Table of contents for July 2022 in Country Style

Like many Country Style readers, I dream of one day leaving the city behind and moving to regional Australia. In my mind’s eye, I imagine a small property near Kyogle, NSW, with a creek running through it and rolling green hills, far from the main road, or any sealed road for that matter – I’ve heard enough traffic noise during my time living in Rozelle, in Sydney. From my rural home, I don’t want to see any other houses. I want to take long walks through paddocks to my boundary fences and establish a flourishing garden around my house. A vegetable patch, a few cows, solar panels and water tanks will be essential, so I can be mostly self-sufficient and off-grid. We spoke to people who have switched from dreamers…

to Vicki Carte, who has won a Lady Kate rib knit cardigan ($275), a colour block scarf ($149) and a colour block beanie ($69). Based in Narrabri, NSW, Lady Kate knitwear is made from 100 per cent Australian merino wool. For more information, visit ladykate.com.au Share your thoughts and experiences with us by writing to Country Style, GPO Box 4088, Sydney, NSW, 2001, or emailing austcountrystyle@aremedia.com.au. Please include your address and daytime telephone number. Letters may be edited for reasons of space and clarity.…

NSW Honeysuckle Cottage Book a stay at this charming cottage in spring or summer, when the gloriously sweet honeysuckle hedge is in flower, and you’ll understand how the cottage got its name. Located in Binalong, a quaint town rich in gold-rush history, Honeysuckle Cottage is the ideal base for a weekend of winery-hopping or a day trip to the Yass Valley. Or simply settle in and relax by the fire pit, dine in the leafy courtyard, and pamper yourself with bath bombs and soaps from SoapPonified. With two queen bedrooms, an open-plan living space and a well-equipped kitchen, you’ll find all the comforts of home with luxury touches. Guests are also treated to a complimentary bottle of wine from nearby Whitton Farm, and provisions for a hearty cooked breakfast. honeysucklecottage.com.au…

IT’S DEEP WINTER HERE, and though we have passed the shortest day, and though the light grows imperceptibly longer, the country is quiet with cold. The poplars are bare and the oak tree looks like it’s lit with candles as the sun sets through its branches. There are no leaves on the grapevines. No swelling bud yet on the cherry, and the roses are asleep. I’ve cut back the geraniums and the catmint. I’ve laid a blanket of hay around the fruit trees. The only colour in the garden is the fiery red breast of the scarlet robin and the softer glow of his mate. They join us on the lawn for 10 o’clock smoko. They flick from bare branches to the lawn and back, hawking insects in the morning…

Mountain magic In 2020, Sarah Cagnacci, Mark Thomas and their three children fled Sydney for their weekender in the Blue Mountains, NSW – and never came home. “Our 24-hectare property in Kanimbla Valley was our weekender that we never got to spend a weekend at,” says Sarah. “I’m the head of marketing for an asset consulting firm, and Mark is a business consultant in financial services, and it was our dream to spend a few months up here before the kids started school. In March 2020, we made a temporary move to escape the COVID madness in Sydney… Two years later, we’re still here! “We loved the change of pace and met wonderful people who became our new circle. Before we knew it, we were enrolling Roman, six, into the…

• Riza’s favourite place to shop is Facebook Marketplace, any op shop or antiques store. “I’m perpetually looking and foraging,” she says. “I don’t really like buying new or retail. I love the quality, story and uniqueness of vintage. About 95 per cent of my homes are made up of second-hand treasures. Furniture, artwork, ornaments, lighting… I just love the journey of finding that piece that feels like it always belonged.” • For other key pieces, Riza looks to: The Jardin Room; Found at Hepburn; Harolds Finishing Touches; Love After Love; The Bare Wall; Hutch Table Accessories; and Few & Far. • The exterior paint colour is Taubmans Night Watch made on dark tint, while the dining room is Porter’s Paints Timberline. All other rooms are Dulux Snowy Mountains half-strength.…

