NOURISH | BEAUTY | BUSINESS
IRIDOLOGY EXPLAINED
Are your eyes the windows to your health?
MEET THE FOOD KINGS AND QUEENS OF THE ROAD
Emily Blunt
“I don’t have a game plan. I think life’s more fun without one.”
ISSUE 02 OCT/NOV 2015 AUS $9.95 / NZ $11.99 ISSN 2205-3735
CULTURE | TRAVEL | LIVING
DEFYING HER DISABILITY
The inspiring aerialist performer, Lauren Watson
Beautiful Beans The amazing beauty power of coffee
Curvy & Loving it! The Australian models that are changing the world!
THE MODERN QUEENSLAND FAMILY GARDEN
AUSTRALIA FROM A TOURIST’S PERSPECTIVE
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From the
Editor I am very proud to welcome everyone to the second issue of Provoke. The amount of support and positive feedback we received throughout the making of this issue has been truly phenomenal! There are a great many delights in store for all of you this issue, including the very special interview and photoshoot with the extraordinary Lauren Watson, who despite her disability has never given up on her dreams and her zest for life. She takes physiotherapy to whole new heights (literally)! Make sure to check out her incredible story on page 41.
Accepting Certificate of Appreciation at the Provoke Launch Party from Natalie Davidson of Women’s Legal Service Queensland.
Also in store are the decadent comfort food recipes on page 26, a delicious look into the foodie trucks of Queensland on page 20 and the beautiful and glamorous curvy Australian models who are taking on the world on page 57. Plus don’t miss the inspiring homes in our living section (one of my top sections this issue), featuring the interior design of iconic Brisbane local Anna Spiro on page 102, and the garden greatness of Brisbane landscaper Joseph Nagel on page 110. For a laugh don’t miss Emma’s very truthful recount of her time testing out the newly popular (and apparently very difficult) Xtend Barre fitness class on page 38. Or Jasmine’s deeply heartfelt look into some very thought-provoking subjects such as domestic violence, child abuse, public shaming, depression and more scattered throughout this issue. Don’t forget that everything you read here you can usually catch more of at provoke.com.au. Plus our very fabulous website has an event calendar! Now – no matter if you’re waiting on the next issue of Provoke – you won’t ever miss out on any events near you. Before I send you off to indulge in all of this issue’s features, I would like to say a very special and very sincere thank you to everyone that helped support by donating, attending and spending at last month’s Provoke Launch Party and Charity Event. I hope that everyone that attended had the same spectacular time that I and the Provoke team had! Make sure to see your photo from the night on page 80.
Whenever you see this:
I will see all of you again next issue (out in December)!
Logan
WIN Log on to provoke.com.au for more information and to enter to win!
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Sincerely, Logan Smith
Join the conversation @provokemag!
LONDON | GOLD COAST | SYDNEY CALLEIJA.COM
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Logan Smith
EDITORIAL Editorial Assistant
Jas Rawlinson
editorial@provoke.com.au
Editorial Assistant
Emma Heron
info@provoke.com.au
Online Content Manager
Wendy Smith
online@provoke.com.au
DESIGN Graphic Designer Proofreader
Gino Hawkins
design@provoke.com.au
Noel O’Halloran
ADVERTISING & MARKETING Sales & Marketing Manager
Danielle Wyld
danielle@provoke.com.au
Events Coordinator
Brenda Gilbert
events@provoke.com.au
Photographer & Event Consultant
Jenni Purdy
CONTRIBUTORS Belinda Wasowski, Chris Smith, Donald Anton, Maya Brosnan
COVER Photographer: Paola Kudacki Supplier: trunkarchive.com / Snapper Media
PROVOKE 36 Richland Avenue, Coopers Plains, QLD, 4108, Australia P: +61 7 3272 7928 ACN: 064 644 033 PROVOKE is published bi-monthly by Eazy-Gleam Products Pty Ltd t/a Provoke. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is strictly prohibited. PROVOKE cannot be held responsible for any unsolicited material. All prices and credits are accurate at time of going to press, but are subject to change. Neither this publication nor its contents constitute an explicit endorsement by PROVOKE of the products or services mentioned in advertising or editorial content. While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, PROVOKE shall not have any liability for errors or omissions. The opinions expressed by individual contributors in PROVOKE are not necessarily those of the publisher. We have done our best to acknowledge all photographers. In some instances photos have been provided to us by those who appear editorially and we have their permission in each case to use the images. We apologise if anything appears incorrectly. It will be a genuine mistake. Please let us know and we can give you a mention in the next issue.
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Combine a rested body, an eased mind, a peaceful soul to renew your very essence and make you whole. Our goal is to provide you with unrivalled options for comfort.
89 Ashmore Rd Bundall 07 5570 3885 | sales@inspirationsfurniture.com.au | www.inspirationsfurniture.com.au October/November 2015 5
Contributors
Donald K Anton
Chris Smith
Don took up the Chair in International Law at Griffith Law School in 2015, and from 2000-2015 was a Professor of Law at The Australian National University. He has appeared as counsel before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, the Supreme Court of the United States and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Currently he’s a member of the Australian delegation to the International Seabed Authority, and is leading a major international research project on deep-sea mining in the Pacific region, funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Chris is an award-winning Certified Financial Planner and founding partner of VISIS Private Wealth, an independently owned full service financial advice and accounting firm. With over 15 years’ experience in providing strategic financial advice, he is also highly experienced in successfully delivering tailored, practical and smart solutions that get results. More recently Chris was recognised as Queensland’s Best Certified Financial Planner, after being presented with the runner-up award the year prior.
This issue Don weighs in on the attempts to win back standing for green groups to challenge environmental decisions.
This issue, Chris breaks down all the important information on fixed versus variable rates.
Maya Brosnan
Belinda Wasowski
Maya is a Gold Coast mum, nutritionist, iridologist, fitness professional and yogi. Her holistic approach to health and nutrition led her to write the book KIS and Lose Weight to inspire Australians to lose weight and live a happier, healthier life.
Performance Coach Belinda Wasowski lives in a way that says ‘I love my body and want to nourish it, challenge it and improve it’. As the founder of Intensity Personal Training, Belinda says, “Life is too short to spend time hating, restricting and punishing your body”.
This issue Maya talks iridology and shares how our eyes are a window to our health.
This issue Belinda will give you her top tips on how to spring clean your body and mind.
@kismayabrosnan
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@intensity_personal_training
Experience cutting-edge Japanese cuisine at Kiyomi, located on the Lobby Level of Jupiters Hotel & Casino. BOOK NOW. CALL 1800 074 344 OR VISIT JUPITERSGOLDCOAST.COM.AU
celebrate the joy of sharing with friends and family at cucina vivo. dinner seven days from 5.30pm lunch friday, saturday & sunday from 12.00pm
book now. Call 1800 074 344 or visit jupitersgoldcoast.com.au
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Contents NOURISH 18 News: All the latest in food, recipes and health. 20 Food Trucks: The delicious local banquet-on-wheels. 26 Recipes: Food that helps to heal your gut. Plus soups, soups and more soups! 34 Iridology: A facinating insight into your hormonal health. 36 Spring-Clean: Five ways to cleanse your mind and body. 38 Xtend Barre: Tried and tested – the ultimate new workout!
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41 Defying Her Disability: Lauren Watson’s inspiring tale.
BEAUTY 50 News: Discover the newest products and beauty tips. 52 Beans, Beautiful Beans: The beauty benefits of coffee. 57 Curvy & Loving It!: Three Australians who are taking the modelling world by storm.
CULTURE 66 Art News: The exhibitions and artists you simply must see. 68 Movie & Book News
70 Cover Story: Emily Blunt on motherhood, being a morning person and her new movie. 74 Music News: New albums and upcoming gigs and concerts. 76 Events: Things to do and see this October and November. 78 A Culture of Public Shaming: Are we out of control? 79 Culture Jamming: Topics that get you thinking! 80 Socials: The Provoke Launch Party & Charity Event. 82 Law: Trying to close the courthouse doors.
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84 Fixed vs Variable Interest: What is the difference, and is now the time to fix? 86 Women in Business: How to stay focused on your goals.
TRAVEL 90 News: Consider yourself an avid travel junkie? Find out what’s new! 92 QLD Spotlight: Head out to the Hinterland of Maleny. 94 Travel Tech: Keep connected while adventuring! 96 A Travellers Perspective: Stories from a Taiwanese backpacker.
LIVING 100 News: Decorating tips, homewares, greenscaping developments and more! 102 Halcyon House: Brisbane’s boldest interior decorator takes on a 1960’s beach hotel. 110 Landscaping: Modern-style blooms in the traditional Queensland family garden. 116 Get The Look: Beautiful vases that bring nature indoors. 118 The Zone: Introducing Laguna – Newstead’s newest tower development.
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122 Properties: The houses and office spaces for sale near you.
FIRST & FINAL THOUGHTS 10 Feedback: Provoke’s readers. 12 Provoke.com.au: Tell us what you think and win! 14 First Thought: The latest and greatest things we love! 126 Marketplace: Local businesses. 130 Puzzles: Test your mind. 136 Respectful Relationships: Should Schools be teaching kids how to spot family violence?
October/November 2015 9
FEEDBACK | Join the Conversation
WE HEAR YOU... Damien Rider – Paddle Against Child Abuse Great article – the best so far for sure! Well done. Milly Jane – MillyJane Photography Wow, it looks fantastic! Congratulations on your first edition. I love it, and thank you for having me be a part of it! Isabelle Quinn – Izzq Designs The magazine looks so great! So many good topics too – love the health and food section!
Cinnamon – Cinnamon Watson Publicity I loved the magazine! It’s incredibly readable and I just lost at least 20 minutes flicking through! Anna-Kathryn Nagel – Definition Landscape and Design I loved looking through the magazine. It is beautifully set out, tasteful, and very inspiring. I really want to cook some of those recipes! You must be so proud and work with a fantastic team to achieve such a wonderful outcome.
@intensity_personal_training
Kate Leahy – Secrets Shhh WOW! Beautiful magazine! Thank you for sharing and well done Provoke team! Amy Baxter – Paper Vintage Love So refreshing to read a modern and relatable magazine that addresses current issues and topics that are on the minds of our culture and communities!! It really does look like a refreshing magazine. It will do really well. Linda Kempster – Xavier Rudd Ticket Giveaway Winner Thank you so much for the tickets and making my day. I cannot wait to see Xavier!
@carol.larsen
WINNER! Shayna Jones “I love that you are giving intelligent women a forum to read about things that matter. From sexuality and health, to the environment, and people to inspire. The magazine is bold and thought-provoking and presents something very different to the tabloid fluff we get shoved down our throats.” Shayna has won a Sugar Venom gift pack, featuring the hottest vegan and cruelty-free cosmetics, valued at over $100! W: sugarvenom.com.au
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@kiarnay
MELBOURNE CUP TUESDAY 3 NOVEMBER 2015
3 hour premium beverage package
12.30-3.30PM
Live race coverage
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Live music
Canapés on arrival Main course served alternate style with accompanying side dishes
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Dessert served family style shared in the middle of the table
Fashions On The Field Sweepstakes Lucky door prizes
DISCOUNTED RATE OF $139PP FOR TABLES OF OVER 10 PEOPLE
TO MAKE A BOOKING: Bookings essential.
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Capri by Fraser, Brisbane • 80 Albert Street, Brisbane Qld 4000 • +61 7 3013 0064 • sales.brisbane@capribyfraser.com • brisbane.capribyfraser.com
ONLINE | Join the Conversation
PROVOKE.COM.AU Can’t get enough of Provoke? Head online to see all the extra content that couldn’t quite fit into the mag! We’ve got photoshoot outtakes with Lauren Watson, extended interviews with the lovely models in our beauty feature, and plenty more Food Truck related goodness!
Banana Cream Pie
Recipe and Image: Fried Chicken and Friends, The Hartsyard Family Cookbook by Gregory Llewellyn and Naomi Hart (Murdoch Books) $49.99 available in all good bookshops and online.
Write to us and win! Want to win this exquisitely sinful and delicious hamper from Wicked Berries? Of course you do! Simply write in and tell us what feature, section or story you liked best from this issue, and you could be in chocolate heaven in no time! ‘The Perfect Couple’ deluxe hamper contains a Wicked Berries Famous Sampler and a bottle of Moët, valued at $159! Email editorial@provoke.com.au for your chance to win! W: wickedberries.com.au
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MELBOURNE CUP
Lawn Party
JOIN US FOR THE GOLD COAST’S MOST STYLISH CUP DAY EVENT TUESDAY 3 NOVEMBER, GATES OPEN AT 11AM – FREE ENTRY 8 Big Screen TVs Indoor & Outdoor Event with DJs Mumm Sabrage Free Wi-Fi for personal betting accounts Sweeps and best dressed prizes OPTIONAL PACKAGES AVAILABLE STARTING AT $89 PER PERSON Includes two hour beverage package (12pm – 2pm) & canapés. All guests on a package will also receive a glass of Mumm Champagne on arrival.
Book the packages online at goldcoasttickets.com.au
qtgoldcoast.com.au
IT’S TIME TO VIEW THINGS DIFFERENTLY...
Seafood and Asian fusion buffet at Queensland’s only revolving restaurant.
Located on the rooftop of Crowne Plaza Surfers Paradise, nestled between the beaches of Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach.
$69 per adult including a glass of wine. To receive this special, call 07 5592 9907 and mention “PROVOKE MAGAZINE”.
Bookings essential. Valid until 06/12/15. Not valid with any other discount. Subject to availability. Second sitting only on Friday and Saturday night.
Level 26, Crowne Plaza Surfers Paradise, 2807 Gold Coast Highway
| www.fourwindsrestaurant.com.au
FIRST THOUGHT | Things We Love
SCENT FROM HEAVEN Adios old, not-very-scented candle, hello science-cool Essential Oil Burner. The team at Page Thirty Three have absolutely nailed modern industrial and the cool kind of geeky with this chemistry-inspired beauty. The height of the clamp is adjustable, so the scientist can personalise the flask height to suit the size and strength of the candle and liquid. It reminds us of high school chemistry, except the only thing wafting from this experiment is the calming aroma of natural essential oils. RRP: $189.95 W: pagethirtythree.com
Come For Coffee, Leave With Cat If the only thing missing from your weekend coffee catch-ups is a kitten, then Cat Cuddle Café has you covered. Super-woman Katrina Balson, whose specialty is cat-rescue, opened a café where people can have coffee and cake while they mull over which cute kitty they will adopt. You don’t have to take one home, but who can resist, right? Where: 160 Musgrave Road, Red Hill Hours: Tues-Sun 10am-4pm W: catcuddlecafe.com
DISCOVER SOMETHING NEW A scatter-plot of every musical genre you could ever think of, or want to discover! From deep happy hardcore and tribal dance, to neo pagan, Brazilian punk and Norwegian pop, Every noise is bound to keep you busy as you discover sounds, styles and bands you never knew existed. Just click on one of the many genres scattered across the page to instantly find out what the style is. W: everynoise.com
Reinventing the slipper bby a h S So c! ly Ch’sisomething intacgreedfuibrnitudre,
There ul about vin ese restore a h tif ! With beau ’re loving t Has It LC, the A e M w U d an mR me T ns fro ur and so ves that desig lo ro of co ore p ew splash h-based st given a n 4 to e ig b 01 le 9 n r Bu e ca 2 40 me! n 041 rnitur old fu tact Lara o for your ho n e o c It life. C ht pie RumaHas / he rig find t book.com e W: fac
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The only thing better than a pair of slippers is a pair of slippers you can leave the house in without looking like you’ve forgotten to get dressed. With their nifty detachable sole, Mahabis have masterminded indoor-outdoor footwear and made it look effortlessly cool. If your tootsies aren’t in dire need of warming, check out the new breathable Summer range. RRP: $125 W: mahabis.com
DIY Deer Heads Have you ever marvelled at the beauty of a deer and thought, “I wish I could put one on my wall! (without animal cruelty of course!)”. Well now you can! This gorgeous guy comes in lots of different colours and designs, is made from eco-loving MDF and will instantly brighten your room. Made in Italy, but you can purchase one through Happiness Place. RRP: $65 W: happinessplace.com.au
Scratchable Travel Journals Documenting the fun and adventure of life is half the fun of travelling, so make sure you do it right! Scratchables have a range of travel diaries including the Travelogue Travel Journal, which includes a 64page notebook, travel tips, a checklist – and best of all – eight scratchable travel maps! Each time you travel, scratch away the town or country you’ve just explored to reveal a splash of colour. As you take over the world, watch your maps transform. Don’t settle for just any notepad – check out the Scratch Travel Journal at luckies.co.uk RRP: $37.95
The one to follow
Dainty Delights
Once again, Instagram is doing the legwork when it comes to tracking down local creative talent. For lovers of handmade one-offs and delightful trinkets, the one to follow is @BrisStyle. The not-for-profit creative community supports handmade craftisans and floods your feed with “buy me now” jewellery and “you must have me” prints. Get your follow on.
