frankie Magazine Issue 107 - May/Jun 2022

Having stayed close to home for a few years, we’ve begun to get itchy feet (perhaps you’re feeling the same). How nice it is to land in an unfamiliar place, brimming with excitement for what’s to come. While we didn’t leave the country to make this issue, we did squeeze in as much virtual globetrotting as we could. There’s a tour of breakfasts from around the world (page 90), a heartfelt photo essay on Taiwan’s queer community (page 78), a chat with a crafty lady in Oaxaca, Mexico (page 98), and a look at curious movie-title translations abroad (page 100). We even asked a flight attendant about their trade (page 62). We love how travelling attunes your brain to the thrill of the mundane. Everything from the street signs to the…

LETTERS@FRANKIE.COM.AU Dear frankie, I spent most of my pre-teen years dreaming of what it would be like being a ‘cool teenager’. I always thought I would be reading magazines, analysing fashion trends and learning how to talk to boys. Unfortunately, growing up in America I had nothing like frankie to read, and thus abandoned the idea of magazines. Now living in Australia at 19, I decided to pick up issue 106 on a whim. I can confidently say that 12-year-old me would be proud of my choice. I haven’t felt this inspired in a long time. Thank you endlessly, Bella Dear frankie staff, I have to compliment you on putting together a magazine that is interesting, informative and current. At first I thought frankie would be out of my age range (I…

olli ella Sisters Chloe and Olivia Brookman have eight littlies between them, so their duds need to pass the all-important ‘squat test’, ‘grabby-hands test’ and the ‘chunder-all-over-my-dress test’. That’s why the clothes they design for their label Olli Ella are breezy, practical and, most importantly, machine-washable. You’ll find Chloe and Olivia’s range of breastfeeding-and maternity-friendly garb over at olliella.com (even child-free folks will dig these playful frocks). magic carpet When you imagine the rug-making process, you might picture several people sitting in front of a giant loom. In the case of Nova Scotian brand H.H. Hooks, it’s just Hanna Eidson and her tufting gun. Hanna’s been knitting since she was a child, and picked up rug hooking in 2016. Woolly awesomeness awaits you at hhhooks.com a puffy pack We are once again begging children’s fashion…

Hands up if you have ever said “sorry” upon entering a lift. Or done the silent equivalent, which is just apologising with your eyes and making yourself so small that you do not exist within the realm of space–time until you arrive at your floor and slide out in a puddle and re-congeal on the outside. I basically did this every time I got into a lift until one day a co-worker said, “What are you apologising for? You’re allowed to get in,” and I died internally and have taken the stairs ever since. My point is, if you’ve ever apologised for taking up space, or you remember every piece of negative feedback you’ve ever received, or almost have a panic attack if you feel like you’re about to let someone…

For some people, being in the presence of children prompts unconscious nurturing behaviours. In others, it elicits a fear response not dissimilar to that of, say, being thrown into a pit of snakes. Until recently, I was vaguely alarmed at the prospect of engaging with someone younger than 10. But since becoming an auntie, I’ve become a little more comfortable around these post-foetus, pre-adult humans. Here are my tips for being cool around tiny tots. SAFETY FIRST Parents, like non-parents, enjoy taking the occasional shower or toileting break throughout the day. As a non-parent, you can be surprisingly useful by simply being in the same room as a baby while their parent showers or screams into a dustbin. Think of yourself as a lifeguard. Patrol the perimeter of the room, keeping…

It’s Sunday morning. You want to sleep, but your thumping head, queasy stomach and sweat-drenched body say otherwise. The only thing worse than your aches and pains is the ‘hangxiety’ – a sickening combination of fear (did you act like a tosser last night?) and guilt (there’s no way you’ll get anything done today). Like many of us, Sam Wilson knows the feeling all too well. “I was a heavy social drinker. I didn’t think you could socialise without alcohol,” she says. “I knew it was having a negative impact on my mental health. I’d have spurts of trying to moderate it – a month off here and there – but nothing really stuck. It wasn’t until a hangover from hell in 2020 that I decided I needed a bigger break.” Sam,…