Australian Women’s Weekly NZ December 2020

Hello and welcome to your December issue. Can you believe we’re here already and that the countdown to Christmas is officially on? For the first time in a long while, thinking about the festive season is bringing a smile to my face, rather than anxious thoughts. Sure, there is the usual worries of how the heck I’m going to get everything done in time, but in a way, I’m looking forward to the seasonal chaos. I don’t know about you, but to me, Christmas feels different this year. Let’s be frank, 2020 has been a year we would all rather forget, and we’re still facing a future full of the unknown, but twinkling in the not-too-distant future, like a tinsel-covered beacon of hope, is December 25 – a day where…

A NEW SUMMER FRAGRANCE There is nothing nicer than the gift of a beautiful perfume and this Christmas I’m coveting Elizabeth Ardern’s new release in the White Tea range, Mandarin Blossom. I love a fresh citrus scent for summer, but I also enjoy the intensity of a woody musk fragrance. This blends the two perfectly. From $49 for 30ml A BEAUTIFUL SUNFROCK Every holiday wardrobe needs a versatile voluminous maxi-dress. We’ve rounded up some great options for the festive season. I especially love a classic all-white look. $449 from Country Road…

The Queen returns ON HER FIRST public outing since the pandemic sent the world into lockdown, the Queen and Prince William visited the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory at Porton Down (above). There they spoke with personnel who helped identify and contain the Salisbury Novichok nerve agent contamination in 2018, greeted scientists engaged in the fight against COVID-19, and said a friendly hello to police dog Max. Also this month, a new official Canadian portrait of Her Majesty has been released. It was taken at Windsor Castle in March 2019. Prince Christian turns 15 It’s hard to believe Crown Princess Mary’s first-born is 15. The proud Danish royals marked the day by releasing some striking photos of Prince Christian. Grand old bird A 41-year-old gentoo penguin, fittingly named “Olde”, has…

“I’m a hippie at heart, but God, do I love a dress-up!” exclaims Annabel Langbein, resplendent in a fire-engine red jumpsuit as a flock of festive elves – ahem, stylists – are adjusting the draped sleeves of the outfit. The floors of her elegant Auckland home are covered with decorations and wreaths as the Christmas table is placed outside. Her kitchen table is equally laden with all the accoutrements that come with setting up a scene like this – meringues, passionfruit curd, mince pies, fresh strawberries… Of course, it’s Auckland, so the threat of rain is never far away and a stiff breeze ensures the candles have to be relit every 2.5 seconds. But it’s festive bedlam, which is a welcome break from the chaos that has swirled around us…

ONE DAY, I HEADED UP into the hills to work a stretch of bush that ran alongside the Hangaroa River. I’d been eyeing it up for a few months, as it looked like a nice, easy place to run a few traps. I was busy laying out my traps when I heard the clip-clop of a horse’s hooves, a man’s voice and some dogs yapping. Maybe this wasn’t a reserve, as I’d assumed. Maybe this was someone’s farm. In which case, given that I hadn’t asked anyone’s permission, I would be poaching. I scarpered up a big pu¯riri tree and hid. I could hear some guy muttering about “bloody possum trappers”, as he threw my traps into the bushes. Horse and rider came to a stop right under my tree.…

Cook, eat, repeat: these words, the day-in, day-out, never-endingness of it all, no doubt sum up the Sisyphean drudgery of cooking for those who resent time spent at the stove. For those who, like me, find structure, meaning and an intense aliveness in the rhythms of the kitchen, they represent an essential liberating truth. Cooking is not something you do, and then it’s finished with. It is a thread woven through our lives, encompassing memory, desire and sustenance, both physical and emotional. It can never be an end in itself. We return to dishes we love, not just because they mean something particular to us, but also because our hands feel comfortable preparing food that is familiar. Life is full of challenges – not a bad thing in itself, of…