• Samantha and Adam’s favourite local stores for homewares, supplies and plants include: Bella Casa; Branch and Blossom, both in Gympie; Hello Trader, hellotrader.com.au; Raw Sunshine Coast, rawsunshinecoast.com.au; and Provincial Home Living, provincialhomeliving.com.au, all in Maroochydore. • Samantha shops online at: Gypsy and the Bowerbird, gypsyandthebowerbird.com.au; Bed Threads, bedthreads.com.au; Wesley and Willis, wesleyandwillis. com.au; I Love Linen, ilovelinen.com.au • Tradespeople who worked on the house include: Erin Wheatley, architect and project manager; James Anthony Construction,jamesanthonyconstruction.com.au. • The interior walls are painted in Dulux Snowy Mountains Half, while the exterior is painted in Colorbond Surfmist, Dulux Woodland Grey, and Dulux Domino. The roof shade is Colorbond Monument. • Kitchen cabinetry: Elba marble stone island bench with a timber veneer; Aster maximum porcelain panels in Moon benchtops with Inax mosaic tile Yohen…

Wander in a wintry landscape, with low clouds caressing the treetops and frost glistening on the grass.…

ON THE BANKS OF THE beautiful Murrumbidgee River in Wiradjuri Country, Wagga Wagga is approximately halfway between Melbourne and Sydney. This thriving Riverina city has a population of some 65,000 people, thanks to a solid economic base including agriculture, defence, education, tourism, health and retail. Artist Stephanie Day, 51, moved to Wagga in 1989 to study Graphic Design at Charles Sturt University and later opened her own gallery and studio, Paper Pear. “There is still a real sense of community, despite the size and a fresh injection of faces which arrives every year due to the university, army and airforce bases here,” she says. Stephanie enjoys the best of both worlds, living on a farm just a few minutes away from the gallery. “I love a Murrumbidgee River walk and…

PAPER PEAR Drop into this popular gallery and studio to view an array of works by Australian artists and makers. 9 Gurwood Street, 0429 301 631; paperpear.com BIDGEE STRAWBERRIES AND CREAM Pick your own, join a tour or stock up on ice-cream or sorbet. Billagha Street, 0480 311 643; bidgeestrawberriesandcream.com.au BORAMBOLA WINES Visit this family-owned enterprise and sample quality chardonnay, shiraz, cider and beer. 1734 Sturt Highway, Borambola, 0404 084 657; borambola.com LITTLE TRIFFIDS FLOWERS Learn how to grow your own cut flowers or create an arrangement at this micro-flower farm. 30 Fitzmaurice Street, (02) 6900 2181; littletriffids.com.au…

HOT CHOCOLATE IN THE COLOUR OF THE SEASON, MIA FRATINO’S ASTRID FUNNEL CASHMERE SWEATER IN CHOCOLATE, $429, IS EXACTLY WHAT YOU NEED WHEN TEMPERATURES DROP. MIAFRATINO.COM Button down There’s something nostalgic about a wool cardigan, and the Bonnie cardigan in Nutmeg, $269, from Uimi, is just that – both modern and timeless. Wear it open over a dress or buttoned up with a T-shirt and pants. uimi.com.au Suits you, sir When a garment is made to withstand Tasmanian elements, you know it’ll be warm and durable. Designed to last a lifetime, Smitten Merino’s Spencer coat, $599, is a classic men’s coat. The men’s polo neck top, $199, works beautifully underneath. smittenmerino.com The wool in this pretty scarf came directly from the Love Merino family farm in Wellington, NSW. Delicately hand-knitted…

SAFFRON SYLVESTER Country Style’s junior designer creates beautiful pages in the magazine and compiles many of our ‘get the look’ features. Saffron, 23, grew up on a cattle station in Bowmans Creek, NSW. Although she now lives in Sydney, the talented designer will always call ‘Old Scrumlo’ home. “Living on a farm, I have always adored animals. We have so many pets,” Saffron says. “Sir Loin (above) has been in our family for over 10 years and always comes running for hay and head scratches.” Country life is second nature to her: “There’s nothing more freeing than riding horses, surrounded by trees.” As a designer, Saffron can combine her artistic skills and rural roots: “I love connecting with so many creatives. It’s so energising.” EMILY HERBERT Freelance journalist Emily, who…

Fireside Festival: July 8-17 Canberra District Wines presents this 10-day celebration of the region’s finest winter wines, with tastings, markets, meals at local vineyards, the Festival Winemaker dinner, and so much more. canberrawines.com.au/events/ Yarrh Wines Yarrh Winery’s red and white wines are authentic expressions of the vineyard’s variety and vintage. Enjoy a Wine Flight or Winemaker’s Sail – a curated set of gourmet food and wine matches. A special Sail will be offered during the Fireside Festival. Book online. yarrhwines.com.au Murrumbateman Chocolate Co. Head to this picturesque property to stock up on Sweet Pea & Poppy and Robyn Rowe Chocolates. The treats are handcrafted on site by a passionate team with a purposeful approach to the use of sustainable ingredients. Indulge in chocolate truffles, signature drinks, coffee, handmade cakes and…