You really do feel like royalty cooking with these dainty measuring cups from the Royal Albert Collection. I dare you to try and keep your pinky down while you’re measuring from the one cup! RRP: $48.95 W: wwrd.com.au
October/November 2015 15
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Nourish
Recipe & Image by Whole Food Slow Cooked by Olivia Andrews, (Murdoch Books).
Food | Body | Happiness | Mind | Health
Whole Food Slow Cooked p90-233 CHAPTERS 4-8 SI.indd 189
10/02/15 10:28 AM
NOURISH | News
APPLE CIDER VINEGAR Did you know that the humble apple cider vinegar can work wonders for both you and your home? Created from fermented apples and containing high amounts of acetic acid, this vinegar can help to suppress appetite and also lower your blood sugar by reducing the glycemic index of foods you consume. Furthermore, apple cider vinegar can help to naturally boost energy by regulating the body’s PH levels, and can also be used as a hair tonic, a skin toner, a sunburn treatment and a stain remover for teeth! It has also been known to clean everything from toilets to dishwashing machines, and makes an excellent flea repellant for animals.
TIP: The darker your vinegar, the more pure and healthy it is. If you can’t stomach the taste of drinking it diluted, try adding it to your salads, or drizzling it over muesli.
Puppy Love Did you know that spending time with your pet can greatly improve your health? As well as providing lots of cuteness and unconditional love, pets can reduce our stress levels, lessen the risk of depression and encourage us to get out of the house more often. If you’ve got a dog and want to spend more time with your furry-friend in nature, check out these dog-friendly locations! Mount Coot-Tha Located only 10kms from Brisbane CBD, Mount Coot-Tha is one of the best places to hike with your dog. A moderate walk, the 5km trek takes you through winding trails and beautiful bushland, eventually leading to the summit, where you can enjoy gorgeous views of the city and beyond!
MS Moonlight Walk Affecting more than 23,000 Australians per year, Multiple Sclerosis is a debilitating disease of the nervous system; a condition that is especially prevalent in women. On October 23rd, show your support by taking part in the
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MS Moonlight Walk! Gather your friends and meet at the beautiful South Bank Parklands, where you can enjoy a five or 10km moonlit walk to help raise much needed funds to cure MS. Join a team or register your family via msqld.org.au
Nudgee Beach Located near the northern wetlands, Nudgee Beach is an excellent location for those on the northside and is often quite secluded. Play in the calm shallows of the bay, or take your dog for a run through the deeper waters. Make sure you take some water for your pet, as there are no toilets or taps by the main beach entry. Tip: Head there in the late afternoon to enjoy incredible sunset views! Palm Beach The best beach for pets and owners who love interaction! This is a much busier beach and is usually filled with lots of different dogs, so if your pooch is the friendly type, they’ll love this spot!
Nodo Donuts!
Doughnut addicts rejoice, Brisbane’s famous baked-not-fried doughnuts are here to fulfil all your delicious pastry desires! Gluten free, aesthetically delightful and (even better) good for you, Nodo are perfect for breakfast, brunch or dessert! In exciting news, Nodo will be opening their very own bakery in Newstead in late October, but in the meantime, head to their website for a full list of cafe stockists! W: nodo.com.au
@nododonuts
National Ride2Work Day This October 14th, leave the car at home and cycle to work! Maybe you’re a regular rider, or perhaps you’re someone who just wants to give it a go? Either way, it’s a great excuse to get outdoors and reduce greenhouse emissions. Who knows, maybe you’ll love it so much you’ll decide to ditch your car permanently! For more info, head to bicyclenetwork.com.au
BY JUPITERS, THEY’VE GOT IT ALL! Did you know Jupiters Hotel and Casino turns 30 this November? Whether you’re a regular visitor or you’re yet to experience the magic, it’s high time you booked a weekend away! Enjoy lunch in their incredible outdoor Italian restaurant Cucina Vivo as you overlook the luxurious oasis poolside – the perfect spot to laze and dream away the afternoon. After
cooling off, lay back and relax in one of the luxurious cabanas or bungalows, or head to one of Jupiters many live music bars for some entertainment. And before you go, be sure to indulge at Kiyomi, their award-winning Japanese restaurant and bar featuring dishes by internationally renowned Chef Chase Kojima! Sounds like the perfect weekend getaway to us!
Photo by: Remco
October/November 2015 19
NOURISH | Food Trucks
FOOD TRUCKERS,
THE ROYALTY OF THE ROAD Sticky wings, wood-fired pizza, a taco or three? We chewed through the delicious banquet-onwheels for you and caught up with the super-foodies who keep the good-tastes rolling. Meet the Kings and Queens of the road – your taste buds can thank us later. WORDS: EMMA HERON
Vira Lata If it’s a secret family recipe, you just know it’s going to be a knock-out. Garnished with lashing of heritage and founded on a tasty base of culture, Vira Lata is the roaming, modern, Brazilian/Portuguese food truck you’re happy to give up your parking spot to.
Q&A: with husband and wife owners Carlo and Taline What does “Vira Lata” mean and how does it represent your food truck? Vira Lata in Brazil is basically a mongrel street dog. It represents us as, being Brazilian, we are made up of so many cultures, including African, Indigenous, European, Middle Eastern and even Asian. What inspired your food truck? The streets of Brazil and Portugal. What three words describe your food? Traditional, handmade, deliciosa! What’s your “must try” menu item? Our deep-fried Brazilian Halloumi hot dog.
Our pick of the menu Coxinha – Fried cassava dumplings with shredded free range chicken and creme fraiche. Mucho deliciosa!
@viralatafoodtruck There is another food truck parked right beside you, why should we line up for you? We’re completely unique, you won’t find what we do anywhere in Australia. We provide a very vibrant atmosphere and we support a real handmade ethic right down to the traditional signwriting on our truck. Your top tip for elegant eating when there aren’t any tables left to sit at? Don’t be embarrassed if you get sauce on your clothes. Where we come from a lot worse can happen while standing on the street eating. Your on-the-road soundtrack? We’re a little romantic and from a tropical climate, so a good selection of lovers rock reggae and rocksteady always sets the wheels in motion. What makes Vira Lata the “King of the Road”? Our 1200w sound system would have something to say about it.
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Pizzantica Restaurant-style pizza the traditional Napoli way served from a VW Kombi van, cooked to perfection in a Ferrari red pizza-oven. That’s three big ticks and one food Kombi not to be missed!
Q&A with Pizzaiolo (Pizza Chef) and founder Luca Ferone – who we chatted with from his pizza pilgrimage in Naples, Italy. How does the name “Pizzantica” represent your food truck? In Italian, Pizzantica means ancient pizza, so for us, it represents the authentic and unique nature of our concept, traditional pizza on a traditional old icon, the Kombi.
@pizzantica_aus Your on-the-road soundtrack? I love Bruce Springsteen, probably “My Hometown”, the version with Tracey Chapman. If you could park your truck anywhere in Queensland for a day, where would it be? Parliament House (laughs)? No. Point Lookout – Straddie! Love that place.
Chips and gravy go together like: Pizzantica and Amore (Love). What makes Pizzantica the “King of the Road”? Passion.
What three words describe your food? Traditional, Napoli style, enjoyable, local ingredients – Oops, I know that’s more than three! What’s your “must try” menu item? Always a tough question, because our customers love all of our pizzas, but I think that the Alle Patate (potatotopped pizza) is the one that really surprises people with how tasty it is. Your top tip for elegant eating when there aren’t any tables left to sit at? For me it’s about great company, good food and great memories, and for that, you could sit anywhere. October/November 2015 21
NOURISH | Food Trucks @oi_taco
Oi Taco Affectionately dubbed Lupe, this retropainted food truck is hard to miss and its flavours are hard to forget. Even better, you can tuck into your taco guilt-free knowing it has been made using free-range, hormone-free and organic meats and poultry.
Q&A with owners, the Taco-twosome, Clare and Chantel What inspired your food truck? Clare had the dream of opening up a hole-in-the-wall taco joint when she moved back to Australia after 15 years of living in California. The idea was to grab all the hungry people in the cab lines and feed them with authentic tacos. The opportunity presented itself and after lots of early markets, recipe testing, tortilla-fails and tortilla-wins, here we are! What’s your “must try” menu item? We’ve been told our black beans with chorizo are ridiculous (in a good way), but we also love our pork carnitas. There is another food truck parked right beside you, why should we line up for you? It’s the freshest food you can get, we source our ingredients daily and make it with lots of smiles. We’d line up for it if we weren’t making it!
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Your top tip for elegant eating when there aren’t any tables left to sit at? It’s food-truck food, live a little! Your on-the-road soundtrack? Iggy Pop for the car - Selena Quintanilla for the kitchen.
What makes Oi Taco the “King of the Road”? Ahem, you mean Queen of the Road! We were the first Mexican food truck on the road in Brisbane and the only place that made our own tortillas fresh in the truck same-day.
King of the Wings King of the Wings brings you six unique flavours of chicken wings marinated in secret herbs and spices that are more delicious than the Colonel’s by far! Cooked fresh to order, this fusion of American-inspired crispy and saucy wings will make you a dedicated “wingette” in no time!
Q&A with owners Dylan and Katrina Pires How does the name “King of the Wings” represent your food truck? The name says it all – we are the King of Wings! Wings are the main item we sell, which means we have had to master the craft from getting that perfect crisp to sauce ratio to maintaining that juicy tenderness. What three words describe your food? Addictive flavour bombs! What’s your “must try” menu item? The Bee-Sting is our most popular flavour with its sticky sweetness mixed with a hint of chilli. Our Crispy Sweet Potato Fries are a big hit too. There is another food truck parked right beside you, why should we line up for you? Because you can’t get the same flavours anywhere else. We are the first and only wing truck in Australia. Let the flavours speak for themselves
@wingstigram
Your favourite foodie event? Eats & Beats in Logan – such a diverse mix of foods with a great atmosphere. Your top tip for elegant eating when there aren’t any tables left to sit at? As they say, “It ain’t a disgrace to get sauce on your face”. Your on-the-road soundtrack? Anything soul and funk. If you could park your truck anywhere in Queensland for a day, where would it be? On the beach at Surfers Paradise. Chips and gravy go together like King of the Wings and a nice cold beer. October/November 2015 23
NOURISH | Food Trucks
Juan More Taco Fed up with the Mexican being “one of the most misrepresented and misunderstood cuisines in the world”, Juan More Taco serves up bona fide cuisine inspired by a culinary trip to Mexico. Tacos are supposed to be messy, and after a Juan More Taco you’ll expect them to always taste this good!
Q&A with owner Naomi Subat How does the name “Juan More Taco” represent your food truck? Our street tacos are the true authentic flavours of regional Mexico. They will have you shaking your maracas coming back for “juan more”. What inspired your food truck? Most of us have been served up very poor interpretations of Mexican food. This sparked an obsession with Mexican eats and spurred a desire to delve into the rich and complex story of Mexican fare. What three words describe your food? Simple, fresh and distinctive. What’s your “must try” menu item? If you are up for something a little spicy the Beef Juan is definitely the Juan of choice. One especial that is Juan to try is Elote en vaso – “Corn in a cup” where we take the hard work out of eating corn on the cob.
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There is another food truck parked right beside you, why should we line up for you? We make everything from scratch and we make it with love. Your favourite foodie event? Thank Truck It’s Thursday at Wandering Cooks in South Brisbane. Your top tip for elegant eating when there aren’t any tables left to sit at? Fortunately tacos are perfect to be eat while standing if you can master the proper way to eat a taco – there is a knack to it. Your on-the-road soundtrack? Mariachi of course! If you could park your truck anywhere in Queensland for a day, where would it be? Island hopping in the Whitsundays sharing the taco love. Chips and gravy go together like Juan More Taco and cerveza!. What makes Juan More Taco the “King of the Road”? The sheer beauty of the vintage bus and the culinary delights that lie within..
@juanmoretacobus
Follow the Food Truck Trail Track down your favourite meal on wheels at one of the following local events • Downey Park Food Trucks, Windsor • Eats and Beats, Logan • Food Truck Roundup, Varsity Lakes • The Village Markets, Burleigh Heads • Miami Marketta, Miami • Powerhouse Markets, Newmarket Boundary Street Night Markets, West End
Ruby the Little Red Icecream Van Start your frantic scramble for loose change, because when Ruby’s chimes are ringing you’ll want to be first in line for her freshly made gelato and ice-cream desserts. Her menu is sweet with your old favourites and she’s always the cutest old lady at the park.
Q&A with owner Sam Coco
@rubyicecreamvan
What inspired your food truck? Ruby was purpose built in England in 1973 to be an ice-cream van by Morrison Industries (built on a Bedford van base from the ground up). This is why Ruby has the most beautiful windows. Most ice-cream trucks are modified trucks/vans with a serving window cut out of the side. We fell in love with her unique look and adopted Ruby in late 2013. What three words describe your food? Vintage, soft-serve, nostalgic.
What’s your “must try” menu item? It’s an equal three-way tie between a rocket, 99 flake and a sherbet cone. There is another food truck parked right beside you, why should we line up for you? Ruby’s customers tell us that ordering an ice cream from Ruby is like stepping back into their childhood. You can see their excitement when they order their childhood favourite. Your favourite foodie event? Downey Park Food Trucks - a lovely, well-organised afternoon of Brisbane’s best food trucks in a family and pet-friendly park location. Your on-the-road soundtrack? Ruby has her original and beautiful vintage ice-cream chimes called ‘The Pied Piper’ that she plays on entrance to special occasions. October/November 2015 25
NOURISH | Recipes
GOOD EATS Fill the blank space in your weekly menu with a simple soup or an old favourite. We’ve collected your ultimate comfort food recipes from our favourite new cookbooks that take the stress out of serving up a soul warming meal.
GARDEN-FRESH ASPARAGUS SOUP INGREDIENTS: 2 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve 2 spring onions (scallions), finely chopped, plus extra curled in cold water, to serve 1/2 teaspoon curry powder 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric grated zest and juice of 1 lemon 2 medium turnips, peeled and diced 750 ml (26 fl oz/3 cups) vegetable stock 270 ml (91/2 fl oz) tin additive-free coconut milk 175 g (6 oz/1 bunch) asparagus, cut into 1.5 cm (5/8 inch) pieces
I just love the healthy snap of a bright-green new-season asparagus stalk. Enjoy their uniquely grassy, sweet flavour and their healthy-bacteria-boosting proteins in this fresh and uplifting soup. Melt the butter with the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the spring onions and cook, stirring frequently until soft. Add the curry powder, ginger, turmeric, lemon zest, juice and turnips and cook, stirring frequently, for five minutes. Add the stock, coconut milk and asparagus, and simmer, partially covered, for 15 minutes or until the turnip is tender, then add the salt. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly, then purée the mixture in batches in a food processor or blender until smooth. Reheat gently if necessary, then drizzle with olive oil, grind over black pepper and garnish with curled spring onion.
