Lost Magazine is an independent magazine circulating throughout Daylesford, Hepburn Springs, Kyneton, Trentham, Glenlyon, Castlemaine, Woodend, Creswick, Clunes and surrounds. We also distribute to select Melbourne venues and to an ever-growing subscriber base.
Gabrielle Jordan and Mitchell Reed Rogers by photographer Kaiya Rae
Read the full story on page 26
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FEATURE WRITER
Larissa Dubecki
FEATURE WRITER
Mahmood Fazal
PHOTOGRAPHER
Kaiya Rae
FEATURE WRITER
Michael Harden
DESIGN & BRAND
Jessica Walsh
PUBLISHER
Tony
PUBLISHER
Theresa Albioli
EDITOR
Melissa Jenkins
Lost News
Spring has officially arrived and I have a sudden urge to throw open the windows and start a garden project or two. It’s a season full of potential, and in this issue, we celebrate that spirit. in food, creativity, and in the way we live and connect.
We begin by wandering through the magnificent grounds of Wombat Park Estate, where centuries-old trees, rare botanical specimens, and a landmark Arts and Crafts home remind us that history grows slowly and beautifully.
Next, we meet Maya, a local artist who moved to Hepburn Springs during the pandemic and found herself painting faeries and making pigments from walnut husks and foraged acorns. Her story is full of mythology and magic.
Then we head to Trentham, recently crowned Top Tiny Tourism Town in Australia! We visit Gabrielle Jordan and Mitchell Reed Rogers, the dynamic duo behind Adelinetheir third venue in this charming town which is part cheese and wine bar, part cosy café, with a lemon tart you won’t forget.
WRAP UP OF NEWS AND HAPPENINGS IN OUR REGION BY EDITOR,
MELISSA JENKINS
Also in Trentham, Christina Tantsis is turning chocolate into art at Sisko Chocolate.
A former florist with a flair for the immersive, her handmade orbs and ethical sourcing reflect her belief that while “chocolate is global, connection is local.”
In Daylesford, a teapot and a property appraisal became the unlikely start of a love story, and a business. At Spa Country Real Estate, Suzi and Sebastian blend heritage, and hospitality with a quiet reverence for home. Their story, steeped in warmth and purpose, lingers like a good brew.
And finally, at Passing Clouds in Musk, the cellar door experience is being gently reimagined: sip cool-climate pinot beside a charcoal-cooked lunch or enjoy a guided tasting with a seasonal snack. It’s flexible, generous, and perfectly suited to a slow country afternoon.
So, as spring unfurls and the days become longer, I hope this issue offers you some moments of pause and inspiration.
Melissa Jenkins Editor
Pure Romance
PARK ESTATE
WOMBAT
STORY BY MAHMOOD FAZAL
PHOTOS BY MARNIE HAWSON
The first breath of Wombat Park is resin. It rises sharp and clear from the Monterey pines, needles sway in the golden hush. To walk the elm driveway, eighty-nine heritage-listed trees, is to enter another century. Green arches above, spring paddocks beyond. Here the air folds with memory: William Edward Stanbridge’s plantings in the 1850s, Florence Cox’s Arts and Crafts house in 1910, the persistence of rare species whose roots outlive the hands that sow them.
Daylesford, in the Goldfields, was once a town of fevered picks and sudden fortunes; now it is famous for its mineral springs. But Wombat Park has inherited another kind of wealth. On 250 acres, Stanbridge planted a botanic treasury of oaks, elms, beeches, walnuts, Himalayan cedars, an arboretum that would earn the praise of the Daylesford Advocate in 1885 as “superior to any that can be seen in any private or public garden in Victoria.” The paths he edged with quartz still glint in the soil; the box hedges, once carefully clipped, still define their lines.
The house, designed in 1910 by Rodney Alsop, an Arts and Crafts masterpiece, stands like punctuation in the landscape. Its timber interiors, wrought fittings, fretwork and light, embody the tactile spirit of the movement. Gardens by Taylor & Sangster frame the dwelling with teardrop lawns, croquet greens, orchards, and borders, a choreography of openness and enclosure. But the most arresting truths lie in the peculiarities.
