Table of contents for April 2016 in Country Style

Spending long hours on the road, travelling around the country to bring you inspiring stories is what we do. And each story is special to the team that works on it. One such story is on page 102 in this issue. It became known as ‘The Brians’ as it did the rounds in the office, as two Brians feature prominently in it — Brian McAtee, the president of the Lions Club of Townsville–Castle Hill, and Brian Egan, founder of Aussie Helpers. Eighty per cent of Queensland is now drought declared and the two Brians have joined forces to assist those on the land who are struggling. For this story, we spoke to cattle farmers Michael and Jodie Knuth, who the Brians have helped, and their words bring the harsh reality…

“THE CONCEPT IS A REAL EXTENSION OF OUR LIFESTYLE AND WHAT WE BELIEVE IN.” “OUR WORKSHOPS ARE ALL ABOUT CRAFTING, USING YOUR HANDS AND YOUR HEAD.” Stepping through the door at Poet’s Ode, in the South Australian town of Hahndorf, feels like exhaling after a deep breath: tension fades, the heart rate slows, and a wave of wellbeing washes over you. All this, from walking into a shop? “I don’t know exactly what makes it that way, but often when people come in they comment that it’s so serene and calm,” says Alia Elaraj, who opened the store with partner Scout Edwards in March 2014. “The concept is a real extension of our lifestyle and what we believe in, which is appreciating work that shows the marks of the maker’s…

“THE LONG GROCERY RUN INTO TOWN IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO SEE WHAT IS GROWING ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD.” “How much richer your everyday life becomes. It becomes richer because every hedgerow and field, every garden, little or big, every street barrow, flower-shop window, holds the material for your art or hobby or whatever name you choose to give it, and your imagination is fired and feeds on things that perhaps before you never even noticed.” — Constance Spry, British society florist in the 1930s and ’40s, on working with flowers. WHEN I LIVED in the city, I remember one morning ever so clearly. As I walked across Pyrmont Bridge from my little apartment to the office on my daily commute to work at the newspaper, it was as…

Not until you have passed farms selling flowers and produce do you find the long, meandering road that leads to the home of Heidi O’Rourke. Her property, at Glenorie on the north-western outskirts of Sydney, is on a 1.2-hectare parcel of land, with views to the Blue Mountains from the front verandah and towering gum trees all around. There are no neighbours in sight, only fence lines. That was part of the attraction for Heidi and her husband Jason, who grew up in the nearby suburbs of Annangrove and Arcadia on Sydney’s rural fringe. From the property’s timber gates, there’s a view of gabled roofs and manicured grounds. You might expect to find a formal manse at the end of the driveway, but the home is surprisingly intimate, thanks to…

MADELAINE SCOTT, free-range organic egg producer, Victoria At age eight, Madelaine’s parents gave her a loan to buy 20 hens to produce free-range organic eggs on Hollyburton, the family’s certified organic farm 50 kilometres north of Melbourne. Now 21, and with 2000 hens, this young entrepreneur has taken delivery of a crowdfunded cleaning and grading plant that saves her hours of hand sorting each day. Madelaine’s hens live like queens, guarded by Maremma dogs in mobile hen houses at night, and they scratch and feed on Hollyburton’s chemical free pastures and organic chicken mix during the day. “I love raising chickens and seeing how happy they are, every day,” Madelaine says. hollyburton.com.au BRIDGET BODENHAM, ceramicist, Victoria Daylesford-based Bridget is well known among the new wave of Australian ceramicists. The 30-year-old…

IT’S NOT EVERY day that three award-winning chefs come together to design a menu for Country Style readers. This menu — by Tony Worland, Simonn Hawke and Shaun Arantz — is a pretty big deal. It’s a tribute to the cooks, chefs and winemakers who have made Orange FOOD Week what it is — the largest regional food event in the state and, at 25 years, the longest running. These three chefs have done their part in putting Orange, in the central west of NSW, on the culinary map. At a glance, the dishes they’ve contributed reveal chefs who actively support their farming neighbours — Tony uses Mandagery Creek venison, Simonn champions Crack Willow Farm pork and Shaun puts the region’s best horticultural foot forward with his Granny Smith apple…

decorating notebook The thirst for industrial-style finishes inside our homes is now reaching out, with concrete flooring a new trend for patios. To achieve a seamless effect or deepen the shade of grey, try a specialty paint, such as Berger Jet Dry. 13 25 25; bergerjetdry.com.au Hard surface materials such as timber, stone and cement are the stylish foundations of any outdoor space (see page 97 for our outdoor flooring guide). For a more natural finish, let materials weather and age over time — untreated hardwood like spotted gum fades to a silvery grey, which looks softer and sits harmoniously in the Australian landscape. No matter what your base material, the key to transforming an outdoor zone into a useable — and covetable — living space is to layer on…