1/2 teaspoon Celtic sea salt freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
WATERCRESS, LEEK AND COCONUT SOUP SERVES 2 1 tablespoon extra virgin coconut oil or 2 teaspoons ghee 1 onion, diced 1 garlic clove, crushed 1 leek, white part only, finely sliced 1 medium turnip, peeled and diced 85 g (3 oz/23/4 cups) watercress, rinsed, plus extra to serve 270 ml (91/2 fl oz) tin additive-free coconut milk 375 ml (13 fl oz/11/2 cups) vegetable stock Celtic sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
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Watercress has been shown to reduce DNA damage in white blood cells and positively alter blood antioxidant concentrations, making it a wonderful medicinal plant to decrease inflammation and detoxify your entire body. Enjoy its fresh, earthy taste in this well-balanced, creamy blend. Melt the oil or ghee in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, for 3–4 minutes or until transparent. Add the leek, turnip, watercress, coconut milk and stock, then bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to low then simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly, then purée in a food processor or blender until smooth. Add salt to taste, reheat if necessary, then grind over black pepper, garnish with extra watercress and serve.
Recipes and Images from Heal Your Gut by Lee Holmes, RRP $29.99, published by Murdoch Books. W: murdochbooks.com.au
October/November 2015 27
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Recipes | NOURISH
PEPPERY BEETROOT SOUP SERVES 4 INGREDIENTS: 1 teaspoon black peppercorns 3 dried bay leaves 3-4 beetroot, peeled and chopped roughly 1 small carrot, chopped roughly 4 cups vegetable, chicken or beef stock 3 teaspoons apple cider vinegar TO SERVE: 2 tablespoons chopped dill or flat-leaf parsley leaves A CHOICE OF ADDITIONS: 4 tablespoons plain yoghurt of choice 2-3 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and cut into quarters 5-6 boiled baby potatoes, crushed with a fork
This soup is very peppery, fantastic served on its own or with some boiled eggs or baby potatoes. It’s also fabulous sipped with a plateful of dumplings on a cold winter’s night. In summer the soup can offer a pleasant respite from the heat when served cold with a dollop of yoghurt and some freshly chopped dill. Place peppercorns and bay leaves in a small piece of cheesecloth, gather edges up to form a spice pouch and tie shut with a piece of kitchen string. You can omit this step if you are happy to fish them out before serving. Place beetroot, carrot and stock in a large saucepan set over high heat. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the beetroot cubes are soft and the soup is crimson and peppery in flavour. Add vinegar and turn off the heat. Serve warm with a good helping of parsley and your choice of additions, if you like. Beetroot is a great detoxifier, but not many people are aware that beetroot greens (the leafy stalks) can also be eaten. To use up the stalks add them to this soup if you happen to buy beets with the stalks and leaves attached, otherwise simply wash them, prepare as you would spinach, Swiss chard or Asian greens and serve as a side dish to grilled fish or meat.
dumplings Recipe and Image from The Wholesome Cook by Martyna Angell (Harlequin MIRA). Available for purchase at all good book stores nationally or at harlequinbooks.com.au for RRP $49.99 / eRRP $23.99.
SEAFOOD CHOWDER SERVES 4 PREPARATION TIME: 5 minutes + 1 hour soaking COOKING TIME: 2¾ hours (slow cooker) or 15 minutes (stovetop) INGREDIENTS: 16 clams (vongole), soaked for 1 hour, drained and rinsed 40 g (1½ oz) butter
In the slow cooker Heat a large frying pan over medium–high heat. Add the clams and cover with a lid. Cook for one minute until the shells have just opened. Transfer to a bowl and set aside. Reduce the heat to medium and add the butter to the pan. Cook the leek, garlic and bacon for four minutes until lightly golden, then sprinkle in the flour and cook for one minute, stirring. Gradually stir in the stock, then add the bay leaf, thyme and cayenne pepper.
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Season with salt and pepper, then transfer to the slow cooker. Cook on high for two hours, then turn the slow cooker down to low. Stir in the milk and add the salmon, scallops and the clams with any juices. Cook for 30 minutes until the fish and seafood is cooked through.
1 rindless bacon rasher, cut into batons
Serve with chopped parsley, extra virgin olive oil and crusty bread.
1 leek, white parts only, halved lengthways, then thinly sliced
1 tablespoon cornflour (cornstarch) 1 litre (35 fl oz/4 cups) fish or seafood stock 1 fresh or dried bay leaf 4 lemon thyme or thyme sprigs, leaves picked pinch cayenne pepper 500 ml (17 fl oz/2 cups) milk 150 g (5½ oz) skinless hot-smoked salmon fillet, flaked into large pieces 12 scallops chopped parsley, extra virgin olive oil and crusty bread, to serve
On the stovetop Heat the butter in a large frying pan over medium–high heat. Cook the leek, garlic and bacon for four minutes until lightly golden, then sprinkle in the flour and cook for one minute, stirring. Gradually stir in the stock, then add the bay leaf, thyme and cayenne pepper. Bring to the boil, add the clams and cover with a lid. Cook for 1–2 minutes until they start to open. Add the milk and bring to just below a simmer. Add the salmon and scallops and cook for two minutes until the seafood is just cooked through and the clams have opened. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with chopped parsley, extra virgin olive oil and crusty bread. Recipe and Image from Whole Food Slow Cooked by Olivia Andrews, (Murdoch Books) RRP $35 available in all good bookshops and online.
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NOURISH | Recipes
QUINOA AND CHIA PORRIDGE SERVES 4 PREPARATION TIME: 10 minutes COOKING TIME: 2 hours (slow cooker) or 25 minutes (stovetop) INGREDIENTS: 1 litre (35 fl oz/4 cups) unsweetened almond milk 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, coarsely grated 1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped 60 g (2¼ oz/¾ cup) quinoa flakes 3 tablespoons chia seeds
This beautifully light, protein-packed porridge will sustain you all morning. You can mix up the fruit based on what you have: try swapping the apples for pears, or raspberries for blueberries. Almond milk, quinoa flakes, chia seeds and rice malt syrup can be found in larger supermarkets and health-food shops. In the slow cooker Put all the ingredients into the slow cooker and cook on low for two hours. Remove the vanilla bean, then serve the porridge with rice malt syrup or honey, raspberries and toasted slivered almonds. On the stovetop Put the almond milk, apples, dates, vanilla bean and seeds in a saucepan over low heat. Cook for 20 minutes until the apple starts to breakdown. Add the remaining ingredients and cook for five minutes until thickened. Remove the vanilla bean, then serve the porridge with rice malt syrup or honey, raspberries and toasted slivered almonds.
3 tablespoons finely chopped dates 3 tablespoons dried cherries, cranberries or chopped dried apricots
Recipe and Image from Whole Food Slow Cooked by Olivia Andrews, (Murdoch Books) RRP $35 available in all good bookshops and online.
rice malt syrup or honey, raspberries and toasted slivered almonds, to serve
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Whole Food Slow Cooked p90-233 CHAPTERS 4-8 SI.indd 189
10/02/15 10:28 AM
Recipes | NOURISH
Heal Yourself From the Inside Out
Filled with more than 90 simple and inspiring recipes, Heal Your Gut is all about healing, nourishing and restoring your body. With gorgeous images and informative nutritional guides, it is a must-have for your book collection!
Recipes and Images from: Heal Your Gut by Lee Holmes, RRP $29.99. Published by: Murdoch Books. W: murdochbooks.com.au
October/November 2015 31
NOURISH | Recipes
CHAMOMILE AND LAVENDER TEA SERVES 2 The combination of these two delicate and calming herbs will settle your nervous system and relax your digestive system, especially if you’re feeling stressed or tense. 2 teaspoons lavender buds 2 teaspoons chamomile buds 500 ml (17 fl oz/2 cups) boiling filtered water 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Put the lavender and chamomile in a teapot. Pour over the water, then add the lemon juice. Infuse for 10 minutes, then pour into mugs or glasses (or strain it if you prefer) and serve.
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY TODDY
CUMIN DIGESTIVE AID (JEERA VELLAM)
SERVES 1
SERVES 4
Inflammation lies at the root of many chronic illnesses, and a majority of them start within the gut as an autoimmune reaction that develops into systemic inflammation. This tea is your drug-free weapon of prevention, laced with creamy cashew milk and perfumed with healing spices. 250 ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) cashew milk 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
Jeera is Hindi for ‘cumin’ and vellam in this context means ‘water’. Cumin is a powerful digestive aid and a detoxifier for the kidneys and bladder. Drink this shot after eating to improve digestion. 250 ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) filtered water 1 heaped teaspoon cumin seeds 2.5 cm (1 inch) piece of ginger, peeled and cut into thin sticks
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated ginger pinch of vanilla powder pinch of freshly cracked black pepper 6 drops liquid stevia Heat the cashew milk in a small saucepan over medium heat for 2–3 minutes or until just warmed. Add the spices, ginger, vanilla and pepper, then stir to remove any lumps. Remove from the heat and pour through a fine sieve to remove the grated ginger. Add the stevia and enjoy warm.
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Put all the ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for two minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside for two minutes before straining. Cool to room temperature and divide between four glasses to serve.
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NOURISH | Wellbeing
IRIDOLOGY
AND OUR FEMALE HORMONES It’s often said that your eyes are the windows to your soul, but did you know Iridology can also give you a fascinating insight into your hormonal health? WORDS: MAYA BROSNAN NUTRITIONIST, IRIDOLOGIST, FITNESS PROFESSIONAL AND YOGI.
I
ridology is the study of health via an examination of the colour and structure of the eye. It is not a treatment therapy as such, but rather a tool many natural health practitioners use to help detect inherent health and emotional predispositions. Here, I will give you guide on how to assess and correct your own hormonal health to help treat issues such as Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) and Premenstrual Tension (PMT), which often come with painful, heavy periods, premenstrual water retention, stomach-aches, backaches or headaches, mood swings, anxiety, depression and irritability. DIY IRIDOLOGY ASSESSMENT Your iris, the coloured part of your eye, is as individual as your fingerprints. When you look at the iris very closely, using a magnifying 34 PROVOKE.COM.AU
glass and a mirror, you will reveal your unique ‘constitution’. The word ‘constitution’ in Iridology relates to inherited physical wellness and the general ability to resist disease and live a healthier life. The ability to stay physically well, however, has to do not only with our inherited constitution, but also with how well we live: our food and beverage choices, exercise, stress levels and mental health. Looking at your iris closely, you will notice it is made up of lots of individual fibres. They stretch from the pupil to the edge of the iris. These fibres represent the strength of connective tissue throughout the body. You may associate connective tissue with skin, bones or joints, but connective tissue makes up our internal organs and hormone glands as well. Therefore, the structural strength of your iris fibres represents the strength of your internal
organs too. Close and even fibres with a few or no openings represent a strong constitution, while a pattern composed of many openings in the fibres, giving the iris a flower-like appearance, indicates a weaker constitution. DO YOUR EYES HAVE ‘FLOWERS’ OR ‘FRECKLES’? We can relate different signs in the iris to our health potential according to the area the signs cover. Our individually unique irises hold a map of our body parts, glands and organs. Finding different signs in different areas representing different body parts, organs or glands can suggest a possible nurture point for that region. As mentioned earlier, flower openings in the iris fibres represent a weaker constitution, meaning potential under-activity of the organ or body tissue it appears in. These
signs are inherited, and the darker the flower becomes, the lower the vitality to the particular area it covers. Freckle pigments are mostly accumulated throughout our lives. They take a very long time to form, and can appear as a result of exposure to toxins, diet and lifestyle choices as well as emotional changes we go through as we grow emotionally and spiritually. They can come in different colours like yellow, orange or brown. Freckle pigments are also related to potential under-activity of body tissues. The colour of the freckle can give us an idea of which organs are involved. Yellow relates to our kidneys, orange to the pancreas and brown to the liver. As an example, an orange pigment located in the ovary area of the iris may suggest the female presenting with this sign may experience mood swings or a sweet tooth premenstrually as the pancreas (orange colour) is involved. By looking at the Iridology chart, you will be able to recognise sites related to hormone and reproductive health. Look for any freckle or flower signs in the pituitary, ovary, uterus, adrenal, cervix, thyroid and breast area to determine your individual nurture point. ARE YOU A PURE ‘FLOWER’? When multiple flower openings appear in the centre of the iris and form a full circle around the pupil, we can see a true hormonal or flower type. Ladies with eyes like these may very often experience challenges with their hormones and their cycle, beginning as early as teenage years. The presence of PMS or PMT is quite common, with menopause generally hitting early for these women, mostly in mid to late 40s (while the average age for menopause is 52). From clinical experience, I have also come across quite a few hormonal/flower types
with more serious hormonal disorders such as Endometriosis. While the flower types are quite social creatures, spontaneous and friendly, they do experience life through the sensitivity of their hearts. They can get quite emotional at any time of the month, although this can intensify premenstrually where they often are struggling with intense sugar cravings combined with mood swings, which can make them emotional eaters. THE NATURAL SOLUTION Many of our hormonally related symptoms can be improved – if not completely erased – with some simple lifestyle and eating choices. Choosing to eat mostly wholesome, natural foods, and less processed, sugary or refined carbohydrates (like sweets, bakery goods, chips and any white flour based products), can have us experience not only an increase in energy levels, but a general improvement in our hormonal health as well. Reducing alcohol and caffeine intake can create the same effect. Stress levels and our body’s response to stress play a major role in interfering with our reproductive hormone production. By reducing stress levels, taking more time to nurture ourselves and being physically active, we can begin bringing more balance to our body, mind and female hormone production. Practising yoga or tai-chi regularly, as well as taking just a few minutes a day to meditate, can help regulate our stress response and cortisol production, which can help correct our hormonal imbalances and the symptoms they attract. Getting 7-9 hours of restful sleep each night can assist in achieving a similar effect. What we eat and supplement can also help. There are certain micronutrients that can help us
Do you ever crave chocolate around ‘that time of the month’? Cravings for chocolate may actually mean you are low on magnesium. Cocoa is a high source of magnesium, which is the actual nutrient your body is craving. Here’s a quick smoothie recipe that can help satisfy your cravings while getting most of the nutrients your body actually needs to achieve hormonal balance. Banana Choc Goddess Smoothie 1 ripe banana (high in B6) 1 tbsp LSA or pumpkin seeds (high in zinc) 1 heaped tsp raw cacao (high in magnesium) 1 tsp raw honey or stevia 1 cup Almond milk Blend all ingredients together in a blender. Add crushed ice for a cold beverage, or heat up on the stove for a deliciously flavoursome hot chocolate treat.