The anchor plant, Colletia Cruciata, thrives here like a barbed paradox, its stems sharpened into cruciform spines, its blossoms fragrant yet guarded. It stands as if conjured from allegory: pain flowering into sweetness, thorn guarding bloom.
Nearby, the Mexican nut pine leans into history; scruffy, crowd-bound, singular. The only one of its kind in Australia, it exhales a resinous scent as if to insist on its place. Cones scatter beneath.
The Australian native frangipani rises upright, blossoms shifting from white to apricot, releasing a fragrance that carries memory of tropical kin yet stands firmly against Victorian frost. Its scent is a promise of warmth in a land where winter gnaws at bark and bone.
And then, the Wollemi pines: a living fossil thought lost to time until the 1990s, now planted here as if the estate were chosen to bear its glory. Its fern-like fronds and dark bark, the texture of bubbling chocolate, speak of ages before human memory.
To stand near it is to sense the weight of aeons, compressed into one tree.
The Monterey pines, maligned as weeds in their adopted country, reach skyward as cathedrals. Thirty-five meters and more, their trunks plated thick as armour, their canopies vaulting light into sanctuaries of resin. In California they are stunted, windswept, endangered; here they achieve magnificence, perhaps the largest on earth.
And the Lawson’s cypress, layering itself into eternity; branches falling to earth, rooting, then rising again. What began as one trunk has become a ring of many, a selfperpetuating family, a circle of continuity that refuses finality.
Everywhere, rare specimens hold their own stories: Himalayan spruces, Holm oaks with artist’s conks hidden in their seed, camellias tracing lineage back to vanished houses. Each plant feels like an emissary from another world, carrying its strangeness into this soil, reshaping what an Australian garden might mean.
Wombat Park has known only three families in nearly two centuries; the Stanbridges, the Mackenzies and today, Tony De Marco and Theresa Albioli hold the estate. They open its gates not just as garden, but as memory made tangible, where visitors can share and wander beneath elms, breathe the mingled scent of pine, camellia, resin, and earth, and feel time itself folding like a petal.
At dusk, the Arts and Crafts house glows, the elm shadows stretch across gravel, and the sheep move slowly through the paddocks. Resin, blossom, thorn, fruit: the fragrances linger. Nature hurls its chorus in surround sound. And the trees; vast, unhurried, unspeaking, remind you that beauty here is never easy, never neat, but eternal.
Wombat Park Estate Daylesford @wombatparkestate wombatparkestate.com.au
Open Garden Weekend
Saturday 25th & Sunday 26th October 2025 10am – 4pm each day
$30 pp, children under 10 yrs free Avoid queues on the day by pre purchasing tickets via wombatparkestate.com.au/our-events
Tickets also available at the gate No dogs allowed
Artist impression townhouse by Breathe
Recently completed home by J.V Dodd
Walnut Faeries and
STORY BY MAHMOOD FAZAL
PHOTOS BY KAIYA RAE
MAYA CARROLL-TISCHLER
Imoved to Hepburn with my family at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. It gave this contrast between a world that felt totally unpredictable and the quiet magic of moving to such a beautiful place.”
Maya Carroll-Tischler's first memory is of slowing down. “Because my parents own a building business they’d joke about how - here no one starts work before nine!”
There was suddenly a garden, and that is where permaculture began. “Having lived in countless rentals over my childhood there was no way I could take this tiny patch of land for granted. My beautiful mama, who is a total garden enthusiast, immediately started planting trees. We planted what must have been over fifteen trees before they even started building the house.”
One moment remains crystalline: “Mama laying rocks around the base of a tiny apple tree. She casually explained that the rocks helped channel water and provided thermal mass to gently warm the tree at night. I knew she had figured it out herself. It hit me that this was a special kind of intelligence, and I knew deep inside myself I wanted to be that connected, to learn things from the land itself.”
The art began with a tube of paint. “Gouache is like a vibrant watercolour that dries opaque, I’m absolutely in love with it. But one day I noticed this tiny label on the back of the tube: May cause cancer and reproductive harm. I had never even considered gouache might be toxic! I knew instantly I had to find an alternative.”