IF ANYONE WAS DESTINED to pursue a certain vocation, it’s Rebecca Bradshaw. The child health nurse was just nine years old when her father’s farm machinery came into contact with overhead powerlines. After convalescing in Rockhampton’s Base Hospital for months, her dad returned home to recover – and his in-home visits by nursing staff inspired the youngster. “The nurses that came to our home were just amazing. We could see Dad getting better in front of our eyes,” Rebecca explains. “They were the highlight of my week. We’d race home from school to see them; they made such a huge impact on me. I remember thinking, ‘I want to make people feel like that.’” “Many metro health clinicians have no concept of the challenges faced by rural mothers.” Growing up…

WHEN ANDREW LINDNER’S PARENTS set up a sock factory in Goulburn in 1988, they were continuing a family tradition that had begun over 100 years ago. Andrew’s great-grandfather, Max, and his wife, Meta, founded H. Max Lindner Strumpf Fabrik in Germany in 1921 and the business continued to go from strength to strength, passing down through generations of the Lindner family. But following the 1986 nuclear disaster in Chernobyl, Andrew’s father, Wilfred, was concerned for the safety of his family and decided to split the business with his brother, Reinhard, and start production in Australia with his half of the machines. Settling in Goulburn, NSW, Lindner Quality Socks quickly became popular with local tradesmen – especially the thick, full-cushioned, wool ‘concrete socks’ that allowed them to stand comfortably on cold,…

TAKE A WALK AROUND any farm across the country and you’ll likely spot an old tin shack or shed slowly crumbling in a paddock. Once sturdy, honest structures built for a hard day’s work, many are now simply a romantic postcard from Australia’s past. Such was the fate of the 108-year-old shearers’ quarters on the Willsallen family’s farm, Widgeongully, in Jugiong, NSW, 90 minutes north-west of Canberra. The huge corrugated-iron shed and two small huts (lodgings for the overseer and cook) had been left to the elements until Yvette Smart and her partner, Ollie Willsallen, decided to give them a new direction. “There had been some minor renovations done to the building in the past, but it was just sitting there and it was pretty derelict for a very long…

KARKALLA NEAR SORRENTO, Victoria, sits among the tertiary dunes – the third dune back from the beach, covered in what is classified as alkaline scrub. Named after the native succulent which is rampant across the property, Karkalla is far enough away from the ocean to be protected from direct sea spray but not immune to the effects of a marine environment in terms of corrosion. Since I had no experience living so close to the coast, some trial and error was involved when it came to plant selection and subsequent success. I spent a lot of time exploring and walking in the nearby Mornington Peninsula National Park, observing what indigenous species grew where, so I could select and habitat match within our own garden. This fieldwork, plus research into species…

COOKING IS IN Clarissa Pabst’s blood. Both her parents were chefs, as were her grandparents on her mother’s side, but it wasn’t until she was in her early 20s that she tapped into her inherited passion for food. That’s when she went to William Angliss Institute in Melbourne to study commercial cookery – and now she’s the owner of Essen restaurant in Stanthorpe, Queensland, the town where she grew up. “We opened Essen in September 2019,” Clarissa says. “It was a ‘right place, right time’ scenario: I hadn’t considered opening a restaurant as it always seemed out of reach, but on moving back to Stanthorpe, the opportunity presented itself and was too good to pass up.” Serving modern Australian food that subtly acknowledges the Pabst family’s Austrian heritage, Essen has…

ARTIST AND OWNER, PAPER PEAR “There is still a real sense of community in Wagga Wagga, despite the size.” MEDIAN HOUSE PRICE $509,000 MEDIAN RENTAL PRICE $ 430 per week BY THE NUMBERS “We have a broad market of buyers from $400,000 to $2 million, but between $400,000-$650,000 is the sweet spot. For first home buyers and investors, you get very good quality for that price,” says Ryan Smith of PRD Real Estate. MARKET WATCH “Wagga has great schools, the Army and RAAF. We have a relaxed lifestyle, great pubs and sport, and a friendly community,” Ryan adds.…

