Innehållsförteckning för Issue 50 - Winter 2021 från Peppermint Magazine

let’s plant the future When it comes to the fight against climate change, every tree – and every action – matters. That’s why we’ve partnered with non-profit environmental charity One Tree Planted to plant a tree for every Peppermint subscription sold. Because although the problems our world faces may seem overwhelming, we know we can work together to create real, lasting change – one tiny seedling at a time. Now, when you take out a subscription, you’ll be helping to plant trees in vulnerable communities around the world, including North America, Indonesia, the Amazon rainforest and Australia. The simple act of planting trees helps to restore biodiversity, support reforestation, protect endangered wildlife, provide sustainable jobs and income and, crucially, store carbon from the atmosphere in a bid to prevent global…

GOIN’ TROPPO If you’re a crafty sew-and-sew looking for the perfect textile to make your sewing pattern pop, look no further than Gold Coast-based Ellie Whittaker’s fabulous fabrics. Digitally printed on Oeko-Tex certified, 100% organic cotton sateen, Ellie’s designs are a riot of pattern and colour – all created in an independently certified ethical supply chain, using eco-friendly inks and biodegradable packaging. Having previously partnered with Cotton On Kids, Target Australia and Spotlight, Ellie’s designs celebrate the glory of the Australian landscape – swoon! elliewhittaker.com.au FIELD OF DREAMS Marrying ancient jewellery-making techniques with modern, architectural shapes, Emma Field hand-makes delights for your ears, neck and fingers. Rather than regularly releasing new collections, the Brisbane-based artist spends months – and sometimes years – designing and creating timeless pieces inspired by her…

Growing up mixed race, you get very used to the constant questioning and comments, often unprompted, about your heritage. It’s only as an adult that I started to question the questions. The list is endless – from the classic, “Where are you from?” and, “Did you grow up in Australia?” to, “Really, you don’t speak any other languages?” and, “Let me guess, [insert Asian country here]?” I get it. People are interested in my cultural background. And sometimes I think, hell, it just starts a conversation and what’s wrong with that? Then other times, I want to reply, “I’m Australian,” because I AM! This sentence always feels unfinished – so the extension is: “I’m Australian… but my dad is Chinese Malaysian and my mum is white Australian.” But, my dad…

Tell us about the origins of Muna and Broad? Why did you feel it was important to create a plus-size brand in the sewing space? Jess: We knew from our own experience trying to find patterns that we were underserved, and we knew we couldn’t be the only fat makers feeling that way. We also knew that folks had really struggled with fitting pants and were having to do lots of adjustments just to get something close to wearable. Our original size range was our hip size plus two sizes higher, and our size expansions have actually been mostly expanding down since we found lots of folks smaller than us had many of the same fitting issues we were having. Leila: For people who have been to fashion school, it’s…

The dresses hanging in Emily’s Sydney-based boutique are far luckier than your average garment. Rather than being worn once before languishing in the back of a dark and dusty closet, they’re regularly out on the town with a bunch of different owners – who’ve each paid a fraction of the retail price to hire them. “I love seeing our fashion travel and the stories they get to tell through our clients,” enthuses Emily. “As well as clients in Sydney and interstate, we’ve had dress hire for formals in New Zealand, a wedding in the south of France, functions in London and exclusive events in New York, to name just a few. It’s so satisfying seeing our customers wearing the high-end fashion we’ve made available to them through renting.” As Australia’s…

win! One of five knitting kits from WE ARE KNITTERS! Subscribe in time for spring (by 12 August 2021) and you’ll join current subscribers in the draw to win one of five Udon Blanket knitting kits in the colour of your choice, from DIY craft lovers We Are Knitters, valued at $350 each! We’re all about the snuggly, winter-friendly vibes of We Are Knitters’ kits, with everything you need to knit your own adventure! Kits include ethical and natural fibre yarns, such as cotton and wool, in a swoon-worthy palette of shades with 100% beechwood needles. weareknitters.com.au • SAVE ON COVER PRICE • CANCEL WHENEVER YOU LIKE • FREE AUSTRALIAN DELIVERY • PAY-PER-ISSUE OPTION • SENT IN PAPER, NOT PLASTIC • NEVER MISS AN ISSUE • ONE TREE PLANTED ON…

You write that you wanted to convey a strong sense of home with this book. What does the idea of ‘home’ mean to you? At the heart of the idea of home is that strong sense of belonging, of feeling connected to people, to a place and to a community. For me, home has always meant my family, who are my haven, with whom I feel safe and protected. Home is where we find the extraordinary in the ordinary, where small moments leave lasting memories; home is also where we nurture, and are nurtured by, the ones we love. What is it about food that evokes such a sense of nostalgia? I believe the food and the flavours we experience, stay with us forever. We store them in our memory…