Mixing paints by hand changed everything. “Each paint is mixed with raw pigments and cold-pressed walnut oil before being spooned into a tube. The best analogy is the difference between growing vegetables in your garden or buying them at the supermarket. It demands a special kind of presence - which sometimes feels like a hard-won luxury.”
She forages for ingredients. “Acorns make the warmest softest brown, walnut husks create a darker stronger colour. Foraging connects the artwork to this area in more ways than one. What is healthiest for us is also healthiest for the planet. It lets us glimpse the fact that we too are nature - not separate from it but the very same thing.”
“I have always believed in Faeries, ever since I was little! They feel like the perfect archetype for a changing world. They exist in the liminal, appearing at dawn, dusk, the crossroads, the edge of the forest and the bottom of the garden.”
Mythology, for her, is alive. “In the same way a language is alive I can feel mythology quietly breathing in the hills and rocks, waiting for us. Right now these stories feel like a lifeline into a future where humans survive in harmony with Mother Earth.”
The bush outside Hepburn offers its own conversation. “I used to visit a gully where a neighbour kept their tiny mountain goats. The goats would eat the blackberries while I painted them.
The landscape has been ravaged by waves of gold mining and invasive weeds, the land changed by metres, but there’s a magic to this ecosystem which tells you stories of renewal.”
Gardening began as a job. “I thought, hey, I know how to garden! I’ll just do it for a year and then I’ll make art full time. Except I couldn’t stop gardening. I feel such a deep connection with each property, it’s a huge deal when someone collaborates with you like that.”
At first, Maya hid being an artist. “Now all my clients know I spend half my time painting faeries and they’re super supportive. I’m sad I thought those two things were incompatible. Now I see them as part of the same practice - a huge meshing of everything I’ve loved as a child and young adult.”
“I’m so excited to see people interact with the artwork in real time. I know there’s a collective craving to bring nature back into our lives. If people catch just a twinkle of that invitation for reconnection I would be over the moon.”
The community has matched that energy. “The support has been flabbergasting. There’s a huge generosity here. Having my first solo exhibition at the Newstead Arts Hub means more to me than the most prestigious gallery in Melbourne. When I got the confirmation email I was literally jumping around and happy dancing and my partner was laughing at me and everything!”
The exhibition opens November 1st. “If you like whimsical art or gardening or supporting a young local artist, definitely come and chat to me. I’ll be there, buzzing with excitement and maybe a little nervousness, hoping it brings a feeling of magic.”
Maya Carroll-Tischler
Debut Solo Exhibition – “Faeries”
Opening 1st November 4pm, then running until 30th November 2025
Newstead Arts Hub mayacarrolltischler.com.au @mayacarrolltischler
OPEN GARDEN
Age Adeline of The
GABRIELLE JORDAN & MITCHELL REED ROGERS
ADELINE TRENTHAM
STORY BY LARISSA DUBECKI
PHOTOS BY KAIYA RAE
Trentham is a small town, but locals Gabrielle Jordan and Mitchell Reed Rogers are dreaming big.
The hands-on pair own local venues Trentham General and Mr Peacock, and last month added Adeline to the mix.
in many other Victorian towns where the population doesn’t quite reach 1400 people, this could be described as “overkill”. In Trentham, however, which was recently named Top Tiny Tourism Town in the Victorian and Australian Tourism Awards, it’s serving a pressing community need.
“Even on weekdays, we were turning away people, so we saw the need for another space where the locals could swing by and it’s not hectic and crazy,” says Gabrielle.
Their mini-Trentham empire began almost by accident. Mitchell was working a few shifts at brunch spot Trentham General when the owner asked if he’d like to buy the business. Mr Peacock, a wine and cocktail bar with a snacking menu of charcuterie and pizza directly across the road, came about in a
similar fashion a few years later. (It’s also where the duo met: in a Central Victorian meet-cute, Gabrielle was a customer.)
The young couple are currently renovating an old miner’s cottage in Newbury, just down the road. So why add to their burden with Adeline?
“Because we’re silly and can’t say no to a project,” laughs Gabrielle.