Helping local farmers through tough times is just one way of giving back to your home town; a public garden, kids’ playground or senior citizens’ centre could be your project of choice. “If you can think of a community need, chances are there’s a Lions Club doing something about it,” says Rob Oerlemans, Lions’ executive officer. There are more than 100 Lions Clubs participating in this grant program. Visit homelife.com.au/terms for full terms and conditions and to find out if your project is eligible. You have until June 30, 2016, to apply for a $1000 grant to help you develop a project in your community. We need a short submission from you that includes: 1 An outline of the project for which funding is being sought, the community which will…

“Vinegars have been used as a medicinal treatment for more than 10,000 years.” VINEGAR HAS A long history as a health tonic: Hippocrates, the ancient Greek hailed as the father of modern medicine, is said to have prescribed vinegar as an antiseptic, while early US medics used it to treat everything from poison ivy to fever. Apple cider vinegar is made from juice extracted from crushed apples, which is then fermented to make alcohol (cider) and fermented again to form vinegar. The list of health claims for this particular type of vinegar has grown in recent decades to include everything from aiding weight loss and improving bowel regularity, to lowering cholesterol and reducing blood pressure. (If you take medications such as blood thinners or diuretics, apple cider vinegar may cause…

ACT Canberra District Wine Harvest Festival, Murrumbateman, April 9–10; visitnsw.com/events/ canberra-district-wine-harvest-festival NSW Hunter Valley Wine & Food Festival, May and June; winecountry.com.au/events/ wine-and-food-festival Queensland Felton Food Festival, April 10; feltonfoodfestival.org.au SA Diggers Heirloom Produce Festival, Adelaide Botanic Garden, April 9–10; diggers.com.au/whats-on/garden-festivals Victoria St Erth Heritage Apple Festival, Blackwood, April 2–3; diggers.com.au/whats-on/ garden-festivals WA Bickley Harvest Festival, April 30–May 1; bickleyharvestfestival.com…

CROWD FAVOURITES Made by Others Arts and design, plus a small café. Shop 2, 366 Argyle Street. (02) 4868 2026; madebyothers.com.au Railway Street Farmers’ Market Every Thursday from 3–6pm. Cnr Railway and Spring streets. 0402 719 716. Farm Club With a wilderness corridor to the State Forest, plus teahouse, gardens and farmstay. 1 Greenhills Road, Werai. (02) 4883 4664; farmclubaustralia.com.au EXCURSIONS Highland villages It’s just a short drive to Bowral, Berrima and Bundanoon. Throsby Park On the outskirts of town, this significant historical property dates from 1834. The homestead is open once a year, this time on April 16 (bookings required). sydneylivingmuseums.com.au Wombat Hollow Ex-politician Michael Yabsley now makes bespoke lamps on his bush property. wombathollow.net.au SHOPPING Rabbit Trap Timber Specialising in recycled timber, Robert and Justine Taylor make tables,…

THE CHARACTERISTIC AUSSIE STOOP COMES FROM THE PIE-EATER TRYING TO KEEP GRAVY OUT OF HIS TROUSER CUFFS. LOOK, I DON’T know if the rest of the world regards us as essential out here at Dunedoo… but they seem to regard us as quintessential. “I know Dunedoo — the typical Australian country town,” they say. “Classic country Australia… archetypal, characteristic, emblematic, symbolic, intrinsic.” City friends telephone to say they have overseas visitors. They want to see some ‘real Australia’. Can they bring them up to our place? To satisfy our curiosity, we started at the end of the main street to see if we could detect any intrinsic-ness. “There’s the petrol station,” I said. “Anything intrinsically Australian there? It’s not even Golden Fleece anymore.” We measured radiator caps, fan belts, oil…

ANDREW COWEN This Sydney-based photographer took some of the dynamic portraits for our New Generation story, starting on page 66 . Getting a great image of eight people and two dogs is all part of the fun of being a photographer for Andrew. “A very interesting bunch of people always makes for a good day,” he says. “It’s fun to have a couple of animals in the mix, too. They add a little something extra to a picture and people are always more relaxed when they’re around.” Andrew first started taking photographs in high school and now can’t imagine doing anything else for a living. He’s currently working on a project that includes images taken in and around the seaside town of Port Elliot in SA. “It’s where I…