Peppermint Issue 50 Dear Kelley, “Ever felt like you just had to do something? Like you just had no choice, that something was greater than you, and the passion was so intense there was no other possible outcome but to follow it blindly?” It’s 2008 and, girl, that ‘something’ is about to change your life. These were the words you bashed out for your letter in the first issue of the magazine that’s about to turn your world upside down (except I’ve fixed the errors you made here: lesson number one is to get yourself a sub-editor, pronto). I feel a lot of feels looking back at you from here, 50 issues on. Admiration, pride, awe… mixed with a dash of care, concern and what-were-you-thinking. I love your bravado, blind…

Shannon Mercer, CEO Can you explain FibreTrace? FibreTrace aims to empower the global textile industry to reduce its impact on the environment, through improved traceability and transparency. Luminescent pigments are embedded into the raw fibre in minute quantities, which remain with the fibre as it’s processed. This creates a ‘passport’ for the fibre to move through the supply chain and be traced using our proprietary Bluetooth scanning devices, which drops information verifying provenance, environmental impact, location, fibre quantification and factory certification onto the blockchain platform. Why is transparency so important? Without traceable data, it’s incredibly difficult for most brands to know the origins of their fibre, right down to farm level, and claim with 100% certainty what fibres are in their garment along with any associated environmental impact claims. It’s…

learning to live lighter MONTY COMPOST CO compost monitoring device Confused about compost? This “personal compost manager” from Brisbane sustainable tech startup Monty Compost Co will have your pile looking filthy hot and rich (in nutrients). A smart monitoring device that continuously tracks the temperature and humidity of your compost, along with the volatile organic compounds, simply stake it in your backyard bin and let Monty the monitor do the rest. Paired to a smartphone app, Monty will analyse your compost data and let you know what you’re doing right… or wrong, with simple instructions to get your compost looking (and smelling) fresh. montycompost.co Our pick of the latest in lighter living and homes with heart… THE PLANT RUNNER plant care The team at The Plant Runner know plant care accessories should…

Do you have fat friends? Are you the smallest one in your friendship group? Do you constantly bang on about how ‘fat’ you are in front of your plus-size friend(s), or talk negatively about weight and dieting? Do you talk about your food intake, and speak of ‘good’ foods and ‘naughty’ foods… in front of your fat friends? Do you often bring up the weights and body shapes of celebrities and influencers in front of said friend? If you answered yes to any of the above, and you have ever spoken negatively of health, food or body shapes in front of them, you may just be an ignorant and inconsiderate friend who may be impacting negatively on your fat friend’s mental health! Never fear! I have a couple of tips…

Kon Karapanagiotidis Founder and CEO of Asylum Seeker Research Centre My dream is that 50 years from now we have not built tougher borders or higher walls to stop human beings finding safety and freedom but a longer table with a seat for everyone. We have met the challenge of climate change to not create future generations of refugees. And we have a global community where refugees are welcomed with open arms and provided with protection, safety and opportunity, simply for being human. I hope we no longer follow the drumbeat of racism and fear that betrays our hearts and moral compass and we awaken the best of us – an us that sees and affirms what unites us, celebrates our beautiful differences and believes we are all equal, we…

No one knows our stories like we do. We don’t need white saviours. We need self-determination. Art is a sacred medium for storytelling in First Nations cultures. But commercialising our art and stories, at least in a western sense, is a relatively new experience for First Nations peoples. Many First Nations artists live in remote areas of so-called Australia, where access to resources like internet and business support is limited. Often motivated by the desire to help, many non-Indigenous people have established businesses to provide platforms for First Nations creatives to sell their art. But even with the most genuine of intentions, problems arise. This is largely because of the white saviour complex – subtle, usually going unnoticed by the white gaze, but toxic to those presumed to need saving.…

CERES LIFE / ORGANIC COTTON TRACKSUIT The must-have outfit for all sets and the city fans, the matching tracksuit is here to stay. Ceres Life brings us this cool and comfy option in soft organic cotton. TOP: $79.99 BOTTOM: $69.99 (SOLD SEPERATELY) cereslife.com MATT & NAT / RECYCLED NAVA BACKPACK Tackle each day with aplomb – and an aesthetically pleasing pack on your back – thanks to Matt & Nat’s refined yet functional vegan bag. Made with resin from recycled windshields, no less! $200 aus.mattandnat.com BETTS / ZEROE Putting its best foot forward, Betts has launched a new sustainable range. We heart the vegan-certified Lee Chelsea boot for the ultimate winter staple. $119.99 betts.com.au/zeroe WILL & BEAR / ANDY OAK Leave your hat on all year round with Will &…

RACHEL MANNS / GOODBYE SVÍNAFELLSJÖKULL “In 50 years, this will all be gone. The climate is changing, and Iceland is losing its ice.” I looked around at the vastness of the Svínafellsjökull glacier, and the guide’s words reverberated through my brain: “In 50 years, this will all be gone,” over and over. I repeated them to myself, as I traversed a tiny section of this mammoth living, no, dying structure. I sunk my crampons deeper, not to steady myself but in the hopes I could make the glacier change its mind and stay. Maybe my small wishful stomping could inadvertently adjust the global thermostat down a few notches. Maybe, by pressing my feet down more, I could somehow defy the inevitable. “In 50 years, this will all be gone,” I…