FOOD I AM Take a cooking class with regional and international guest chefs. Junior chef classes are also available. foodiam.com.au WAGGA BEACH Enjoy a dip in the Murrumbidgee River or picnic on the sandy beach at this scenic spot, which is part of the Wiradjuri Walking Track. Cabarita Beach, Johnson Street. TRAILS Try the 42-kilometre Wiradjuri Trail that loops around the city or head to Pomingalarna Reserve, 10 minutes from the CBD. Download the Wagga Wagga & Surrounds Trail Map: visitwagga.com/seendo/trails >…

SAINT IGNATIUS’ COLLEGE RIVERVIEW Students from Years 5 to 12 are offered a holistic, faith-based Jesuit education at Saint Ignatius’ College Riverview, a boarding and day school for boys on Sydney’s Lower North Shore. The college prepares students for the future with inspired teaching and genuine pastoral care. The 44-hectare campus has terrific sporting and cultural facilities. (02) 9882 8222; explore.riverview.nsw. edu.au; riverview.nsw.edu.au THE ARMIDALE SCHOOL This vibrant boarding and day school in the NSW Northern Tablelands offers boys and girls from pre-kindergarten to Year 12 the opportunity to grow and learn, with a range of academic, adventure and pastoral programs. With half of all secondary students boarding, the school is a dynamic residential community committed to helping develop young people with courage, conviction and compassion. 1800 677 303; (02)…

SLEEP TIGHT The SleepMaker Arizona Deluxe Firm Mattress offers balance and relief in four feels: plush, medium, firm and super firm. harveynorman.com.au SOUTHERN REEF FEASTS Discover great taste in Bundaberg, home to world-class drinks and 25 per cent of Australia’s fresh produce. bundabergregion.org/taste ELEGANT DINING Provincial Home Living’s Villa dining table extends in just a few seconds and the oak grain elevates the design even further. provincialhomeliving.com.au SAY CHEERS! Located in historic Evandale in Tasmania, the Clarendon Arms’ pub-style menu is hearty in winter and fresh in summer. clarendonarms.com.au VISIT VINTAGE HQ Dirty Janes is a vintage shopper’s paradise, housing more than 90 artisan and vintage sellers of furniture, clothing and curiosities. dirtyjanes.com NEVER BE STRANDED Ezijak is an all-in-one tyre-changing toolkit. Get back on the road in a flash…

HELPING HANDS In this world of uncertainty and unrest with wars, floods, a pandemic and other personal things that impact on families and futures, I can always find peace and solace in each edition of Country Style. As I turn each page in anticipation of where it will take me, my mind and body relaxes. I feel contentment that there is still peace and happiness to be had – all around us. There is beauty in nature, love in family and friends, and hope in the anticipation that war will end, the water will recede, and the pandemic will eventually fade away. As for all those horrible circumstances, we must reach out for help when needed. Better still for those in need, we should recognise this and assist where we…

NSW Pipit When Ben Devlin launched Pipit in Pottsville in 2019 along with his wife, Yen Trinh, it was a career highlight for the award-winning chef. Having honed his skills in restaurants in Brisbane, Cabarita and Copenhagen, Ben always dreamt of running his own eatery near his home base of Byron Bay. Pipit’s menu reflects Ben’s desire to “create from scratch”, with a focus on Northern Rivers produce and sustainable seafood, along with duck and wild game. Foraged edible plants such as riberries, lemon aspen, strawberry gum and native bee honey add a unique taste of the abundant region, while the coastal climate allows for exotic specials including dragonfruit, sapote and finger limes. The seven-course menu features delicacies such as: smoked dashi custard with squid garum jelly; bay lobster tartare…

A FEW YEARS AGO, I was messing about at home one Sunday when my mother called and told me my father was in an ambulance after sticking his hand down a woodchipper, but that I needn’t worry because “it wasn’t like that scene in Fargo or anything”. Fargo, the Coen brothers’ 1996 black comedy/crime thriller, was a favourite of my parents. I knew the scene alright: Frances McDormand catching Peter Stormare in the act of mulching Steve Buscemi; the chipper’s engine whining from the effort of a still-socked human leg; the snowy bank of a Minnesota lake repainted red… So, Dad hadn’t been dismembered. But with my father, you could never be sure. Another weekend, in the winter of 1990, he cut off much of his left big toe with…