The truth lies more in the critical mass of tourists descending on the town to compete with the locals in the search for a good coffee, a glass of wine and a grazing plate. A short walk around the corner from its two big siblings, Adeline occupies a history-filled former butcher’s shop (the duo’s office is the repurposed coolroom) with an open fire inside and seating on the front veranda that catches the afternoon sun.
Head chef Michael Furness, formerly of Vue de Monde, brings his pedigree to all three venues. At Adeline that means four or five snacking plates and cheeseboards loaded with Meredith goats’ curd, St David’s brie
and bocconcini with smoked olive oil and cracked black pepper. There’s also a lemon tart that begs to be noticed.
“If you want coffee or a glass of wine and a pastry or a cheeseboard, come to Adeline, and if you want scrambled eggs and bacon, go to the General, because the whole point was to spread the load a bit.”
Gabrielle's background in wine – she was previous at Domain Chandon in the Yarra Valley before moving to local high flyers Passing Clouds and Lyons Will Estate –means there’s a strong collection of bottles to drink in-house or to take home.
“We have a big focus on local wine, especially because the Macedon Ranges is such a big region and there aren’t too many wineries close to Trentham,” she says.
“Especially for tourists, if they’re not able to go to any wineries, they'll be able to pick something up from the region.”
It began with a mistake. Suzi had called the wrong agency, and Sebastian was sent out to appraise her property in Sydney. The day was oppressively humid; she had rushed from her marketing consultancy work, still carrying the frantic energy of the office. He arrived. She offered him a cup of tea. He declined.
Fast forward twenty years. They are married, living in Daylesford - the result of an impromptu road trip taken by pure coincidence. Three years later, they launch Spa Country Real Estate.
At first glance, they appear simply as professionals, paired: Sebastian, a career agent whose decades in Sydney’s North Shore residential sales were preceded by years as a partner at Knight Frank in the UK, overseeing commercial investment portfolios. Suzi, with a degree in marketing communications, carving a more idiosyncratic path - as one of Australia’s first trained tea sommeliers, blending heritage, ritual, and story with her professional work. Yet what unfolds is not merely résumé, but a tale of serendipity.
Cup Homes, Heritage & of Tea a
SEBASTIAN AND SUZI BROWNE
SPA COUNTRY REAL ESTATE
STORY BY MAHMOOD FAZAL
PHOTOS BY KAIYA RAE
Suzi pours a first flush Darjeeling into a vintage cup, her favourite, and places it gently before me. Steam rises. I am drinking tea with a sommelier, and with Australia’s highest-ranking Anglo-Irish peer.
Sebastian is the thirteenth great-grandson of Grace O’Malley, the pirate queen of sixteenth-century Ireland. “To me, Grace’s courageous independence and strength of purpose truly resonate - especially in forging a new path, often in unfamiliar territory. While our journeys differ greatly, I share her resolve and curiosity - and a deep respect for place,” he says.
Grace O’Malley was called a She King - a fearless leader in a world of warring clans led mostly by men. “She didn’t shy away from standing up for the underdog or her beliefs,” Sebastian tells me. “It’s probably the reason that for many she represents an ideal figurehead for feminist movements. She was principled, gave as good as she got (usually much more so in a retaliatory sense), and lived to tell the tales, dying at the extraordinary age of seventy-three in 1603. I think this unrivalled principled resilience is still a character trait of her descendants today. Which includes me,” he laughs.
The laughter gives way to gravity. The Marquessate of Sligo carries with it another history - slavery, complicity, reform. Sebastian is its twelfth Marquess. “This is a complex legacy that I do not shirkit’s one I continually reflect on with humility. It also plays a big part in our support of the Foundation of Indigenous Sustainable Health, specifically their Indigenous home ownership initiative. My family’s heritage is entwined with histories of plantation ownership and the realities of slavery. Yet there are also stories of reform and social conscience. My ancestors were instrumental in the abolishment of slavery which is a great source of pride to me.”
Howe Peter Browne, the second Marquess, was called the Champion of the Slaves. He inherited two Jamaican plantations through marriage, but, unlike his contemporaries, “did not enslave the local population.” Sebastian explains: “On the contrary, he looked out for their welfare and used his title and position to turn things around.” Sligoville, the world’s first free village, was named for him. His name was struck onto an emancipation medal in 1838.