TIME IS RUNNING OUT. Entries for this year’s Country Style Short Story Competition must be received by April 20, 2016, so put pen to paper now! Pick up the threads of your imagination and entwine them into a comedic, dramatic or prosaic story and you could see your work in print and win a prize of $5000. The only guidelines are that the story should be no longer than 1500 words and must incorporate ‘thread’ as a major or minor theme. PRIZE The winning entrant will receive $5000. TO ENTER Email your story, along with your name, address and daytime telephone number, to countrystylecompetition@news.com.au. Or mail it to STORY, Country Style, Locked Bag 5030, Alexandria, NSW 2015. The entries, which will not be returned, must be no longer than 1500…

“I WAS BORN in Terang and we lived in a beautiful house in the town. My grandparents were dairy farmers at Noorat. They also owned the general store there. Dad was a wool classer and I grew up in that world of sheep and shearing — I have wonderful memories of jumping in the wool bales with my brother, Nigel, who is three years younger. Now, the smell of lanolin takes me straight back to those sheds. We lived in Terang until I was in the middle of grade two and then we moved to a small place of about four hectares outside Warrnambool and my greatest memories are from there. I was sitting at the top of a cypress tree one day, and it was just moving me in…

WELCOME TO THE FIRST IN AN ONGOING SERIES AIMED AT SUPPORTING AND PROMOTING SOME OF AUSTRALIA’S MOST DIVERSE AND EXCITING REGIONAL CENTRES — PLACES WORTH VISITING AND MOVING TO. THIS MONTH WE EXPLORE ORANGE IN CENTRAL WEST NSW, WHERE AUTHOR AND NSW-ACT RURAL WOMAN OF THE YEAR FINALIST SOPHIE HANSEN HEADS UP A DIVERSE GROUP OF INSPIRING LOCALS MAKING THEIR MARK. WE ALSO MEET THE RISING STARS OF REGIONAL AND RURAL AUSTRALIA, WHOSE PASSION AND PRIDE ARE ENSURING A PROSPEROUS FUTURE FOR OUR COUNTRY.…

HAWKES GENERAL STORE is an Orange institution. It’s been a destination for country women in search of satin-padded hangers and nightgowns, Crabtree & Evelyn Pear and Pink Magnolia soap and beautiful — as well as funny and sad — gift cards, for many years. Inside is a treasure trove. On one wall, brightly coloured handbags hang from Muuto ‘Dots’ (those lovely round timber wall hooks); a large framed poster and an even larger artwork hang on either side of the fireplace; tiny knitted baby beanies in soft fawn and pale blue pepper the hatstand; and nearby is a rack of pretty little dresses. Cushions, pens, notebooks, shoes, scarves and jewellery — there’s something for everyone. Owner Coco Pogonoski loves that the shop reflects her taste and interests, as it did…

BRINE OF THE TIMES An old technique that’s trending again, brining chicken in salt, vinegar and sugar before cooking not only adds flavour but keeps the meat moist. Chef Sarah Swan, of Byron Bay’s 100 Mile Table, makes a delicious bush-lemon brined roast chicken. “These Sommerlad birds don’t require tenderising: I do it because I love the flavour of bush lemons. It’s a match made in heaven.” (02) 6680 9814; 100miletable.com ON THE PULSE Simon Bryant’s Dirt(y) kabuli chickpeas from South Australia and royal baby blue lentils grown in Victoria go straight from farmer to customer. $7 for 500g. 0459 386 895; dirtyinc.com.au lasting appeal Australian women sent Anzac biscuits to their loved ones fighting in World War I because they’re nutrient dense and survived the long voyage. We love…

TIMBER, TILE, STONE and concrete are the hard architectural elements that can transform outdoor living. Finding the right interplay between structures and plantings ensures that outdoor areas make an impact. The key is to match the colour and materials you choose to the architecture and style of your home and garden. Focus on how indoor and outdoor spaces connect — “Don’t step from your door onto grass: use timber or tiles to smooth the transition,” says Mark Curtis of Sydney’s Secret Gardens — and combine modern elements, such as concrete, with timber, sandstone or brick to add gentle textural interest. “Balance and contrast are important,” says award-winning Melbourne landscape architect Nathan Burkett. “You need contrast, but you also want the materials to complement each other.” A space with dark swimming…