combat the effects of stress on the body and regulate our hormones. Taking the mineral magnesium, for example, can help our body deal with stress as well as help regulate our female hormones, reduce stomach cramps or backaches and control sugar cravings. Including different foods like almonds, raw cacao, whole grains, figs, cashews, eggs, cod and seeds in our daily diet can really boost your magnesium levels. Vitamin B6 is another important nutrient; it improves mood and reduces stress by helping the body produce Serotonin (the ‘happy’ brain chemical) and helping maintain normal cellular levels of magnesium. It is also essential for normalising our estrogen to progesterone levels, as well as regulate aldosterone levels to help reduce premenstrual water retention. By having more foods like avocado, banana, carrots, oats, mackerel, tuna, salmon, lentils and sunflower seeds, we can really boost our B6 levels. Zinc also plays a crucial role in reproductive health. Including small amounts of pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, oysters, fish and shellfish regularly can help increase our levels of this very essential micro-mineral. Indoles are phytochemicals found in natural foods that can help eliminate toxic recycled oestrogens that may be the cause of some PMS and PMT symptoms. Foods rich in indoles include cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, bok choy, cabbage and turnips. October/November 2015 35
NOURISH | Wellbeing
SPRING-CLEAN YOUR LIFE Have you been hibernating over winter, hiding under the layers and indulging in a few too many comfort foods? I’ve got five simple ways to springclean your mind and body! WORDS: BELINDA WASOWSKI, PERFORMANCE COACH
W
hy wait until the new year to make resolutions for positive change? Spring is such a beautiful time of year, and I’ve always found it really motivating and the perfect time to set goals that will take me into the new year looking and feeling healthier! Set a Spring Resolution “Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.” – Maria Robinson By creating new habits now you give yourself a better chance of minimising the damage of the festive season too. Start today. Grab pen and paper and write a description of what a healthier you would be. Next, write a list of things that need to happen in order for you to achieve what you described. Choose three things off your list and use them to create specific actionable goals for the coming week. Go! Change Your Thinking “Whether you think you can, or think you can’t – you’re right.” – Henry Ford Success or failure has its origin in our thinking. Identifying your selfdefeating thoughts and behaviours is an important step in changing your mindset. The first step is to be aware of your limiting beliefs – the voice in your head that tells you that you can’t do something, you don’t deserve success, you are not good enough. Write a list of recurring negative thoughts. Next, write a list of times you’ve proven those thoughts to be wrong. Use this evidence to write a new list – a list of positive affirmations, and keep it handy, not
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only for times when the negative voice comes knocking, but for times when you’re setting goals. Work towards each goal with a can-do attitude! Spring-Cleanse Your Insides To look good on the outside, you need to start with a healthy inside. Giving your gut a cleanse has many benefits, including promoting healthy bacteria, aiding in higher vitamin absorption and better digestion, and increasing immunity. I recommend eliminating foods that can cause inflammation and digestive stress for 30 days to start with. Chronic inflammation is linked with a wide variety of health problems, including heart disease, obesity and cancer. Eliminating foods such as dairy, gluten, refined sugar and alcohol is a good place to start when cleansing. But a cleanse is not just about elimination, nor is it about restricting calories and increasing hunger. Boost your diet with anti-inflammatory foods such as animal-based Omega-3 fats (fatty fish), leafy greens and fermented foods. Cleanse your insides with a delicious, colourful, antiinflammatory salad of sliced broccoli, grated carrot, kale, chopped walnuts, sliced red grapes, fresh basil and a dressing of olive oil, Himalayan sea salt and apple cider vinegar! Your insides will love you for it! Detox Your Skin Your skin is your body’s biggest organ, and as much as 60% of the chemicals you put on to your skin ends up in your bloodstream. These toxins can cause allergic responses, upset your hormone balance and increase inflammation in the body. Inexpensive, toxin-free skincare
is as close as your kitchen! My favourite makeup remover is coconut oil – straight from the jar. Slather it onto your face and massage gently. Remove the oil and makeup from your face with a hot, wet face washer. For a toxin-free toner, pat your face with apple cider vinegar and moisturise with coconut oil. For a homemade exfoliator, combine ground coffee, raw sugar, rock salt, coconut oil and either peppermint or orange oil in a food processor. Spring Into Action You’ve set your goals and you’re cleaning up your diet. But what about your exercise regime? Is it moving you towards your goals, or simply getting you moving? There’s certainly nothing wrong with simply moving, but if you’ve got specific shape, strength or fitness goals, ‘just moving’ won’t get you there. If you’re new to exercise or you’re not sure that your training program suits your current goals, an experienced personal trainer can devise a structured plan for you. But don’t forget your mental wellbeing! An outdoor workout is the perfect solution and Spring is the ideal time to add an outdoor workout to your weekly regime. Complement your gym program with an outdoor workout, a park run, cycling, outdoor yoga, stand up-paddling, swimming or hiking. Whatever you choose to do, remember to take in your surroundings, soak up the sun and breathe in fresh air! Whether you’re in Brisbane or on the Gold Coast, there are plenty of awesome locations for an outdoor workout.
2: PUSHUPS *Beginner – start with incline pushups with your hands around hip to waist height (eg. againsa railing or sturdy table).
1: SQUATS Perform your squats with or without weight. *Beginner – squat to a low bench/chair, no weight. 4: INVERTED ROW Note: the more horizontal your body, the harder the exercise. To get lower, use a longer towel or sheet. *Beginner – use a more upright position until you are strong enough to lower into a more horizontal position.
3: SPLIT SQUATS *Beginner – start with front foot elevated on a low step, or perform step ups instead.
6: SKIPPING No skipping rope? Swap skipping for sprinting on the spot, burpees or squat jumps.
5: PLANK HOLD *Beginner – perform your plank on your elbows and toes.
October/November 2015 37
NOURISH | Fitness
RAISING THE BARRE If exercise ranks high in your list of priorities, but you struggle to find enough time to squeeze in a good heart-pumping session, let us introduce you to barre fitness. Serving up a cocktail of ballet and Pilates-centred fitness, this is one barre that you won’t regret visiting. WORDS: EMMA HERON
N
o-one told me when I volunteered to review barre fitness that I would end up in the centre of a capacity class, flailing my arms and legs and doing my best to look graceful, fit and unflappable. I was asked before my class at the Xtend Barre Stones Corner studio if I had any previous dance or Pilates experience. Sure I had, I was the lead in my ballet recital when I was seven. I was sure it would be just like riding a bike – jump back on that barre. But after the first 10 minutes of class, I really wished that they had just “put baby in the corner”. Studio owner and knock out former Moulin Rouge and Lido dancer Shay Stafford was not lying when she said the class was “hardcore”. Don’t let my lack of coordination and fitness discourage you though, because after 15 minutes I found my rhythm and was hooked. In fact, I was so focused on the instructions and tuned into my core and breathing that I had to ask if there had been music playing during the class. Apparently there was, and it wasn’t classical ballet stuff either. Expect all things upbeat, high-energy and contemporary in these classes. Oh, and you can leave your tutu at home as well. As Shay promised, Xtend Barre was Pilates and dance amplified. There were technical ballet terms being
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Meet Your Instructor Name: Shay Stafford From: Tarragindi, QLD Where you’ve seen her: On the stages of the Moulin Rouge, the Lido and her own stage show, Memoirs of a Showgirl (an adaptation of her best selling novel by the same name). Star clients: Sarah Murdoch Shay on barre fitness: After baby number two and retiring from a professional dance career, I needed something to get me moving again.
I was training to become a Pilates instructor because I loved the precision of Pilates. An old Moulin Rouge colleague of mine was living in the States and had discovered Xtend Barre. She brought the workout to Australia and started recruiting exdancers to teach it... with one class I was hooked as it combined my love of dance and Pilates with high energy and results to boot!
BARRE BEGINNINGS Barre fitness might seem like the latest fitness fad, but in actual fact the fitness phenomenon started in 1959 when Lotte Berk decided to combine her ballet barre training with rehabilitative therapy for a back injury in London. In 1971 the Lotte Berk Method popped up in the United States when Lydia Bach, one of Lotte’s students, opened The Lotte Berk Method in Manhattan.
@xtend_barre
thrown around – “arms in fifth”, “plie”, “releve” – but if you have no idea what they mean it really doesn’t matter. Just know that by doing them, you are on your way to building your svelte dancer’s body. “The beauty of Xtend Barre is that it is a bang for your buck workout. It’s 55 minutes with everything we love about pilates and ballet blended, and the heart rate is elevated too,” Shay says. After some initial stretching and warmups with light(ish) weights added for some extra burn, it was over to the barre. As if I wasn’t already feeling every muscle in my body groaning awake, the barre made sure
I knew I had glutes for the next few days. This is what I loved most about the class, you could actually feel it working, tightening and toning all the notoriously jiggly spots and forcing you to correct your posture while you’re at it. There was nothing unachievable set for the barre work, just you working against your own bodyweight with the option to amp things up with higherintensity positions. We also did some work with resistance bands, and you should know that squeezing a ball between your thighs is surprisingly gruelling. I was almost fooled a few times into thinking each of the exercises was quite simple, until I repeated them enough that my legs were shaking like a newborn foal, I was sweating and the urge to scream at the instructor to speed-up that countdown was strong. After the barre, it was on to our yoga mats for some last-minute strength training – think push-ups, bridges, crunches. It was clear by the end of my 55 minutes that barre fitness was a complete body workout as I was feeling completely exhausted. The benefits were numerous – improved posture, core strength, flexibility, coordination, body awareness, toned muscles and better cardio fitness. And if I can check all of those off the list after only one class, Shay assured me that with just a few classes a week, a longer, leaner physique was achievable. “You truly can move and feel like a dancer... and it’s fun. Many ladies say they see results in just two weeks. If your goal is to have a strong and toned dancer’s physique with excellent posture and grace then [Xtend Barre] is definitely enough.” Aside from the obvious health and fitness benefits, I will continue to rave about the diversity of women who were in my Xtend Barre class. There were
ladies in their teens, 30s, 40s, even 50s looking fantastic in their workout gear and tailoring their workout to their abilities. It was obvious a few had previous ballet training, but without malice I can also attest that there were some with no obvious background in dance. I can’t say that after one class I will be rocking up to audition with the Victoria’s Secret Angels (who apparently love their barre fitness), but I certainly left class more aware of my body and walking with a little more poise. As a working mum, my time is precious. Barre fitness was definitely the best workout I have found for those in my boat who need to be able to squeeze in a high-intensity workout and know that they are getting their money and time’s worth. So whether you’re looking for more diversity, a greater challenge, or just some fun and fitness, I can now personally recommend a session at the barre – even to flailers like me. For more information on classes at Xtend Barre visit xtendbarre.com. October/November 2015 39
Lauren Watson | NOURISH
DEFYING HER DISABILITY
“Everyone has something in their life that they feel is a burden. Mine is my disability, but nothing can stop you except for you,” says Queensland aerial performer Lauren Watson. “If you really want something go for it!” WORDS: JAS RAWLINSON PHOTOGRAPHY: LAWRENCE WRIGHT, NFGPHOTO.COM MAKEUP & HAIR: LE ROUGE BEAUTY
Octobert/November October/November 2015 41
NOURISH | Lauren Watson
A
fter a car accident left her partially paralysed, and years of physio proved uninspiring, Lauren decided it was time for a change. Never giving up on her zest for life, the remarkable young woman decided to throw herself into something that would challenge and inspire her – the world of aerial performance! Despite many circus schools initially turning her away, and a physiotherapist who said he ‘didn’t think she could do it’, Lauren found a performance school that was open and welcoming. That was three years ago, and since then the artist has performed in various shows, directed her own shoots, and even starred in a
video clip for Sydney band Little Fox! Over lunch one day at Wray Organics, Lauren brought me inside her ever-curious mind, sharing everything from the time she skydived in Hawaii, to her teenage dreams of being a rockstar, how she and her partner were set up, and her plans for the future! Be prepared to be inspired by the Queensland aerial performer defying her disability. How did your journey into the world of aerial artistry begin? I actually never really expected to do aerial, but I wanted to do something that wasn’t physiotherapy (because physiotherapy can get really boring). What I wanted was to find something
that was really challenging and something that would force me to work really hard, like I would in physio – but more fun. I was keeping my eyes open and looking around for stuff, and one day during school holidays [I came across] an aerial demonstration of a girl on a hoop. I was watching it and thinking, “Wow, that looks really, really hard. I’m actually going to see if I can do that!”, It was that simple. I wanted to do something challenging, and I thought, “If I can do that, I can do anything”. Have you always loved pursuing things that are particularly challenging? I think so. I’ve always loved learning new things. When I was 14 I actually taught myself how to play guitar, because I really wanted to learn. [Then later on] I really wanted to learn graphic design – so I taught myself and then studied it. I like to push myself to see how far I can [push my mind], and I knew whatever I was going to pick I wasn’t going to stop. When I started I really didn’t know what to expect – I didn’t even know if I could do it. But I kinda... I was so curious that I didn’t even care. I just had to try it! What year did you have the accident, and when did you began aerial work? I had my accident in 2000, and I started aerial in 2012. So you really had been trying physio for a long time with very little results? Yeah. With physio and my disability, you plateau a lot. You can work really hard but [there’s only so much] your body’s going to give you. I always felt like physio kind of made me feel like I had a disability – it was… (pauses) Kind of like a chore? Exactly. It wasn’t fun. In the past I did have a physio who made it fun – we’d gossip and talk about music and I really enjoyed going there – but then we moved. I’ve always been a really curious person [so I began aerial work]. I think the first time I tried it I really couldn’t do anything, all I could do was hold myself up in the air. I had a lot of upper-body strength so I guess I was one step ahead of most people, but I couldn’t tell my brain how to use my legs. I think me obsessing over it kind of kept me going. I had to tell my brain, “You need to move your legs this way”. I really wanted to do that first basic thing, so I had to keep pushing myself to get there. I did plateau a lot, but when I finally got there it was the best feeling! I was like, “If I can do this, what else can I do?”
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It’s fascinating to see images of you doing the splits through a hoop, because as you’ve said, you don’t have any feeling in one leg! How do you train your muscles to relax when you can’t feel them? It’s been really hard! With aerial you use your feet a lot, so I’ve had to break down every little trick, every little move, and then process and make it work for me. So, having one leg I can’t feel... does make it a lot harder. In some ways it makes it easier though, because (not being able to feel it) I use that leg for all the hard things! (laughs) Exactly! I guess you probably wouldn’t have those feelings of resistance that stop you from trying, or thinking “Oww, this hurts too much!” No! I use that leg for everything – it’s my go-to leg! (laughs). But I do have to look down a lot and I have to be really careful that I don’t hold it [in position] longer than anyone else. I always make sure I try it on the leg that I can feel first, so I can gauge where I’m at. It’s challenging, but I don’t know any different! Because of the journey you’ve been on so far, do you ever worry about hurting yourself again when performing? I guess with aerial there’s always that risk – it is classed as an extreme sport – but I have really great trainers who put a big emphasis on doing everything safely and learning close to the ground. That way when you are higher you know exactly what you’re doing and that you’re doing it correctly. I actually don’t get scared [when practising]. I think it’s because I work so hard to do it right, so I feel safe. I think if you listen and do exactly what you’re supposed to do, the chance of injuring yourself is quite low. It can be terrifying to throw yourself back into something foreign or physically demanding after experiencing an injury – were you quite nervous when first starting aerial and circus work? I was so nervous in the car driving there for the first six months. I’d get really excited, but as I got close [to the venue] I’d get really nervous. I’m not sure why… Maybe perhaps because it was so new? New people, a new thing… I think the more I achieved, the less I felt unsure about it. I did actually feel scared doing it, as I thought, “This is something I really want to do, I hope I can do this”. The more I did it though, and the more I achieved, the stronger I felt. I got to a point where I’d see new people come in, and I’d realise that they couldn’t do a lot of things that I could. I thought “Wow, this is a place where I’m just like everyone else,” because everyone was learning just u
“I do pretty much everything that everyone else does. I went skydiving in Hawaii!”
October/November 2015 43
NOURISH | Lauren Watson
“I really want to have a big life. I want it to be so big that my niece and nephew, or their children, can look at it and say, ‘Wow, we can do that too!’”
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like me. It was really empowering to feel that I was doing something that others [without a disability] couldn’t. It was really cool!
My performance partner was really lovely, and it was a love story so it was really quite beautiful. Afterward I felt really amazing.