The family motto - suivez raison, follow the right - threads through. Establishing Spa Country Real Estate, Sebastian tells me, is another expression of that spirit: awareness, resilience, community.
Suzi pours another cup. She speaks of philosophy. “We’re about building dreams and helping people find that purpose of place and sanctuary. Like we have found ours.”
She lingers on tea: “Tea transcends age, race, culture and gender… it allows us to connect at a very human level and learn what makes us come alive. I learnt from a young age, that by creating a nurturing, welcoming environment things would grow. Coming from a migrant background, I worked in my parent’s tearoom from the age of nine.
I witnessed how tea fosters connection, warmth, and conversation. Like the leaves unfurling in our cups, stories would unfold built on trust and listening, feeling seen and heard. Journeys would be shared.”
The same, she insists, applies to real estate. “The same applies to the way we approach our real estate business, with empathy, integrity, and authenticity. One of the greatest highlights in my tea journey was creating a bespoke tea blend for the Honorable Michael Kirby, former high court judge.” She smiles.
“One of the things I remember him saying to second year law students at the time, while on camera for the local television, was that love begins at home. That has stayed with me. Home is where the heart is.”
The teapot empties. The conversation turns to Daylesford - the region, its magic, its inheritance. “For us,” they say, “this translates into honouring its natural beauty and history, supporting local artisans and the community which make it what it is, and ensuring our agency embodies integrity and genuine care. Each cup is full of intention, story and potential - the layers of emotion, memory, and belonging unfold. And it is the same for the unique properties we represent; they hold stories waiting to be honoured and carried forward.”
Spa Country Real Estate
Sebastian and Suzi Browne spacountryre.com.au 03 5348 1388
Photoshoot at The Garden House Daylesford
Bookable for short stay accommodaiton with The Houses Daylesford
Tested to be broader in spectrum, and more bioavailable than conventional powder or tincture extracts.
Closed loop growing, direct sourcing and in house clean manufacture ensures no third parties, preservatives, toxins, synthetic so microplastics. Exalted with ancien perfected with mod techniques. Unparalleled in
Nick Skinner Photography
of TheArt
Chocolate
SISKO CHOCOLATE CHRISTINA TANTSIS
STORY BY MAHMOOD FAZAL PHOTOS BY KAIYA RAE
Iimmersed myself in anything creativephotography, pottery, painting, interior design, travel - but it was the caramel apples that first sparked something in me.”
For seven years in Northern California, chocolate was not yet the destination but the thread running quietly through Christina's days. “I’d take visiting friends and family to the caramel apple factory where crisp Granny Smith apples were dipped in soft caramel, rolled in toppings, and drizzled in chocolate. That mix of sweet, tart, and savoury was unforgettable.”
Volunteering at the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory only deepened the pull. “At one point I looked into bringing the concept back to Australia, but they thought the market was too small. Instead, I threw myself into learning chocolate in every way possible.” Training in culinary arts, working in a boutique studio in Saratoga, hosting tasting parties for friends - California planted the seed.
“It gave me the belief that anything is possible. There was more encouragement for entrepreneurial spirit, and that confidence stayed with me when I returned to Melbourne.”
Christina's first chocolate sculpture was for her sister’s engagement. “From there the journey began.”
Handcraft has always been central. “There’s a finish, a detail, and a soul in handmade work that machines simply can’t replicate. The swirls in our orbs come from how the first layer is swirled by hand in the mould. Putting flowers together petal by petal is a delicate process and it is the most satisfying.”
The language of floristry recurs often. “Back then, I would take single flowers and arrange them into something that made people say ‘wow.’ Now my medium is chocolate. Like flowers, chocolate can be bought for yourself, given as a gift, or become a centrepiece at an event.”
Ethics are as important as aesthetics.
“We work with premium couverture chocolate suppliers who are transparent and take responsibility for their sourcing. Our main supplier is B Corp certified, which means their practices are audited for sustainability and ethics. That gives us confidence that what we’re working with is aligned with our own values.”
When Christina discovered Kyneton, it felt familiar. “It had a vibe that reminded me
Nick Skinner Photography
of Northern California - the people, the food, the wineries. Opening in Kyneton felt natural, the chocolate followed me here.”