It’s also becoming clear that consumers are starting to be guided more and more by their own personal values and ethics. Tell us a bit about The Social Studio journey… The Social Studio was founded in 2009 by a group of Melburnians drawn from the community sector and creative industries. It started in a small shop front on Smith Street, Collingwood, with a mission to provide education, support and opportunity to young people from refugee and new migrant backgrounds, using upcycled fashion as a vehicle for that social change. Over the years, the studio has expanded in different ways, but our fundamental purpose – to empower and celebrate the creative talents of young people from refugee and migrant backgrounds – remains the same. Today, The Social Studio is located in…

Anna Jane Linke, Founder Tell us a bit about Seaside Scavenge…. I started the Scavenge back in 2015 with a drive to make picking up litter a positive and memorable experience, mainly to engage a wider audience with how polluted our waterways are. We do this through hosting fun, solution-based programs and events that inspire individuals and businesses to change their behaviours to clean up the ocean. We deliver events across the country, as well as Looped Festival and the Spring into Scavenge leadership development program. How is it different to other litter collection campaigns? The Scavenge is renowned for its ‘trash for cash’ concept, where the litter that participants collect during the cleanup becomes the currency to purchase preloved clothes, toys and books, donated by the local community, in…

Tell us a bit about what led you to textiles and printmaking as an art form? I’m constantly widening the sphere of processes and techniques I use, but my background in textiles and embroidery has always been central to what I do. I’ve long been interested in textile arts, especially needlework. I loved the accessibility of being able to make something beautiful or useful or interesting with just a needle and thread – items I didn’t need to go buy but had access to by borrowing my mother’s sewing kit. I studied textile design in college and have always loved drawing, and I think printmaking just fell into my lap – it’s something I’m exploring, but I don’t feel like a printmaker. I feel much more at home in the…

Too often, though, we take these ‘facts’ at face value, falling for their simplicity and forgetting to test their veracity. Most people do so unwittingly and with the best of intentions. But could spreading half-truths and supporting hearsay be doing the movement more harm than good? If there’s one ‘statistic’ that’s become synonymous with the sustainable fashion movement over the past decade, it’s this: the global fashion industry is the second most polluting industry after oil. This one-liner, or some version of it, does everything it should – shocking in its brevity and haunting in its conciseness, it’s the ideal rallying cry to inspire consumers to pause at the checkout and to pressure brands to strive for something better. Repeated across numerous company mission statements and intoned at countless panel…

The unveiling of the Australian Olympic team uniforms rarely passes without criticism. But generally, it’s the aesthetics that come under fire. The reveal for the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, however, has drawn attention for its ethics – namely, that manufacturer Asics uses cotton from China’s Xinjiang region that may have been produced by Uyghur people under forced labour conditions. While this pressing human rights issue rightfully demands attention, it seems to have drawn a blind over a matter that, perhaps, should be equally questioned – why are the uniforms of our national team manufactured by a foreign brand in overseas facilities in the first place? There was once a thriving “rag trade” in Australia. In fact, some districts in our cities, such as Flinders Lane in Melbourne, are remembered as a…

MATERIALS Garment to be dyed Kitchen scale Eco-friendly mild laundry detergent Measuring spoons Large stainless steel, lidded pot Dust mask, rubber gloves, and protective apron (for working with aluminium acetate) Mordant (aluminium acetate) Lidded jar, for mixing mordant Yellow onion skins Large stainless steel pot for dye Onion skins are probably one of the most common kitchen scraps for creating natural dyes. Even if you live in an apartment building in a big city, with no backyard garden or even herbs growing in window boxes, you can still collect enough onion skins for dyes. Just store them in a paper bag once they’re dry, building your collection until you have enough for your fibre project. You can also ask to collect extra onion skins from grocery stores, farmers’ markets or…

SPOONFLOWER With over one million designs available to print on demand, Spoonflower is ready to help create your me-made project dreams. spoonflower.com TOPSTITCH STUDIO Join Topstitch Makers’ membership community to improve your sewing skills, support other makers and learn through an online hub! topstitchmakers.com MODIBODI Banish period disposables with Modibodi’s Classic Bikini. The Maxi-24hrs technology prevents leaks even during heavy days. modibodi.com NATURE FOOTWEAR Made from vegetable-tanned leather, Nature Footwear’s Asta Veg boot (in Nordic blue, blush or black) features a new rubber and cork sole. naturefootwear.com.au HACHETTE AUSTRALIA Linda McCartney’s Family Kitchen features over 90 plantbased recipes, inspired by Linda McCartney. hachette.com.au EARTHYARD Essential (oil) gifts are sorted with the new Trio Sets from earthYARD. Choose from seven different collections including Herb or Citrus. earthyard.com.au SMITTEN MERINO Useful and…