They say you haven’t experienced the real outback until you’ve been to Longreach and Winton in Queensland’s central west. Who knows if our cultural identity was forged in these parts; however, the two places are linked to great events in pioneer and pastoral history, the birth of Qantas and Australia’s aviation industry, prehistoric relics and some of our favourite bush ballads and folklore. Longreach, with a population of just over 3600, is 1176 kilometres north-west of Brisbane, while Winton is a further 177 kilometres north-west and is home to nearly 1000 people. Out here, the horizons are wide and the country as diverse as it is paradoxical — as beautiful and benevolent as it can be sometimes harsh and capricious, but with a resilience that seems to rub off on…

RING LEADER Garden bells make a pretty addition to a tree branch or outdoor room. These ceramic bells by Robert Gordon also deliver a soothing chime that will complement the birdsong. Available in two shapes, with a white or natural glaze. $34.95 each. (03) 5941 3144; robertgordonaustralia.com BOOT CAMP LIGHTWEIGHT AND STURDY, ANKLE-LENGTH GUMMIES, $39.95 FOR A PAIR, ARE PERFECT ON POTTERING DAYS IN THE GARDEN. FROM ANNABEL TRENDS. (07) 5593 4755; ANNABELTRENDS.COM in and out Inspired by a Japanese rock garden, designer Ash Allen’s award-winning ‘Sticks and Stones’ setting is a touch of outdoors. Stool from $550, and table from $1980, both from Catapult. (02) 8001 6646; catapultdesign.net.au GARDEN EVENTS AUTUMN GARDEN FESTIVAL, SA 3RD Held at the Showgrounds in the Clare Valley, this annual event features a range…

TEN YEARS AGO, Ursula Armstrong moved to Moss Vale, the original ‘CBD’ of the NSW Southern Highlands. She was lured by the town’s relaxed lifestyle, and its proximity to the city and coast. “It is minutes from everywhere and extremely affordable,” says the co-founder of design store Made By Others, located on Moss Vale’s handsome, tree-lined main street. Today, boutique and arts-based businesses are once again turning Moss Vale into a must-stop — and a vibrant place to live. “There’s a real sense of change as makers and creators are taking advantage of the lovely architecture and affordable rent,” says Suzie Anderson, whose second homewares store is set to open on the main street at the end of April. First settled in 1867, Moss Vale today has a population of…

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INSTAGRAM When our creative director Giota Letsios @giota_letsios did an instagram takeover this kitchen from a Southern Highlands house was one of her most popular posts. Photography by Brigid Arnott and styling by Vanessa Colyer Tay. Our readers happily came ‘home sweet home’ with the February issue. Photography Lisa Cohen Does blue ever go out of style or fashion? Love it, so quietly stylish and restful, too. Jean Marie Gay Just been in town to get my shiny new copy. Laughed out loud in the cafe when I read Steve Cumper’s ‘terrine enlightenment’ article. Now I want to make one, too. Jacquie Alley Look forward to a pot of China tea and reading this sumptuous magazine in stormy Cumbria. CREAM OF THE CROP I love your Heirloom Recipe pages. The…

put in the diary for next month... Tasmania The Great Chefs Series — Donovan Cooke May 13th Over the coming months, TasTAFE Drysdale presents the Great Chefs Series in Launceston, featuring acclaimed chefs such as Mark Best and Tetsuya Wakuda. In May, there’s a six-course degustation by chef Donovan Cooke, of Melbourne’s The Atlantic restaurant. Each of the six courses is complemented with a local Tasmanian wine. $165 per person. Bookings essential; greatchefsseries.com.au best in show TASMANIA Launceston Horticultural Society Autumn Show 23rd–24th Autumn colour in flowers and foliage are on show, alongside plentiful fruit and vegetables. There are plant sales and advice from experts on hand. Tickets, $2. St Ailbe’s Hall, Margaret Street. (03) 6343 1308. NSW Fashionation 30th Bringing together local merino woolgrowers, designers…

Gigantic cypress hedges, clipped with neat precision, buffer Cloverdel from the outside world. These verdant, fortress-like walls enclose Annabel Buxton’s timber-lined farmhouse, the adjacent cottage and three hectares of manicured grounds on the outskirts of Woodend, in Victoria’s Macedon Ranges. Beyond the verandah, a stone terrace and mass-planted, purple-hued flowerbeds border a sprawling lawn. The lawn connects the driveway with formal avenues of silver elm and Manchurian pear, and flows beneath woodland groupings of oak and liquidambar to the bottom of the garden, where enormous willows cluster around the seasonal wetland on the Campaspe River flats. There’s something unexpectedly soothing in the juxtaposition of this little green bubble of European sensibility amid the tawny, sun-bleached Australian rural farmland. Even more remarkable is the sense of well-settled maturity about this home…