Now, Trentham is headquarters. “I have big plans for immersive workshops, tastings, and chocolate theatre. Both spaces are about connection: welcoming people into my world and making them feel part of it. I feel like the spaces are an extension of my home.”
The Orbs, still a signature after twenty years, began with a question. “Why did all bonbons have fillings? What if you just wanted pure chocolate, or a small taste of a flavour without committing to a whole bar?”
She resists the label of chocolatier alone. “I used to be a florist, and now my medium is chocolate. The way you can design with flowers - sometimes delicate, sometimes bold, sometimes sculptural - is the same way I approach chocolate. At the end of the day, I’d say I’m both a chocolatier and an artist.”
Workshops offer another kind of artistry. “The moment I love most is when people lose their fear of chocolate. Suddenly, it clicks for them when they realise it’s possible to try at home.” Another turning point comes when she explains cacao’s long journey. “A single cacao tree only produces about 20–30 pods a year. Once those pods are harvested, fermented, and dried, that’s just enough beans to make one to two kilos of chocolate. That’s a lot of trees when you think about how much chocolate we consume.”
Every commission is bespoke. “It can be a gift-boxed logo, a replica of a townhouse, or a two-metre sculpture. You think about the occasion, the space, and the mood you want to create, then design something that will elevate the experience. The most rewarding part is being part of someone’s special moment.”
“Chocolate is global, but connection is local.” Christina sources couverture from France, Switzerland, and Italy, but turns to Australian producers for honey, fruit, and spices. “That combination creates chocolates that are both world-class and rooted in our region.”
Tourists often arrive expecting sweets, and leave astonished.
“They often say they had no idea chocolate could be presented in such a creative, artistic way. That moment of wonder never gets old.”
What’s next? “Always new flavours, always new collaborations. Trentham is giving us a base to dream bigger. Chocolate can mark everyday moments or become something extraordinary. That’s what excites me."
Flexibility has been a feature of the Australian dining scene for some time now. In restaurant world, flexibility means providing ways to dine beyond the traditional three-course meal structure (sharing, snacking, solo), allowing customers to choose their own adventure. Passing Clouds, the winery and vineyard in Musk, ten minutes outside of Daylesford, is taking a similar approach to tastings at its cellar door.
Passing Clouds once offered traditional tastings in its cellar door and a three-course lunch in its dining room. Now the menu lists a series of small plates that can be gathered together for the full lunch experience but also allow the option of snacking. The kicker of this new approach though is that no matter your preferred eating style, the food can be paired with a guided, table-side wine tasting, a significant departure from the traditional ‘stand, sniff and sip’ cellar door experience.
“We wanted to bring the restaurant concept in line with the cellar door concept,” says Cameron Leith, whose father Graham coestablished the winery in 1974. “It’s really been led by us talking to our customers, who were after a more casual experience, a more relaxed style of wine tasting.
You can still come here for a bottle of wine and a set-course lunch, but we now approach our customers with the question: what would you like to do?”
It's a smart approach for a long-standing winery with a wide variety of wine styles. Originally established in the Bendigo region, Passing Clouds made its name with warm climate shiraz and cabernet sauvignon, before moving to the Macedon Ranges where Graham Leith had begun planting pinot noir and chardonnay vines in 1998. Passing Clouds still make warm climate styles with fruit sourced from growers in the Bendigo region, but the label also turns heads with its elegant cool climate sparkling, pinot noir and chardonnay – and most recently pinot blanc – varieties for which the Macedon Ranges is increasingly renowned.
Cameron took over winemaking duties from his father in 2008 but has recently passed that baton to winemaker Tim Castle in order to focus his passion for regenerative farming. An approach to agriculture that’s been practiced at Passing Clouds for ten years, regenerative farming is, according to Cameron, about being “in harmony with nature, rather than working against it.”
At the winery, this means attending to the relationships between soil microbes and the vines, fertilising only with compost they make on site and integrating livestock into the equation, in this case, a breed of short-stature sheep called Babydoll, which rotationally graze through the vineyard yearround.