For anyone who has experienced a temporary or permanent injury or disability, and is scared about getting back into something physical, what advice can you give for working through these mental challenges? I think first you need to understand what you can and can’t do – what your body is capable of at the point you’re at, and what you want to achieve. With aerial, I just really wanted to do it! It wasn’t about trying to walk, I just wanted to do aerial. I think if you have that attitude going into it you can achieve a lot more. Just give it a go and have fun! You need to understand what your ability is, and then do some research and find a school that will take you on. Verbalise to them what you want to do... also, find the right apparatus. There are people who may not have legs at all, so their apparatus might be a hammock instead of silk. Just have a look around, find a patient teacher and discover what works for you.
It must be such a rush! It’s the best feeling in the world! You do your performance, you come off and you think, “I just want to do that again!” Since then I’ve also done a performance called, ‘All you need is Love’ – it was a like a tribute to the Beatles, it was beautiful!
You were doing aerial for around two years before you began performing. How did you feel during that first performance? I wasn’t nervous until a couple of weeks before, and I said to my instructor, “I don’t know if I can do this”. She said, “Too bad, you’re doing it! You’ve worked too hard [not to]”.
Is love a central theme to most of your performances? At the moment, yes. I’ve performed that routine – which we just call ‘Love’ – three times now and it’s a concept that really works. So when you’re not doing aerial, what are some of your favourite things to do? I actually just really love aerial (laughs)! But I do graphic design during the day – it’s my day job – and at the moment I’m specialising in illustration. I really love to draw! When you want to get away, what are some of your favourite Australian travel destinations? I’ve gotta say, when I really just want to unwind I go to Burleigh Heads. I love that I can drink coffee right on the water’s edge, it’s just one of those things that I love; the surfing, and watching the beach… Other than that, probably down in Jervis Bay where I grew up. It’s really beautiful.
I’ve travelled overseas quite a bit too. I’ve travelled to Fiji twice, and one of those times I actually went on my own. Wow, how was that? It was fine! Fiji is quite an old place and there were a few things that were a bit hard access wise, but they’re so friendly they just rush over [to help] – you don’t even have to ask! They’re just lovely. They pick you up and say, “Have a nice day!” Then put you back down (laughs). Lovely, beautiful people. I went to Vanuatu on my own too, and to Tahiti with my partner. Oh, and I’ve done New York, LA and Hawaii. You’ve done a lot of travelling! I’ve done heaps! I flew to Hawaii on my own too. This was all in the last 10 years since the accident. As an incomplete paraplegic, I guess it is natural that many people would have certain misconceptions about what your life is like. But you really live life to the fullest don’t you! I really don’t miss out on anything, I do pretty much everything that everyone else does. I went skydiving in Hawaii! I kind of just... I’m a curious person! I really want to live life the best that I can. Having this disability, [and the fact] that I wasn’t born with it either, makes me stop and think how precious life is and that it can be over in a second. You can have a great life if you want, it’s really up to you. Nothing can stop you except for you. If you really want something go for it! u October/November 2015 45
NOURISH | Lauren Watson
Do you think attitudes toward disabilities are shifting? I think it’s slow – a little more so in Australia – but I think social media’s really helped people see the way that different people live. It’s a lot easier, but every now and then people are quite surprised [by what I do]. They say, “Wow you do all of that? How do you do that!?” I suppose it is quite natural because we see drama shows on TV, and most people think that a disability means your life is over. But you’re proving to everyone that you can still be curious and have an amazing life. Exactly – and you can still have a family and relationships. You can do anything, it’s really just up to you and your attitude – and that goes for anybody. People sometimes can be quite afraid to try something because they’re afraid they’re going to fail, but it’s OK if you fail, you just need to find another way to do it. Insecurities can really get in the way. Everyone has something in their life that they feel is a burden – some people have a lot of debt, and for others it may be that their marriage isn’t doing very well. Mine is my disability; it’s just more obvious [than other things]. Everyone has something that they feel stops them from achieving their dreams, especially in some communities where the income is quite low and there are social problems. I grew up in that sort of area and growing up I really didn’t think I’d be able to do something big. But you can, you’ve just gotta start somewhere! How did you and your partner meet? We were set up by my sister! They went to school together and she’d been trying to set us up for a year but we were NOT interested in meeting each other. She invited me over for breakfast one morning and there he was! We were so embarrassed. He ended up messaging me and we decided to just go to lunch [to make everyone happy], and we ended up hitting it off! We’ve been together five years now; he’s awesome. You were recently part of Little Fox’s videoclip for their song “Edits’’ – what was that like? It was great! They actually advertised for contemporary dancers, but I love music so I thought, “What have I got to lose?” They were really open to doing something different, which was fantastic, so I flew down there! I hadn’t actually heard of them before, but they sent me the song and I listened to it over and over; I love it! When I met them, they were just the nicest 46 PROVOKE.COM.AU
people! And the shoot was beautiful... although it was really challenging because it was about six hours of aerial work. [It was like] “Do the splits, hold the splits, do it again!” I saw a clip in the behind the scenes footage where you were lying on the ground... (Laughs) Yeah I fell down! I was so tired – I think that was probably the last shoot. It was exhausting, but super exciting. You mentioned that people are quite surprised by a lot of the things that you do. What’s something else about yourself that you think would surprise others? (Thinking). I actually have a lot of hobbies, and I think people are quite surprised. I actually make my own costumes for my performances. Of course! I guess that’s why you were so excited about meeting at this cafe because it’s right next to Spotlight? (Laughs) Yes! Last night I actually made a costume for an upcoming show in November, and one of the girls I train with asked, “Where do you get all your costumes?” I said, “I made them!” I quite often find that people are surprised by a lot of little things that I do. There was a photoshoot that I directed about two years ago, where I put together a circus-style photoshoot, and the trainers I work with were really surprised by how professional I was because usually they see me in this environment where I’m quite loud. Do you think you’d like to do more art directing work in the future? What are your dreams and goals for the future? I think I’d like to at some stage. When I get to the point where aerial gets a
bit more difficult physically, I’d really like to mentor other people with disabilities who are looking to get into it. I’d really like to get a bunch of people with disabilities together and have a group who perform together. There’s a similar group in England and I think it would be great to have something like that here in Australia. I’d also love to be able to perform a couple of times a year with a group where the emphasis is that we really are just like everyone else. I’d like for people to look at it and say, “That’s something I’d like to try!” That sounds really exciting! It is! It’s in my mind, I just have to get it out! It sounds like you’re the type of person who’s always thinking? I am! I’ve always been pretty creative. Like I said, when I was younger I taught myself to play guitar and I actually played in bands – that was the direction I wanted to go, I wanted to be a rockstar! But you know, this is my new dream now. I expect in my lifetime to have a couple of different chapters and do different things – I really want to have a big life. I want it to be so big that my niece and nephew, or their children, can look at it and say, “Wow, we can do that too!”
@fitnesstofree Want to see more from Lauren’s shoot, including some hilarious outtakes where she teaches the Provoke team how to do aerial? Head to provoke.com.au!
October/November 2015 47
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Beauty
Laura Wells – Photo by: Lily Cummings
Elegance | Allure | Glamour | Style | Conf idence
BEAUTY | News
SPRING SCENTS! From Elizabeth Arden comes this daring and bold scent, a fragrance that truly captures the passionate and sensual qualities of every woman. An irresistible blend of vibrant blood orange, luscious red plum and passionfruit, with textured accents of mahogany wood and feminine hints of jasmine sambac, pink freesia, and velvet rose petals, Always Red is an exquisite fragrance.
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one of three 100ml fragrances valued at $69 each!
Mummy Makeovers! If you’re a mum who dreams of a makeover, then you’ll love this! As well as servicing brides all over Queensland, Hong Le from Le Rouge Beauty also runs free makeup workshops for busy mums! “I started the Mummy Makeover workshops to teach quick and easy tips and tricks for the time-poor mum,” explains Hong. “The workshops are between one to two hours long and there’s no cost involved! I use my new Le Rouge Beauty cosmetics range, along with my industry favourites, to achieve whatever look each woman desires. All you need to bring is your own makeup and brushes, so I can see what you’re currently using and make suggestions if there’s something that needs replacing.” Message Hong today on 0433 329 076 or head to facebook.com/lerougebeauty to book.
Silky Smooth Tresses
If there’s one hair product you NEED, it’s the Cinnamon and Patchouli Deep Treatment from Everescents. This traditional moisture mask is an intensive treatment that nourishes, replaces moisture, reconstructs and restores hair structure; designed as a once-a-week treatment for dry, damaged, chemically treated and coloured hair. Based in Coolum Beach, the Australian-owned company is dedicated to producing high-quality organic and natural haircare products, with plant-based and organiccertified ingredients. Check out their website to see their full range and find your closest salon location. W: everescents.com.au 50 PROVOKE.COM.AU
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Fashion Runway to Freedom Now in its eighth year, the Sunshine Coast Fashion Festival is one of Queensland’s most prestigious and celebrated fashion events – a culmination of both emerging and established talent. Held at the Events Centre in Caloundra on October 17th, the festival will showcase the best in couture, ethical design and swimwear, with talent on display from Australia, New York, Africa, Fiji and Germany! The festival will also be donating $1 from every ticket sale to She Rescue, an organisation who rehabilitate and care for trafficked Cambodian girls aged 5-16, and those at risk of sexual exploitation. For tickets and the full lineup head to: W: sunshinecoastfashionfestival.com
Other Ways to Support She Rescue
Gifted Hands: By purchasing from this not-for-profit, you can help raise funds for She Rescue and other wonderful charities! Check out their beautiful range of Justice bags, jewellery and scarves. W: giftedhands.com.au She Rescue Website: Log on to donate, volunteer or purchase some of their beautiful homeware and beauty products! All funds help them to support more girls. W: sherescuehome.org
Relax in Paradise! A day spa is just the thing for the busy mum or working woman, and where better to relax than the mountains of Maleny! With a range of invigorating facial treatments, therapeutic wraps, Hot Stone and traditional massage, shiatsu and beauty treatments, you’ll feel as though you’ve entered paradise. Following your treatment, feel your worries melt away as you relax in the day lounge overlooking the stunning views of Lake Baroon and the Conondale Ranges! Book a half or full-day package at the day spa and stay overnight in one of their cosy cottages by phoning 07 5494 3002. Location: 584 Maleny-Montville Rd, Balmoral Ridge, Maleny W: lillypillys.com.au
The Australian Model Redefining beauty!
GET READY FOR THE FUTURE OF 3D NAIL ART! In an image-obsessed world, it should come as no surprise that wearable technology has become a huge market; bridging the gap between what is functional, playful and – most importantly to many – pretty. Now, it seems there’s another huge trend: 3D holographic fingernails! Designed by Melbourne business Metaverse Makeovers, the augmented-reality, stickon nail art literally makes your nails pop, with 3D holograms (such as palm trees, stars, skulls, cute animals and many more designs) shooting from your fingertips when scanned with a special phone app! The nail art, which is set to take countries like China by storm and has already secured over $750,000 in funding, was recently
If you’re one of the few people who hasn’t yet come across Madeline Stuart, you’ll quickly wonder how you didn’t know about her sooner! Since deciding to follow her dreams of modelling early this year, the 18-year-old Brisbane teen has risen to fame with ferocious speed, becoming the face of cosmetic company Glossigirl, busying herself with photoshoots, walking the runway at New York Fashion Week, and amassing a fiercely supportive following of almost half a million Facebook fans! With her gorgeous spirit, truly unique beauty and generous heart, Madeline is intent on changing our world, stopping discrimination and teaching girls, women and even men to love who they truly are. Madeline is also the ambassador and founding member of the Inside Outside Theatre Company, a new dance ensemble empowering young people with disabilities who have the talent and drive to move towards working professionally in the industry. The ensemble aims to provide performers with a safe, inclusive space where they can enjoy the same opportunities and quality of training as everyone else; working with motivational mentors and exciting choreographers. W: madelinestuartmodel.com
@madelinesmodelling_ demoed at the Queensland University of Technology’s Creative 3 conference, and has been praised as one of the next big things! Proving that Australia are hot contenders when it comes to the world of wearable tech design, Metaverse Makovers are taking selfexpression and creativity to another level. W: shop.mmnails.com.
Lush Products There are few beauty products that look so good you’re tempted to eat them, and possibly even fewer that carry an aroma so deliciously rich that you know as soon as you’re within 20 feet of their store – just from the scent of the air! Yet that’s exactly what Australian beauty brand ‘Lush’ are well known for! With their incredible range of fresh, handmade beauty products, they are a favourite among both men and women for beautifully scented bath bombs, decadently rich face masks, hair products, perfumes and more! Below, Elizabeth Bowler (Lush PR Intern) shares one of her favourite new products with us!
Cranberry Festive Fresh Face Mask “Filled with antioxidant-rich cranberries and cleansing fennel-seed infusion, and set in a base of organic silken tofu and calming rose clay, the Cranberry Festive Mask is perfect for almost all skin types! It is simply the trifecta when it comes to cleansing, hydrating and calming properties.” RRP: $13.95 W: lush.com.au
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BEAUTY | Coffee
BEANS, BEAUTIFUL BEANS There is no end to the miracles that a morning coffee can perform, and now those super-beans aren’t just waking us up, they’re giving us a healthy glow too! Sit back, grab your cuppa and be amazed by the power of coffee. WORDS: EMMA HERON
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M
redness and inflammation, to reducing the appearance of undereye circles, to getting rid of cellulite. By incorporating caffeine into your skincare routine, you can reveal evenly toned, smooth skin all over your body
What are the health benefits of using coffee-infused skincare products? Coffee is usually associated with waking people up in the morning, but it can also perk up your skin. The caffeine in coffee has a number of benefits for your skin, from treating
How did you discover coffee as a massage tool? I love coffee and I also love massage, so it was a natural to put the two together! I went up to Merlo in Brisbane and chatted to them about what I wanted to do. They sent me away with a couple of big bags of various grinds of their coffee, and I started experimenting using other Ripple products. After a couple of days I had come up with an amazing secret way to infuse the coffee into our massage oil, a beautiful coffee face mask and a coffee scrub.
eet Alison Shaw, the genius who combined two of life’s greatest pleasures – massage and coffee! A Mt Tamborinebased massage therapist and owner of Ripple Massage, Alison let us in on how the match-made-in-heaven came to be. If you thought drinking your morning coffee was essential in your day, Alison will open your eyes to the beauty benefits of those truly miraculous (and delicious) little beans.
Are the coffee beans used in beauty products different to those we drink? No, they are the same! They are freshly ground to get the optimum effects from the coffee, and we use different grinds for our different Ripple coffee massage products, but the coffee is essentially the same. How much coffee should be used and how regularly to optimise the health benefits? We recommend that you do a full body scrub at least once a month to maintain your skin’s health and to gently remove the dead skin cells. Is coffee appropriate for all skin types? Yes, from dry skin to oily, these skincare products are perfect for all skin types.
WIN
A two-hour Ripple Coffee Massage valued at $195
October/November 2015 53
BEAUTY | Coffee
SCRUB UP AT HOME
Get your coffee working harder for you with these freshly roasted beauty secrets and locally sourced products.
Uncover Your Healthy Glow What: Haven Coffee Scrub | 100g How much: $5 Where: Available from Haven Espresso, Stafford Heights How it works: Coffee grinds are a great scrubber for both the body and the face thanks to their antiinflammatory and odour-absorbing properties. Haven Coffee Scrub is made from recycled coffee grinds at Haven Espresso. So you can drink your coffee, then smear yourself with it too!
Prevent Sun Damage What: Alpha-H Firming Body Therapy How much: $51.95 Where: Available from alpha-h.com How it works: Coffee is a natural sunscreen. Antioxidants in beauty products containing caffeine can prevent ultraviolet damage, or repair it if it has already occurred. It will also reduce the dark circles under your eyes! It will help reduce puffiness, inflammation and the build-up of blood under your eyes, which contributes to dark shadows.
