyes and dream. Film by Dennis Wheatley and Stefan McClean from Shrift, song "Lost in a moment".

Simply elegant

Last weekend on a partially drizzly Sunday, we visited Como House, a historic mansion - part Italianate and part Australian Regency style. It's less than 20mins from my house and I've lived most of my life in Melbourne and never visited it. My delight at the property heightened when I discovered that part of the five acres had a field of overgrown grass and weathered wooden fencing that looked like it hadn't been touched since the house was built in the 1850s.
The reason for our visit was a fashion exhibition that is part of the L'Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival titled Shaping Elegance - Robert Fritzlaff - 12 March-14 June 2009. The way his clothing draped the models was superb, his use of tweed delightfully modern and the room that had a complete splash of red dresses and suits - a gorgeous surprise. Fritzlaff started working in the 1950s in Melbourne and worked full-time up until the 1980s. He continues to work with a small group of clients. http://www.comohouse.com.au/about_como

Labour of Love

A public holiday today to celebrate Labour Day and we got out of the city and headed to the country. We drove to the town of Healesville about 1hour 15mins away and an area near the recent Victorian bushfires. Luckily the town was saved but the roads north of the town are still closed. Tourists flocked the footpaths of the town, enjoying the good food and sunshine. The sky was a gorgeous blue with the most calming yet scrawling cirrus clouds.
We visited Healesville Sanctuary for my daughter's first ever visit to a zoo. She loved it and I loved hearing her giggle, the sound of bellbirds and the air smelling fresh with the scent of eucalyptus.