“Regenerative farming has huge benefits like sequestering larger amounts of carbon in the soil but also in terms of wine quality and how it allows us to more fully expresses the site, the terroir,” Cameron says. “I feel fortunate that Tim’s been with us for several years now and his philosophies and approach really align with what we want to achieve in the winery.”
Those achievements can now be sampled alongside a menu that includes wine-friendly faves like charcuterie and pâté, locally sourced vegetables and meats cooked over the winery’s charcoal pit. Accompanied by tastings guided by well-informed staff, it’s easy to find yourself in perfect match territory. Flexibility indeed.
This November, Ballarat bursts to life with Sunnyside - a major new art experience by award-winning studio The Social Crew, launching with renowned UK artist Morag Myerscough and her large-scale installation Chasing Sunbeams.
Known for her vibrant, joy-filled works, Myerscough will transform the historic Mining Exchange into a colourful, immersive wonderland - the first regional installation of its kind in Australia. But Sunnyside is more than just one space. It spills into laneways, hidden corners, and unexpected places with artist talks, playful pop-ups, free experiences, and creative workshops.
Shaped by community collaboration, Chasing Sunbeams invites visitors of all ages to explore bold ideas, soundscapes by Raul Sanchez i Jorge, and hands-on activities with local artists.
This is not just an exhibition, it’s a citywide celebration of colour, creativity, and connection.
sunnysideart.com.au
Foto Biennale
Ballarat becomes a lens-lover’s playground this spring with the Ballarat International Foto Biennale. Expect world-renowned exhibitions from the likes of Robert Mapplethorpe, Campbell Addy and Catherine Leroy, alongside boundary-pushing contemporary works, intimate artist talks, and workshops. From historic laneways to grand gallery spaces, the city transforms into a living, breathing photo album.
Runs until 19 October
Tickets at ballaratfoto.org
Gather your clan for some highland fun
Daylesford transforms into a tartan-clad celebration of all things Scottish at the annual Highland Gathering! There’s caber tossing, Highland dancing, market stalls, pipe bands and more
daylesfordhighand.com
Luxury bathing in geothermal waters
With renovations now complete, you can enjoy all that the Hepburn Bathhouse has to offer including Private, Sanctuary and Bathhouse Mineral bathing, an all-new spa treatment menu, a brand-new Apothecary experience and a locally inspired wellness menu at the historic Pavilion Café as well as gorgeous bushwalks surrounding the property.
hepburnbathhousespa.com
Budburst is back
Step into a weekend of wine, wonder and wandering. Budburst is your once-a-year chance to explore over 20 cool-climate winemakers across 14 unique venues in the Macedon Ranges.
Meet the makers, taste rare and limitedrelease wines, and enjoy the stories behind every bottle. From iconic labels to hidden gems, Budburst is all about connectionbetween the wines, the people, and the places that bring them to life.
Tickets at budburst.com
Head to Melbourne to see local talent
We love a trip to Melbourne to see a show especially when it is the creation of one of our talented locals – Adam Fawcett. Can’t wait to see Men on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown described as an “absurdly delightful trainwreck bromance”.
2 -12 October at Fortyfivedownstairs Flinders Lane, Melbourne fortyfivedownstairs.com
See an enchanting exhibition
Don’t miss Maya Carroll-Tischler’s debut exhibition, Faeries. Maya’s whimsical, detailed work is spellbinding and will transport you to a magical realm where Faeries rule.
Newstead Arts Hub 1 - 30 November, open Thursday - Sunday. Official opening: 1 Nov, 4pm
Local Legend Mitch Duncan Toasts The Block’s Impact on Daylesford
If you’ve driven through Daylesford recently, chances are you’ve noticed a different buzz in the air, and not just from the coffee machines or springtime bees. The town has been swept up in a whirlwind of cameras, construction, and celebrity thanks to Australia’s beloved renovation reality show, The Block. But just across the road from the newly renovated houses sits another star
in its own right: The Farmers Arms Hotel, helmed by local publican Mitch Duncan.
Mitch, a well-known figure in Daylesford for his warm hospitality and tireless community spirit, has owned The Farmers Arms Hotel for over a decade. But even he admits that nothing quite compares to the past few months.