Reduce Cellulit What: Verity Coffee Soap How much: From $5 Where: Available at selected Queensland cafĂŠs or at veritysoaps.com How it works: Research shows that applying products containing caffeine to the skin can reduced the size of cellulite cells by up to 17%. By massaging and rubbing your problem dimply areas with natural soaps containing coffee, fat cells are dehydrated and broken up. The end result is smoother skin. We love Verity Coffee Soap because it says no to nasty palm oil, fillers, dyes, colours and perfumes, and yes to natural and vegetable oils. Pass us the coffee soap!
RELAX AND REJUVENATE What: Ripple Coffee Massage How Much: $195 for two hours Where: ripplemassage.com.au How it works: A coffee massage scrub will polish the skin and a coffee face mask will reduce redness and tighten. The spectacular, natural aroma of coffee is proven to relax and clear the mind. Just one whiff can lift your energy or mood, and is also known to help reduce nausea.
What: Frank Body Original Body Scrub How Much: $14.95 Where: frankbody.com How it works: Coffee is bursting with antioxidants that target damaging free radicals, the culprit of many problematic skin conditions. It also has the same PH as skin, which means it will not strip any natural oils or leave skin feeling dry.
Make your own coffee scrub at home in three easy steps. What you need: 1 cup ground coffee 1/2 cup sugar (white, brown, raw or caster) 1/2 cup salt 8 tablespoons melted coconut oil or almond oil 1 teaspoon cinnamon Mix it up: Mix the coffee, sugar, salt and cinnamon together in a bowl. Add in the coconut oil slowly mixing well as you go. It’s up to you how
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Blitz the Free Radicals
much oil you add depending on whether you prefer a dry or wet scrub. Rub the mixture vigorously over your skin in large, sweeping, circular motions, being careful with naturally sensitive areas. Rinse the scrub completely from your skin and glow!
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Curvy, Happy and Healthy | BEAUTY
Curvy & Loving it! Bree Warren, Melissa Valensise and Laura Wells: three of the hottest Australian plus-size models to crack the international modelling scene. Together, they are proving you really can be curvy, healthy and happy! WORDS: JAS RAWLINSON
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BEAUTY | Curvy, Happy and Healthy
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nce dominated only by those who fit a particular mould, the modelling industry has in recent years begun tearing down the stereotypes that once equated beauty to a tiny size tag. Considering the average Australian woman is a size 14-16, models such as Bree Warren, Melissa Valensise and Laura Wells are a welcome sight in our fashion industry; redefining the notion that beauty and health are defined by one size. In industry terms, the label simply refers to models larger than the standard sizing (0-4), however, it is also the cause of much confusion. Often many wonder what this means for the average-sized Australian woman who doesn’t necessarily see themselves as “plus sized”. This issue, Melissa, Laura and Bree chat to Provoke about their thoughts on the industry, some of their beauty secrets, and how you can celebrate your unique body shape while being the healthiest version of yourself. Australians are well known for having a thicker skin and knowing how to have a laugh at themselves. Do you find this true for you personally, or do you struggle with the criticism that comes with modelling? Laura: I have always separated myself from judgement in the industry – it’s never really affected me because I understand that the industry is based on [an artistic] vision; ideals and looks. If a client doesn’t choose you for their shoot it doesn’t mean you’re not a good model, or less pretty, sexy or smart – it just means that you don’t fit their vision for that particular shoot. Melissa: I think regardless of who you are, what you do, what you look like, there will always be people who will criticise, judge or find flaws… luckily I have always had thick skin, maybe because of my Italian background, so [I generally] don’t find it difficult to deal with criticism. I don’t take harsh or negative comments seriously from people who don’t know me. Bree: It’s so strange when all of a sudden everyone has an opinion on your figure. I went from being quite happy in my own little teenage bubble to my body being debated online. Sometimes I read comments on my instagram and I’m like “WHAT!” or my friends send screenshots of ridiculous things, but I really don’t spend much time thinking about it. I guess I am very Australian in that respect. I just go with the flow and accept it as part of the territory. What are your thoughts on the controversy surrounding the term “plus size”? Do you worry that young girls might develop insecurities from seeing a healthy woman such as yourself labelled that way? Laura: I think no matter what we are called it will always be a bone of contention, and of course there are certain negative aspects of how the words “plus size” are interpreted, but I do wonder how and why it became so negative? “Plus size” is basically just industry terminology, much like a job description, [that allows for people to] identify different divisions within the modelling and fashion industries. The terminology doesn’t have to be viewed [negatively] though. Bree: I think the fact that those young girls are seeing me in the first place is a step in the right direction, but I’m the first to admit that calling me plus size is a bit silly. People don’t realise just how tiny most models are in real life, so they see me and find it hard to match up. I have been on both sides of this debate – too small for plus sizes, but too big for mainstream. Melissa: To be honest, the division doesn’t bother me personally, and I think it is time for people to resolve their issues with the title. The demand for curvier women has certainly grown in recent years – which is a positive
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thing – but let’s also understand that anything above size 4- 8 (formerly, and still, the most commonly used models) only means that we have more curves; we are in no way overweight. Nor do we plus-size models believe we are overweight! These are just words and hopefully people will become more accepting over time. What advice would you give to young women struggling with their self-image? How did you learn to appreciate your curves? Melissa: My greatest advice is to not compare yourself to other girls and women – each and every one of us is unique, and we all have amazing attributes. The problem these days with social media is that women (and of course men) post photos of themselves looking their best; they filter and airbrush and sell themselves to appear like they “have it all”, but this isn’t always the case. If young girls and women compare themselves to these other girls then they will always feel inferior, because often what they think they’re competing with isn’t actually real. I believe that young women should focus on all their wonderful qualities instead of focusing on all the things they dislike about themselves. After all, perfect is boring!
“I want young women to know and understand size diversity, that we are all naturally built differently – and that’s OK.” – Bree Warren Laura: The best thing to do is stop reading tabloid magazines and advertisements and really view them for what they are worth… nothing. Magazines that purport extremes and unrealistic body stereotypes are so harmful to the psyche of men and women of all ages. We are not all supposed to look the same, we can’t all lose 20 pounds in a week, and we shouldn’t have to feel guilty about our food choices 24/7. While I am happy with myself, I have days and times where I don’t like a certain thing or want to change something – I think thats normal for anyone, but when it takes over your life and your happiness that’s another story. Learning to love yourself is a long road and one that is ever evolving. For me I stopped listening to what magazines were saying and found my passion – the environment. It gave me something else to focus on and be a part of; something bigger than myself where looks don’t matter and it’s all about what you give back. People need to stop worshipping celebrities, actors and models. They are not the be-all and end-all of society, they are not the epitome of beauty, brains or what is right or wrong. We should not be modelling our lives on those who – just because of their job – are in the spotlight. We should be looking up to people who give back to society, who are attempting to change the world and make it a better place. We should not want to model our lives around those who only care about designer clothes or if they have the latest trend in shoes, but rather those (regardless of their appearance, height, weight, or dress size) who go out into the world and challenge the outdated societal norms of beauty. [They are the people who] create beauty through their actions. Bree: I want young women to know and understand size diversity, that we are all naturally built differently – and that’s OK. I grew up with only one body type represented in the media, but now that I’m part of the industry I can help to change that. I think it’s about opening up the market to show a broader representation of women. I am all about women supporting women. We are our own worst enemy sometimes. u
Bree Warren 28, Model & Blogger
Brisbane girl Bree Warren has exploded on to the international modelling scene in recent years, having strutted the runways of Milan, and shot campaigns both here and overseas for Playtex, Cosmo and Forever 21. As well as being an inspiration for young women and fellow models in the industry, Bree also wields a degree in business and journalism, and in her spare time runs the surfing blog The Wave Provocateur with her boyfriend; proving she truly is the ultimate triple threat. W: facebook.com/breewarren @breekwarren
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BEAUTY | Curvy, Happy and Healthy
So many women experience anxiety and guilt when it comes to food – especially when trying to look after their health or lose weight. Do you think it’s important to include desserts and foods that you really enjoy in your diet? Bree: For sure! Food is meant to be enjoyed. I have a pretty relaxed diet regime, but I think it’s all about finding a balance and listening to your body. You need to learn about fresh produce and nutrients so you know the effects of what you’re eating. Melissa: Absolutely, I think it is important to include any food you enjoy into your diet. In my opinion, it is important to eat clean and healthy 80% of the time and 20% of the time allow yourself some treats! You will be a much happier person because of it. 60 PROVOKE.COM.AU
Laura: One hundred per cent! You need to enjoy your food and reward yourself. Its all about moderation, exercise and good choices. I love desserts and allow myself to have sweets, however, I know the importance of eating healthy – both for mind and body. We should never be made to feel guilty about having dessert so long as we are staying happy and healthy. What are your tips for taking care of your body as well as your mind? What are your favourite ways to stay fit and healthy? Melissa: I love walking outdoors! I need a purpose when I walk – I need to get from A to B, and then back to A. I also love weight training and yoga for toning and shaping. I do yoga once per week and weight training three times per week. u
Laura Wells
30, Model & Environmental Scientist Sydney-born Laura Wells is an international plus sized model, an advocate for positive body image, and an environmental scientist passionate about looking after our oceans. With over 46,000 Instagram followers and 125,000 Facebook fans, Wells is one of the biggest names to come out of Australia. W: facebook.com/iamlaurawells @iamlaurawells
“We are not all supposed to look the same, we can’t all lose 20 pounds in a week, and we shouldn’t have to feel guilty about our food choices 24/7.” – Laura Wells
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Beauty | Curvy, Happy and Healthy
Laura: Working out is a big part of my life and what makes me feel good and healthy and happy. It gives me a mental boost more than anything and that’s what I love about it. Intensive workouts (like crossfit) that take a lot of hard work and effort are the best for me. Setting and achieving my goals is super rewarding. Bree: Surfing! It’s the best way to clear your head and relax. It’s the workout I don’t even notice I’m doing. I started surfing on this seriously old board that I found in my grandparents’ garage at Burleigh Heads when I was 13. But my time in the water has been on and off while I’ve been living overseas, so I am not really as good as I should be for surfing that long! Can you share your beauty routine tips? What are some of your favourite Australian beauty products? Bree: Most important is diet and water – you really can tell. I notice in my face if I’m dehydrated. I use Dermalogica Special Cleansing Gel to remove makeup, and also use Clarins Hydroquench Cream. I have lived overseas for five years now, so I am a little bit out of touch with Australian beauty products, but I do know Simple Skincare is a great organic brand that was actually started in Brisbane.
“A big, beautiful, warm, kind and loving heart and a confident smile. To me, that is beauty.” – Melissa Valensise Melissa: I try to avoid makeup whenever I can, as it’s important to let your skin breathe! I also get facials like a light peel or microdermabrasion every six weeks. Oh, and of course, water water water! I use Skinstitut Lactic Acid Cleanser, Skinstitut Hydrating Serum and Skinstitut Moisturiser with SPF. Good skin is so important! Laura: I have super-dry skin so I like to use a lot of natural oils on my skin morning and night. I tend not to use products with parabens, sulphites, sulphates or any other toxins, and opt for creams and lotions that are toxic and cruelty free. We are exposed to so many chemicals and toxins every day through normal life that rubbing any more of those into my skin seems counter-productive. Origins is one of my favourite brands for skincare and is great for dry skin. How do you define beauty? Bree: It’s kind of an aura. It’s a certain type of confidence. Melissa: A big, beautiful, warm, kind and loving heart and a confident smile. To me, that is beauty. Laura: Beauty is how you live your life. Its what you do for others and the environment. It’s all those little things that you do to make the world a better place and set a good example for future generations. Who are some of your favourite Australian designers? Melissa: Steven Khalil – he made my wedding dress! Laura: I really like Tony Maticevski and Ginger and Smart for beautiful structured pieces, We are Handsome for their cool prints and swimwear, and The Upside for their workout wear. [I also love] Seafolly as their swimwear actually fits big boobs! There are so many great Aussie designers. Bree: Camilla and Marc, Bassike, Scanlan and Theodore, Zimmermann, Zulu and Zephyr, Georgia Alice, First Base... I honestly stock up on Australian designers whenever I come home. Having grown up in Australia, what would you say is your favourite city or location? What do you miss most when you’re travelling overseas? Bree: My favourite place would have to be Noosa. I live in New York now so I really miss the beach. The Australian 62 PROVOKE.COM.AU
lifestyle is just too good, you can’t beat it! Laura: Everywhere I go in the world I find some form of beauty, whether it be within the people, food or environment, however, Sydney is still one of my all-time favourites. I might be a little biased because I grew up there, but to me it has everything I could want. A beautiful environment, places to go on adventures, great food, nice people and perfect weather. The thing I miss most about travelling is my fiancé, and being in somewhat of a routine. Melissa: Sydney is definitely my favourite city – although I have just returned from a five-week trip to Europe and I must admit, I wouldn’t mind living in Monte Carlo for a little while! Sydney though is definitely the most wonderful city in the world. Australia is, without doubt, the lucky country. I’d love to know what you consider your proudest accomplishment so far? Melissa: When I was 19 I moved to London on my own, without knowing anyone over there. I can’t believe the courage I had to move to the other side of the world at such a young age! I managed to obtain a successful job in fashion and worked with leading fashion houses such as Burberry and Top Shop. The experience was incredible and I would say it’s my gutsiest one to date! Laura: There are a lot of accomplishments I am proud of, and one of them is taking the risk to be a model. Originally I never wanted to be a model, or even thought I could be one, so the fact that I have made it this far, travelled the world, lived in other countries and influenced others (all because I model) is a huge achievement. However, I think the fact that I realised I have a voice and can help others to start loving and seeing beauty in themselves is my proudest achievement. Learning to love myself and be comfortable with how I look and what I can do is something that is really important to me. It allows me to do my job well. List one thing about yourself that most people would find the most surprising? Melissa: I don’t like shopping, but I love cars! Laura: I actually have a degree in Science as well as Law, and always wanted to be a scientist. I am lucky enough now to be running a not for profit organisation called Ocean Ambassadors Australia, works with the issue of plastics in our oceans. Bree: I studied Journalism and Business, and have officially graduated from UQ! I did three years on campus before I started modelling and then finished the rest by correspondence. I also run a surf and travel blog called The Wave Provocateur with my boyfriend, so if we’re not travelling or shooting, then we are planning the next destination and researching the coolest hotels. It’s a bit of a scheduling nightmare, but I think I found my calling. I love it! What are your career goals for 2016? Laura: In 2016 I really want to [focus on] my science career and using my powers for good. Modelling is still an important part of my life – and a way in which I have created a platform for people to receive my message – but now I want to elevate that and take it to a higher level. I want to push boundaries, break moulds and allow people to see their voice within. Bree: In the future I want to work more with surf brands and Australian magazines – both close to my heart! Melissa: I want people to stop obsessing over the title “plus size”. I believe if you wish to use it, then great, if you don’t like the words, then don’t. I believe it is that simple and I want to help people reach that point of accepting that “it is what it is”. I also want to work for designers who are happy to have a range of sizes represent their brand, not just size 12 and up.
Melissa Valensise 28, Model & Actress
Growing up on a rose farm in Dural with her Italian parents, the Sydneyborn model, actress and nutritionist is a firm believer in looking after your health and wellbeing, with a balanced approach to eating. In the future, Melissa hopes to see designers create fashion ranges with more size diversity. W: bgmmodels.com.au/ models/melissa @melissa_bgmmodels
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Culture Events | Music | Arts | Movies | Books
CULTURE | Art News
Flesh: The Gold Coast in the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s
Graham Burstow has been a passionate black-and-white stills photographer for over 70 years. In 2004, he was presented with an Order of Australia Medal for Services to Photography in Australia.