THE TAYLOR FAMILY had many idyllic Easter breaks in Blackbutt, Queensland, for over a decade before they discovered their own country escape in the South Burnett region. Cameron and Riza Taylor and their children – Sam, 18, 16-year-old Myla and Avy, 12 – would travel 165 kilometres from Brisbane to spend autumn days with Riza’s sister’s family at their rural home. They enjoyed leisurely days swimming in the dam, exploring the rail trail and building forts in the creek. “We always loved getting out of the city and doing all the things the country offered,” Riza, 42, recalls. “We’d stay with my sister for two or three days and every year it would get a little bit longer. It got to the point where I said to my husband, ‘Maybe…

ARE YOU A PERSON WHO TRAVELS with secateurs? Someone with scissors and possibly a basket on the back seat? Have you ever quietly snipped a flowering seed head or trailing bit of green from somebody else’s garden? I mean, the polite way to do it is to ask, obviously. “Please may I take a cutting of that pretty geranium on your front fence?” But, let’s be honest, even people with excellent manners have been known to shove a few green cuttings into their back pocket on a neighbourhood walk. Some of my favourite plants have grown from cuttings. I have a few gorgeous salvias pilfered from my mum’s garden, and a huge Russian sage at the front gate that began life as a cutting from down the back of our…

MY FIRST ENCOUNTER with some meat wrapped around a filling was my dear old mum’s Beef Olives: bashed-out collops of beef topside with a filling made of onion, garlic, breadcrumbs and herbs. Held together with a toothpick, they were browned in a pan with butter before gravy was added. Called ‘olives’ for their shape, they are probably another anglicisation of a foreign high point in cookery: the Italian involtini. Someone probably thought, “I don’t like the sound of this invol-thingy, sounds too foreign. I know, I’ll call it an olive instead!” For as long as people have been exposing food to fire, they’ve also been stuffing some sort of food into another food before cooking it. One example culminated in the absurdly named ‘turducken’ – a boned chook stuffed inside…

Wagga has 34 preschools, 23 primary schools and nine high schools. The Wagga community comprises people from 112 nationalities. It has a young population and the largest group is aged between 20 to 29 years. Wagga is a strong and proud First Nations community, with more than one in 20 identifying as Wiradjuri or First Nations. Excellent education and training facilities include three university campuses, TAFE NSW Riverina Institute, RAAF Base Wagga and Kapooka Army Recruit Training Centre. It also has a wide range of cultural, sporting and health facilities. visitwagga.com/visitor-information/download-guides/ official-visitor-guide; mycommunitydirectory.com.au/ New_South_Wales/Wagga_Wagga For information about living in this great regional city, visit wagga.nsw.gov.au/community…

BUILT FROM WEATHERBEATEN timber and tin, its interiors boasting wooden sash windows, VJ-boarded walls and timeworn floors, the Post Office has the air of a perfectly preserved piece of heritage architecture that has been settled in its landscape for more than a century. But its story is a little more complicated than that. The former gold-mining area in Crackenback, NSW, once revolved around the Old Pender Lea Post Office. It was built by the Pendergast family as a home in the 1800s, then became a post office, before being forgotten – its chimney crumbling and roof leaking. Much of the building was blown away, burned or stolen, and it was occupied only by squatters and two wombats under the verandah. “I grew up in Thredbo and loved photographing abandoned farmhouses…

TRUE NORTH Catherine Deveny, Black Inc, $29.99 Deveny’s memoir reminds us how hard it is to break free from habits at work and at home. When advertising and sales plummet, The Age offers journalist Deveny a 40 per cent pay cut. Will she be grateful to still have her column? No. She quits. Her home life is tolerable, but after 17 years with the father of her two children, she ditches him and is glad to be single. She’s 40. She doesn’t opt for the universal palliative for existential angst – Forever Busy. An arrangement with her ex gives her half the week off to write and do research. The downside/blessing of spending time alone is that you investigate your choices. Sharing Deveny’s trajectory opens up the past. Frank and…

AMY STOPPED BY THE other day, accompanied by Russell the Muscle. Russell doesn’t have much to say, but that’s okay because Amy seldom stops talking. Amy is well on the way to being acclaimed as the person who saved conversation from extinction. Today, the concept of ringing someone for a chat has a musty whiff of retro about it. Almost as quaint and retro as announcing “their phone must be off the hook”. Futurists are already predicting that before long, people won’t communicate at all unless its via some technological device. Face-to-face conversation is on the way out. I come from a generation which happens to think that conversation is a delight. Any conversation. Conversation with a loved one. Conversation with inmates at a prison that I regularly visit. Conversation…