Publican Mitch Duncan (C) with House 5 contestants, Robbie (L) & Matt (R)
“Having The Block across the road was like having a front-row seat to a piece of Aussie TV history,” Mitch laughs, leaning against the bar. “We’ve had fans, tradies, contestants, even the hosts popping in - and it’s been nothing but good vibes.”
Indeed, contestants from this season of The Block quickly made The Farmers Arms their local haunt, enjoying hearty meals, cold beers, and the welcoming atmosphere Mitch and his team are known for. The affection was mutual - so much so that Scott Cam himself dubbed The Farmers Arms “Australia’s Best Pub.”
“I’m still wrapping my head around that,” Mitch says with a grin. “You couldn’t ask for a better endorsement.”
But the relationship between The Block and The Farmers Arms didn’t stop at bar visits and photo ops. Mitch went all in and decided to sponsor House 5. As part of the sponsorship, the eventual buyer of House 5 will receive a year’s worth of free beer at The Farmers Arms and a housewarming party for 50 hosted at the pub.
“We just wanted to keep the good times rolling,” Mitch explains. “It’s our way of saying welcome to Daylesford - and giving them a proper locals’ welcome.”
It’s a gesture that perfectly captures Mitch’s ethos: community first. He’s quick to point out that the presence of The Block has done more than just increase foot traffic at the pub - it’s brought energy, excitement, and a noticeable boost to the entire region.
“From cafés to local shops, accommodation providers to tradies, everyone’s felt the lift,” he says. “The exposure has been incredible, and people are coming to town to see what all the fuss is about.”
As the final weeks of filming unfold and excitement builds toward each big reveal, Mitch is full of gratitude. He thanks The Block team, not just for choosing Daylesford, but for embracing the town’s character and supporting its small businesses.
“It’s been unforgettable,” he says. “Now we can’t wait to welcome the new homeowners - and hopefully raise a glass or two with them.”
With a publican like Mitch Duncan at the helm and a pub as iconic as The Farmers Arms, it’s no wonder Daylesford is suddenly in the national spotlight. As far as Mitch is concerned, it’s not just Australia’s best pub - it’s the heart of a community that’s never looked better.
The Farmers Arms Hotel - Dubbed 'Australia's best pub' by Scott Cam
Brought to you by The Farmers Arms Daylesford
Adam Fawcett
Adam is an AWGIE-nominated stage and screen writer living and creating on Dja Dja Wurrung Country in Hepburn Springs.
What drew you to live in this part of the world?
The incredible amount of nature and wildlife that surrounds you. There are four very distinct seasons up here which I love, and it’s also one of the more tolerant places for queer people to live outside of the city, which is important to me because living in the country keeps me sane...
Tell us a bit about your work.
I am a playwright and screenwriter with a theatre producing background. I love to create emotionally charged stories that probe contemporary life, and I’m often drawn to issues around identity, class, and the performance of gender. In 2012 I co-created new writing company Lab Kelpie with my partner Lyall Brooks, and have
recently created my own production label, Messy With The Pen, to produce more of my own work, which I find exciting and terrifying in equal measure.
Does living regionally shape your writing and creativity?
Oh 100% – particularly with characters! I’ve met so many wonderfully outrageous people over the eight years I’ve been up here. One day I’ll write a play about them, because they deserve to know how amazing they are.
You have an upcoming show "Men on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown". Sounds interesting…
I describe it as an unhinged equestrian brom-com road trip! – it’s a play about two brothers from different mothers, born twenty years apart, who meet for the first time. Although it’s a completely absurdist comedy – the show is narrated by Nutmeg, a talking-horse with a taste for toxic stallions – masculinity and maleness are still firmly under the microscope. I’m really proud of it, and I’d love locals and city-folk to catch it. Join us at Fortyfivedownstairs in Melbourne from 2-12 October by getting tickets at fortyfivedownstairs.com
What are some of your favourite local spots in our region — places that inspire you, or where you go to relax and recharge?
I love the Doctors Gully walk around Hepburn Springs almost as much as my dog, and when the Daylesford Town Hall is open, I often get inspired by seeing what people are doing there. I also spend a lot of time at The Virgin Kitchen in Hepburn Springs – it’s my local, the coffee’s great and the staff are amazing.