Beach Girl Contest, Coolangatta, c. 1970s. IMAGE BY: Graham Burstow
When: 23 October - 6 December Where: Gold Coast Arts Centre – Gallery 2 How much: Free What: Experience Gold Coast beach culture from the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s immortalised by acclaimed photographer Graham Burstow. As an amateur photographer and social documentarian, Graham relished family holidays and moved freely among Gold Coast crowds photographing human interactions on very close-up and public display. W: theartscentregc.com.au
About the Artist
TRY THIS AT HOME! Mulga’s Magical Colouring Book How Much: $14.99 What: Looking for mindfulness, stress relief or a creative outlet? Lose yourself in this colouring book from one of Australia’s favourite artists, Joel Moore. As Mulga, Joel’s colourful art can be found all over the country – in shops and cafes, on T-shirts and-soft drink bottles, in ads, laneways and galleries – and now, for the first time, you can colour it in yourself. Next time your kids grab the colours, join them! Colouring-in helps reduce stress levels, elevates focus and promotes a soothing, relaxing frame of mind and sense of wellbeing. 66 PROVOKE.COM.AU
Keep an eye out for Vogue’s first colouring book, launching in November!
Patrick Thaiday, Kulkalgaw Ya people / Zugub (dance machines) 2011 / Wood, galvanised steel, nails, synthetic polymer paint, nylon string.© The artist
GET IN QUICK!
Island Currents When: Now - 1 November Where: Queensland Art Gallery How much: Free What: If you haven’t meandered through GOMA’s vibrant and diverse Island Currents exhibition your time is running out. Celebrate the land, sea and sky of north Queensland with performance objects by artists of the Torres Strait and vibrant paintings by women of Bentinck Island in the Gulf of Carpentaria. Hurry, you only have until November to check it out! W: qagoma.qld.gov.au
Allson Tabuai, Kalaw Kawaw Ya people, Australia b. 1933 / Wene-Wenel / Gauguau Mawa (very powerful witch doctor’s mask) 2001 / Wood, synthetic polymer paint, shells, beads, white feathers, horse hair, cassowary and emu feathers. © The artist
Robot or Ring?
Attitude as Form When: Now - 7 November Where: Artisan, Fortitude Valley How much: Free What: If your outfits are arranged around your accessories, then get to Artisan and discover one-of-a-kind jewellery designs from Australian and New Zealand creatives. The Attitude as Form exhibition explodes with a diversity of ideas and approaches to the creation of contemporary jewellery. W: artisan.org.au
QLD SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA – BOLERO When: 9 October Where: Gold Coast Arts Centre How much: Adult $54.00, Group 6+ $45.00, Student / Child (U15yrs) $30.00 What: Ravel’s Bolero is one of the most famous works for orchestra; starting with a barely discernible snare-drum rhythm, two melodies are sounding from various
instruments throughout the orchestra, leading into a thrilling finale. After her celebrated Gold Coast debut in 2014, pianist Marina Yakhlakova returns with a performance of Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1, accompanied by the Queensland Symphony Orchestra. W: theartscentregc.com.au
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CULTURE | Movie & Book News
WIN
The Dressmaker
Genre: Australian Comedy/Drama Release: 29 October Based on the bestselling Australian novel by Rosalie Ham, The Dressmaker is set to be the revenge comedy of the season! After being banished from her small, rural town at the age of 10 for a crime she did not commit, Tilly
1 of 10 double passes worth $34 each! (Kate Winslet) returns after many years to reconcile with her ailing mother. Arriving home from Europe, Tilly discovers that she can use her haute couture dressmaking skills to transform the town while also achieving sweet revenge on those who did her wrong. Falling unexpectedly in love, Tilly is devastated when things go awry – leading to her most destructive
deed yet. Surprising, sweet, satisfying and sinful, The Dressmaker is a mustsee Australian film! Starring: Kate Winslet, Judy Davis, Liam Hemsworth, Hugo Weaving, Rebecca Gibney
BOOKS SINGLE BUT DATING
Author: Nikki Goldstein Release Date: Out now! Price: RRP $29.99 What: From Australia’s modern day expert on everything relating to sex and relationships comes this aptly named book for those who enjoy the single but dating lifestyle. With a fresh, candid and balanced approach to a range of everyday dating topics, the guidebook is a relatable and enjoyable read for those who don’t quite fit in to the traditional relationship boxes. A modern-day book for all those looking to navigate their way through modern dating.
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SPIRITS OF THE GHAN
Author: Judy Nunn Release Date: 2 November Price: RRP $32.99 What: It’s 2001 and Jessica Manning has been sent to Alice Springs to negotiate with Aboriginal elders the completion of the Ghan railway, a long-awaited construction linking Adelaide to Alice Springs. Struggling to negotiate between the construction team, elders and her own Arunta heritage, Jessica stumbles across a mystery in the ancient land that cannot be ignored. Will she and the team uncover the answers before it’s too late? A unique and mysterious read!
WILDFLOWER
Author: Drew Barrymore Release Date: 2 November Price: RRP $35.00 What: From one of the most talented and beautiful souls in the acting industry comes this highly anticipated new memoir. Filled with a collection of fascinating autobiographical essays that candidly recall her past and present, the award-winning actress and mother of two shares her favourite memories, reflecting on all of the hilarious, heartwarming and difficult moments that have led her to the happy place she is in today. Intriguing, humorous and welcoming, it is definitely a must-read!
Now Add Honey
and danger than ever before, Katniss must put aside all moral questioning as she confronts President Snow once and for all. Will she succeed in her quest to destroy Snow and liberate Panem? Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Philip Seymour Hoffman
Genre: Australian Comedy Release: 5 November From the creators of the hilarious Upper Middle Bogan and The Librarians, comes this screwball Australian comedy about a suburban family thrown into chaos. Life for Caroline Morgan (Robyn Butler) has been less than ideal – she’s just found out her husband is leaving her for a yoga instructor, she can never seem to stop her children from bickering, and she’s constantly being worked into the ground by her unappreciative boss. So when Caroline’s pill-popping dysfunctional sister and dizzy, privileged pop-star niece turns up, their suburban lives really takes a turn. Starring a plethora of Australian talent, this home-grown comedy is both sweet and hilarious. Starring: Portia de Rossi, Hamish Blake, Lucy Fry, Robyn Butler, Angus Sampson, Ben Lawson
Mockingjay Part 2 Genre: Drama/Action Release: 19 November
As the final instalment of The Hunger Games finally comes to a close, audiences will feel their hearts racing to the very end! With the nation of Panem now in full war mode, Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) and her closest allies must fight not only for their own survival, but also for their nation’s future. Faced with more risks
Miss You Already
Genre: Comedy/Drama Release: 15 October Best friends Jess (Drew Barrymore) and Milly (Toni Collette) have always been inseparable, but when their lives suddenly change dramatically – with Jess finally falling pregnant and her best friend being diagnosed with breast cancer – their friendship is put to the test. A fantastic and heartwarming film about the power of friendship through life’s many changes. Starring: Drew Barrymore, Dominic Cooper, Toni Collette, Jacqueline Bisset, Paddy Considine
WHAT WE’RE READING RECKONING: A MEMOIR
Author: Magda Szubanski Release Date: Out now! Price: RRP $49.99 What: From one of Australia’s funniest women comes this tender, brave and surprising new memoir. Well known for her varied comedic roles across the film, television (including Kath and Kim) and theatre industries, the memoir introduces a deeper and more intimate view of Magda, detailing her childhood as the daughter of a Polish wartime espionage, her fears and passions, and all of the confusing, traumatic, joyful and complex moments that life delivers. A courageous and fascinating read!
A PERSONAL GUIDE TO INDIA AND BHUTAN
Author: Christine Manfield Release Date: 21 October Price: RRP $39.99 What: Written by one of Australia’s most well-known chefs, this beautiful guidebook dedicated to India and its tantalising, magical culture will take you on a fascinating journey from beginning to end. Inspired from many years of travel and personal adventures, with essential tips on the best places to eat, shop, stay and tour across various regions of India, this guidebook will satisfy anyone with a love for Indian culture!
T2 – THE BOOK
Author: Maryanne Shearer Release Date: Out now! Price: RRP $39.99 What: From the creative director of Australia’s beloved company T2 comes this fascinating book on all things tea-related! From playful and informative tips on the best ways to pick, process, create and present your tea, to fascinating facts about tea ceremonies around the world and beautifully illustrated recipes, this book is a tea lover’s delight! You can also read all about T2’s journey from small beginnings to major success.
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CULTURE | Emily Blunt
THE ENGLISH ROSE Actress Emily Blunt talks about motherhood, being a morning person, not being a girly girl and her new movie Sicario. WORDS: PIERS MANNING / THE INTERVIEW PEOPLE
I
t’s nearly a decade since her breakthrough as the terrifically caustic fashion flunky Emily in The Devil Wears Prada. The bitch we loved to love. She burnt co-star Anne Hathaway out of every scene while miraculously keeping pace with Meryl Streep, in typically inimitable form as the “fictitious” Anna Wintour harridan. Could a sequel ever be on the cards? Pretty please! “I really love the idea, and c’mon, working with those same people again would be amazing,” she says, decidedly unHollywood in comfortable black leggings and a black and yellow sweater with swirled, crochet detail. “But everyone would have to come back, otherwise there would be no point. I don’t necessarily think it’s going to happen, but I’d be up for it.” Life after Prada saw her Hollywood success flourish with astute selection and clever management. Majestic and stately in The Young Victoria and Gulliver’s Travels, without the period-costumed haughtiness. Delightful in The Five Year Engagement and Your Sister’s Sister, minus the unrealism of big-screen sweetness.
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2012’s intelligent ride Looper was a genius bolt of the unexpected. It led to above the title status alongside Tom Cruise in last year’s Edge of Tomorrow. She changed trajectory again with this year’s Into The Woods, playing the scheming baker’s wife alongside Streep, and for her latest release, Sicario, the 32-year-old Londoner – married to Office nice guy John Krasinski, father of their 18-monthold Hazel - plays an idealistic FBI agent enlisted by an elite government task-force official to aid in the war against drugs by tracking down an anonymous drug lord across the Mexican border. But just what is next for Blunt? With admittedly no game plan in action, she talks openly about stereotypes and risky decisions, passing on Avengers’ Black Widow, chemistry with Krasinski, designs on the small screen, family life balances and why her young daughter is priority over career. Sicario is an astonishing film and something we haven’t really seen you in before, which must have been a huge part of the appeal of playing Kate? Fabulous to play and challenging, yes, that was the appeal, and I really wanted
to explore this world, this problem. I liked the idea of a character who has an idealistic view of the world introduced to the brutal reality. And the nuance that comes with that, and how she’s trying to cover up her bewilderment. And be a part of it yet she can’t be a part of it. And it’s all the more heart-breaking because her job is her identity and that is being systematically broken apart. And [director] Denis Villeneuve is a hard man to say no to. [laughs] His work is remarkable, brilliantly collaborative, he really brings you into the process, which is what any actor is ultimately after. You want to feel, experience, you’re part of the creative, not just reciting words. How does he do that? There were a lot of moment… it’s this freedom, which is lovely because sometimes you encounter a rigidity that is understandable because it’s not your creation, but it’s limiting sometimes. With Denis, there was this liberty to change scenes, words, tone… to work with each other and collaborate and we stretched scenes around, or offered lines or suggestions and that’s down to the environment. We u
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Photograph by Pascal Le Segretain
CULTURE | Emily Blunt
questioned the script and questioned if we could make it better. Tackling the war of drugs as a subject probably needs that flexibility, surely? This film will spark debate. It raises the question of fighting the war on drugs with violence. Fighting the violence with violence has been explored now for some time, and it’s not going anywhere. The options have to be examined. It raises the question, who’s complicit? There’s corruption on both sides; 20 per cent of the population is snorting this stuff up their noses, who is the bad guy? Is there a bad guy? Is there a good guy? It’s a very complicated problem, that’s the only way to look at it.
Photograph by Clemens Bilan
What’s also astonishing is you shot this film some three months after the birth of Hazel? Four months and yah, it definitely wasn’t what I was planning on.
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It seems like you haven’t taken any time off at all then. Oh I have. I wasn’t intending on working on something that soon, but Sicario was such an extraordinary script. I said I didn’t want to work until August and this started in July, so you know, what are you going to do? It’s the case of a month. I couldn’t let that opportunity go to someone else, as much as it felt too soon. So I’m trying to pull back. I have a small part in The Huntsman [prequel to box office smash, Snow White and the Huntsman], but I haven’t nor am I planning on doing anything big after that. Acting must be the most perfect job for mums – you can pick and choose when you work, it’s so flexible. It is and it isn’t. When you don’t work it’s wonderful. You’ve endless days with her, and it’s real intense time, constantly with her. Being mum is all you know and it’s fantastic.
And then when you work, it’s the opposite. I leave early in the morning, before she gets up, and back after she’s gone to bed. That’s the challenge and that’s why I’ve taken most of last year off and much of this year too. When are you and John going to work together? Soon. I hope, really soon. I would love that. Because you both did that ice bucket challenge video… I know, he planned it though. He set the whole thing up. People were like, “Oh my god, did she know it was happening?” He parked the car. It was amazing. It shows you have perfect chemistry. That’s so nice, we just have to find the right thing. Maybe a play. Yeah, maybe here or in New York. I’ve never done Broadway, which would be kinder. Although I don’t think I
could handle eight shows a week on Broadway, no, never. Looking back over your career, one thing that comes up is your decision to exit the role of Black Widow, do you regret that now given the success of the Avengers brand? That whole thing is like, it’s tough to talk about. I wasn’t able to do that film.
Photograph by Ian Gavan
Because of Gulliver’s. Yeah, there was like a timing thing. Scarlett is amazing and she should play it. It’s not something I regret at all and it just wasn’t the right thing.
“I’m somebody who enjoys the unknown and the parts that come to me are always so surprising.”
I would assume that you don’t regret it because it’s such a monster of a role. With so many films, yeah I know what you mean. I don’t know how it works, if people have to sign up for it initially. I don’t know how it works. I think I would just want to make sure it didn’t take me away from doing other stuff. I wouldn’t want it to dominate everything. And I don’t think I could have handled being in a catsuit for that long really. I don’t think I’d want to be in a catsuit when I’m 70 [laughs]. Let’s be honest, it would have been somewhat restrictive, in every respect [laughs]. You’re fast becoming an action heroine after Looper and Edge of Tomorrow, but when you first came to LA, did you have to contend with being classed as an English rose? Totally. Devil Wears Prada was hugely influential in changing that perception because it was character role and comedic role and different from… and then after that I got offered every acerbic bitchy British person on the planet [laughs]. Probably one of my favourite scenes in that film is the “I’m hearing this, and I wanna hear this!” You know, that was not in the script, we were encouraged to improvise lots, and the week before I was in New York and saw a mother do it to her child and thought, “Oh, that’s really good.” So I waited and I was trying to think of the right time to do it. And on the day I was meant to do it, I said to [director] David Frankel, I just want one more go, I want to do something different. The line was really, “I don’t care”. [Andy, Hathaway’s character]’s talking about what she’s going to do for the weekend, and I was supposed to be like, “Yeah, yeah I don’t care.” So I did that, and I heard David laugh by the monitor and he said, “That’s it, that’s the one we’re going to use”. You haven’t really played anyone similar to Emily since then… Well I went from being very sweet,
interesting, English rose characters to the British bitch. So then I had to shake that tail by doing other stuff. So then I did Sunshine Cleaning, a pothead who cleans up crime scenes. I’ve always tried to just, if there’s even a hint of a tail coming my way, I want to shake it. I’m feeling like whispers of “She does action now”. I don’t, I don’t want that to be seen as, I don’t want to be pigeonholed. Defiantly fighting against that. And that’s why I did Sicario, because it’s more action, dark thriller, very different from anything I’ve ever done. And that’s why I did Into The Woods, where I got the chance to sing and dance and farce about in this crazy fairy tale with Meryl Streep… Your second film with Meryl... Ahh Meryl… You’re still quite close aren’t you? We’ve been so close since Prada. Great relationship. I’m friends with her daughters, I love her husband. She was at my wedding. We definitely stay in touch regularly. It was wonderful to play with her again and I was less intimidated this time. Still in awe, but less of the quaking knees. Is there anyone who’s on the list whom you’d love to work with? So many... I wouldn’t even know where to start. But you know, I like to work with anyone new to me. Doesn’t matter if it’s an acting legend of a complete newbie, I like the idea of building and exploring this fresh relationship. Would TV appeal at all? There’s the most wonderful thing happening. There is, doesn’t seem to be much of a hierarchy anymore between film and television. Some of the best material out there is television, that’s why you get Matthew McConaughey, Woody Harrelson and Robin Wright and Kevin Spacey doing amazing television and love it. I‘m not snobbish about that at all. Do you have a plan? Where could you predict you career and its direction? I don’t like to predict, I’m not somebody who lives like that. I’m somebody who enjoys the unknown and the parts that come to me are always so surprising. And I never saw them coming. I don’t know why I like them, or why they speak to me, they just do. I don’t have a game plan. Think life’s more fun without one.