Hanging on the wall by the front door of Harry and Min Youngman’s home is an Edna Walling garden plan. It’s the renowned designer’s plan for Ardgartan, the Youngman’s pastoral property at Grassdale, south of Hamilton, in Victoria’s Western District. The property takes its name from Gaelic, meaning ‘high garden’ or ‘corn on the hill’. More than 80 years have passed since Walling, commissioned by the Youngman family, visited the property, and it is fascinating to see both the garden’s plan and the mature reality. Ardgartan is particularly special as it is one of only a handful of gardens that retain strong elements of Walling’s original ideas. The garden remains the private, secluded centrepiece of an extensive property where Harry runs 18,000 crossbred sheep, 1200 Angus cattle and, his latest…

“WE ARE LUCKY TO HAVE YEAR-ROUND ACCESS TO SUPERB FRESH PRODUCE” A finalist in this year’s NSW-ACT Rural Woman of the Year Award, Sophie Hansen is an author, food writer and founder of acclaimed blog Local is Lovely. Recognised for her innovative project ‘My Open Kitchen’ — an online course in social media designed for farmers and producers — Sophie is passionate about spreading positive messages from country Australia and inspiring people to eat seasonally and locally. She has more than 15 years’ experience in journalism and food writing, and runs workshops and events from her family’s farm just outside Orange. Here, Sophie lives with her husband, Tim, and children Alice, eight, and Tom, six. The family farm deer according to holistic practices, and sell the venison at markets and…

COLOURED STACKS OF hide sourced from Spain, France, England, Australia and the US sit high on shelves on the wall of Angus and Sarah Barrett’s expansive workshop on the outskirts of the central western city of Orange. The bright and airy building serves as the home-base for Angus Barrett Saddlery & Leather Goods, a business that consumes much of this driven couple’s waking hours. Angus’ dream is to make his eponymous brand a household name. He takes care of manufacturing, while Sarah, a lawyer by trade, serves as general manager. Since Angus launched the business in 2000, his belts, saddlery, wallets and diary covers have been in high demand. Of course it’s not just cattlemen and cowboys who buy his products; it’s also city folk who want something to remind…

GETTING THERE DRIVING Longreach is 1176 kilometres and Winton 1355 kilometres north-west of Brisbane via the National Highway A2. From Rockhampton, Longreach is 686 kilometres west on the Capricorn Highway A4 and the National Highway A2, Winton is 177 kilometres up the road. FLYING Qantas Link offers daily flights between Brisbane and Longreach, while Regional Express flies from Townsville to Longreach via Winton on Tuesday and Thursday. Avis and Budget have desks at Longreach. longreachairport.com.au COACH Bus Queensland services run from Brisbane to Mount Isa via Longreach and Winton. Greyhound operates between Rockhampton, Longreach and Winton twice a week, through Paradise Coaches.busqld.com.au; greyhound.com.au RAIL Queensland Rail runs Spirit of the Outback between Longreach and Brisbane twice weekly, with a coach link to Winton. queenslandrailtravel.com.au BEST TIME TO VISIT The peak…

IMAGINE A GARDEN where the cultivation of cherry trees under glass in the 21st century seems more fantastical than any fairytale you could dream of. This is a garden where collars of mixed molehill earth and strawy manure are moulded around the tops of cherry tree pots every year. Pollination, using a rabbit’s foot on a stick, takes place every midday during the flowering season and the pots are struck with a boxwood hammer to see when they need watering; a loud musical pinging sound confirms the pot is dry. Yes, this garden really exists. The English garden where these cherry trees are whimsically cultivated is Eythrope and it’s owned by Lord (Jacob) Rothschild, who inherited it in 1988. Part of the Waddesdon estate in Buckinghamshire, its exact location is…

SOFT TOUCH This versatile V-neck poncho from Everyday Cashmere will complement just about any outfit. It’s made from pure cashmere, so it’s super soft. Pictured here in grey marle, this poncho is a great investment piece that will keep you warm in the cooler months. everyday cashmere.com ON TAP Add instant style to your kitchen with the Perrin & Rowe ‘Ionian’ tap. The bench-mounted tap with levers and spray rinse is a classic design. englishtapware. com.au COAST ALONG Offering everything from pristine beaches to fine dining experiences, Port Macquarie on the New South Wales mid north coast has something for everyone. portmacquarieinfo.com.au LIGHTEN UP Illuminate your home and create atmosphere with unique pieces from the collection of vintage and industrial-style lighting, clocks…