Sicario is out now at a theatre near you. W: sicariofilm.com
October/November 2015 73
FRESH TRACKS
TOUR NEWS
Katie Noonan
What we’re listening to...
Arguably one of Australia’s most talented and well-respected female vocalists, Katie Noonan returns to Brisbane this October 22nd for her Transmutant tour. As the name suggests, Transmutant signifies a shift – in both her personal and musical life – to new possibilities. After many years exploring different
Airling – Stallin’ Dreamy and seductive, “Stallin” has been a favourite of ours over the past few months. Written by Brisbane musician Hannah Shepherd (Airling), the song is a gorgeous mix of sultry vocals and RnB beats, with a sinfully sweet pop chorus. Whether you’re falling in love, breaking up with someone, or just looking to chill, the track is perfectly moody and reflective! After recently performing at Splendour in the Grass, and touring with Vance Joy, #1 Dad’s and Japanese Wall Paper, Airling is sure to continue impressing fans! Be sure to catch her at The Foundry in Brisbane on Friday 16th October! W: airling.net Photograph by Cybele Malinowski
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@katie_noonan_music musical journeys, Katie has returned to familiar territory with her new project, Katie Noonan’s Vanguards, leaving no doubt as to why she has been a part of the Australian music scene since age 18. Catch Katie Noonan’s Vanguards at The Triffid on 22 October! W: thetriffid.com.au/gigs
Music News | CULTURE
NEW RELEASE
My Own Pet Radio – Goodlum Released in September, Goodlum is the debut EP from Brisbane musician and lyrical genius Sam Cromack. Well known for his work as the frontman of Ball Park Music, Cromack’s side project has already received rave reviews, with his first single “No Great Mystery” receiving plenty of airplay. Speaking with 4ZZZ in recent months, the musician noted that the song stemmed from the notion of being content with a simple life, and the realisation that he didn’t need to construct a drama-filled life narrative. Cromack also shared that the album explores a softer side of himself, giving space for bottled ideas to come to fruition. W: facebook.com/myownpetradio
ON THE RISE What a year it’s been for Meg Mac! The Sydney-based singer came to our attention as Triple J’s 2014 Unearthed Artist of the Year, but since that date Mac has continued to soar; performing sold-out shows both nationally and overseas. With addictive tracks and powerful soul/gospel vocals, Meg Mac is an enchanting juxtaposition of shyness and confidence. Having recently toured America with D’Angelo and The Vanguards, performed at Splendour in the Grass and played to packed out audiences around Australia, Mac will also support Mumford and Sons at their Brisbane Riverstage gig in November! Unsurprisingly, Mac’s team have confirmed 2016 will be an even bigger year for the incredible musician, so stay tuned! W: megmac.com.au
FESTIVE NOVEMBER SOUNDS! Mullum Music Festival 19-22 November
Only 60 minutes from the Gold Coast, this annual festival makes for a great long weekend! With too many artists to mention, the four-day festival is a hive of creativity and community connection, bringing to life the usually quiet town of Mullumbimby with international and local musicians, festival street parties, youth-mentorship programs, various workshops and loads of entertainment. For tickets and the full lineup head to W: mullummusicfestival.com
Airlie Beach Festival of Music 5-8 November
The annual Airlie Music Festival is back, and check out the lineup! Featuring 10cc, Toni Childs, The Black Sorrows, Richard Clapton, Wendy Matthews, Angry Anderson and many more, the waterfront festival will be a jam-packed weekend of music, sunshine and surf. For more details on the incredible lineup (featuring over 70 bands) log on to: airliebeachfestivalofmusic.com.au TIP: Don’t miss out on Brisbane indie-rock and blues band Faleepo Francisco! Our favourite track from the guys is “Find Your Memory” – a catchy blues-infused tune with infectious riffs and killer melody!
Make sure you catch Canadian headliner Ron Sexsmith, the Harry Angus Band (led by Harry Angus from The Cat Empire) and Sydney’s Montaigne!
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CULTURE | Events Calendar
OCTOBER Buskers by the Creek
Dogs’ Day Out When: 11 October Where: Flooded Gum Park, Pacific Pines How Much: Free What: Grab your pooch and head on down to the Gold Coast’s biggest doggy day out! Featuring market stalls, pet advice, giveaways and loads of free entertainment for kids and adults, there’s plenty to keep you and your furry friends entertained. You can also enter your pet into one of the many comps if you think they have what it takes to win! For more info, contact Nicole Williams. E: nlwilliams@goldcoast.qld.gov.au
When: 17-18 October Where: Winders Park, Currumbin How Much: Free What: Discover the undiscovered on a weekend of mystique, marvel and magic with an eclectic group of artists and performers. From singer/songwriters to hula dancers, over 200 buskers will pedal their talents in the old-fashioned art of busking. Voted last year’s Gold Coast Live Music Event of the Year, this is a festival not t0 be missed. Visit buskersbythecreek.com.au for a full program of events.
The Castrol Gold Coast 600 When: 23-25 October Where: Surfers Paradise How Much: Tickets vary from $30.58 (+BF) What: If you like your weekends quiet you’d better make other plans, because the Gold Coast 600 is back! Along with all the heart-racing V8 action, you can also expect a Las Vegas-style day club with all-female DJs, the Miss V8 Supercar models, and even the legendary Cold Chisel! Free public transport will be available for certain services, but you’re best to make bookings early. W: premier.ticketek.com.au.
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Mummy Tree Markets When: 17 October & 29 November, 9am-1pm Where: Everton Park Hotel & Col Gardner Drive, Morningside Hockey How Much: Free What: A Queensland family favourite, offering a unique selection of beautifully stylish products, along with free parking and entry. An easy outing for mums, dads and bubs. Regularly held across Gold Coast and Brisbane, W: themummytree markets.com.au
The Paper Kites When: 29-31 October Where: Sunshine Coast/ Gold Coast / Brisbane How Much: $25 plus booking fee What: Their new album Twelvefour – created on the concept that an artist’s creativity peaks between midnight and 4am – this Melbourne indie folk quartet will showcase their lush, atmospheric sound. W: thepaperkites.com.au
Brisbane Health and Fitness Expo When: 24-25 October Where: Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre How Much: Tickets vary, starting at $15 per day (adults) and $10 (children) What: This Expo will inspire you to get the most out of your life! Showcasing all of the newest fitness equipment and accessories, as well as fitness challenges and national/international industry celebrities. Strap up your joggers and run on down! W: fitnessexpo.com.au
Good Food and Wine Show Brisbane @goodfoodwine
W1 oIfN 2 es! ss
pa e ble n dou ad onli . He enter to
When: 30 October - 1 November Where: Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre How Much: Prices vary What: Delight your tastebuds and visual senses over three days, as the Good Food and Wine Show comes to Brisbane! From 9am-5pm each day, you’ll have the opportunity to experience the best in local food, hear all the tips from celebrity chefs and learn how to make your dinner parties the envy of all your friends! W: goodfoodshow.com.au
Events Calendar | CULTURE
NOVEMBER Centre of Melbourne Cup 2015 Island Vibes When: 30 October 1 November Where: Stradbroke Island How Much: From $180 What: Held annually on Minjerribah (Stradbroke Island), this Festival is a multi-faceted celebration of Island culture that includes art, interactive workshops, stalls, circus, eco-food and craft markets, four stages and over 50 mighty reggae, roots, soul and electronic acts. Calebrating its 10th anniversary this year. W: islandvibe.com.au
When: 3 November Where: Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre How Much: $137 plus booking fees What: Watch the race that stops the nation on the Gold Coast biggest screen with a Moet & Chandon in hand. Centre of Melbourne Cup is the ultimate race-day for fashionable fillies with fashion parades, live entertainment and a four course meal prepared by award winning chefs. If you can’t be track-side, you want to be at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre. Book your ticket at ticketek.com.au.
Neil Diamond in Concert When: 3 & 5 November Where: Brisbane Entertainment Centre How Much: From $59.90 (+BF) What: The iconic Grammy award-winning rock and pop singer/songwriter and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member is bringing his Neil Diamond World Tour 2015 to Brisbane. Book your ticket now at ticketek.com.au.
Bonjour French Festival When: 7-8 November Where: Southport Broadwater Parklands, Southport How Much: Free What: Grab your friends, your cutest beret and get ready to say ‘Bonjour’, as The French Festival comes to town! Whether you’re visiting from France, or you’re just a lover of all things French, the event is sure to deliver a rich cultural experience within the Gold Coast. Celebrating Freedom, Equality and Fraternity, the festival will delight over two full days, with the best French cuisine, art, music and culture. W: bonjourfrenchfestival.com.au
Hozier
Supanova
When: 6 November Where: Riverstage, Brisbane How Much: $79 (+BF) What: With his melancholy tones and cinematic storytelling, the Irish songwriter/ singer has become a worldwide sensation. Shooting to fame with his hit track “Take Me to Church”, Hozier will soon set his touring-sights on Australia. Be sure to catch him at Riverstage in November for his only Queensland show! W: ticketmaster.com.au
When: 27-29 November Where: Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre How Much: Day passes, weekend passes and VIP Supa-Star passes available. What: As Australia’s answer to Comic-Con, Supanova is the the annual festival where you can express your inner geek in full costume. Supa-fans and Supacelebrities from the worlds of comic books, animation, science-fiction, pulp TV and more come face-to-face for a weekend of fantasy in full colour. For tickets head to moshtix.com.au.
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CULTURE | Public Shaming
THE DANGER OF INTERNET MOB MENTALITY Have you ever shamed a stranger on Twitter for a laugh, or maybe been on the receiving end of online public humiliation? If the answer is yes, you’re certainly not alone, and it’s a serious cause for concern. WORDS: JAS RAWLINSON
I
n a strange way, public humiliation has gone full circle; re-emerging through social media after having been banned from Colonial America in the 1830s. We look to countries still practising public humiliation, such as India, and we express our indignation at a society so barbaric – yet social media has made public humiliation a worldwide indulgence. Welsh author, journalist and filmmaker Jon Ronson (The Men who Stare at Goats / The Psychopath Test/ So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed) believes that social media has led to an ugly uprise of misguided power, where many can no longer distinguish between social justice issues and public shaming. What originally started as a platform to seek social justice and cultural change has become something entirely different. “Social media started wonderfully, and of course it is still wonderful in many ways... but I think we fell in love so much with [going after] people who were misusing their privilege that a day without shaming started to feel like a day of picking fingernails or treading water,” explained Ronson at the Brisbane Writers’ Festival in September. “It began to feel weird and empty when there wasn’t someone we could ‘get’. “In recent months, we’ve seen this Lord of the Flies mentality play out first hand in the Ashley Madison scandal, and the killing of Cecil the lion. While the actions of those at the centre of both circumstances were certainly deserving of discussion, the way the internet rose to destroy the lives of those involved – and anyone who called for reason – was terrifyingly swift. In a matter of days careers were destroyed, innocent family members were publicly humiliated, and death threats were sent without a second thought. Three people committed suicide as a result of the cheating hack. “It’s as if we would rather that people kill themselves than for us to be bored for a day on social media,” points out Ronson. When I asked if he thought people found it hard to distinguish between expressing an opinion and
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shaming, he agreed that this was a common curiosity. “You always know though,” he stressed. “You know when you’re shaming [and targeting].” While issues such as animal cruelty and infidelity will always elicit strong emotion, many times people are shamed online for nothing more than making a poorly phrased joke, daring to leave the house without makeup or simply standing up for the rights of others. A recent example of this was the trolling of Women’s Rights Organisation ‘Collective Shout’, who earlier this year asked the Australian Government to deny entry to Tyler The Creator, a rapper known for his graphic lyrical descriptions of raping, murdering and abusing women. When thousands of Australians voiced their concerns over the rapper playing all-ages shows in Australia (in light of past abusive behaviour toward Australian women in 2013), Tyler and his fans unleashed an onslaught of abuse in an attempt to silence anyone who dared speak out against his behaviour. Tweeting out a lie to his 2.5 million followers, Tyler singled out a young woman and wrongfully told his fans that she has “banned” him from Australia. That woman was Collective Shout’s Director of Operations Coralie
Alison, who over the next 48 hours received more than 2000 threats of rape and murder. One fan hunted her down on other social media platforms, and called for her to be “destroyed”. Meanwhile, another woman had her account hacked and her personal phone number released to the world; all because she had dared discuss violence against women. Unsurprisingly, noone threatened the lives of the trolls advocating for these women to be raped. Speaking about this mentality, Ronson explained that as a society we are “finding it impossible to distinguish serious and non-serious transgressions”, and are creating a society of cold, hard judgement where damaged people are made into playthings. “[As humans] we are clever and stupid... but we’re creating a surveillant society [where] the smartest way to survive is to go back to being voiceless,” he noted sadly. “Let’s try not to do that.” So next time you get ready to hit “share’’ on someone’s photo for your own entertainment, ask yourself: “Could there be more to this than I know? Would I feel differently if it were me being shamed?” If yes, put down your phone, step away from the computer and re-evaluate.
Culture Jamming | CULTURE
Male Depression For Australian men, depression is a silent killer. Claiming the lives of around five men every single day, Australian men are four times more likely than women to commit suicide (according to website Man Therapy). Sadly, men often view depression as a sign of weakness and are less likely to recognise the symptoms of depression, which can include anger, physical pain and reckless behaviour. So what are some of the best ways to help support the men in our lives? Ensuring your loved one has a supportive doctor is the best place to start, but it’s also important that they look after themselves and engage in regular face-to-face support activities with trusted friends or professionals.
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
SURVIVORS NEVER ALONE Since that tragic day in February 2014 when 11-year-old Luke Batty was murdered by his own father, his mother Rosie has inspired the nation through her bravery and strength. Recently Rosie launched the Never Alone campaign, through which she hopes to improve government policies, increase support for victims of family violence and inspire cultural change; stopping the cycle of abuse through education and action. Many have recognised the need for young children and teens to be better educated on healthy relationships and domestic abuse, which sparked the push by Rosie and others to call on the Government for drastic action. In fantastic news, the Curriculum Council recently announced that the respectful relationship programs (recommended by Ms Batty) would be embedded in the school curriculum (years K-10) by no later than 2017. Never Alone also aims to provide more support networks for men who need help with violent behaviour, improve the way in which justice and judicial systems treat family violence issues, and to gain long-term guaranteed funding for crisis support services. You can join Rosie and the fight to end domestic violence through neveralone.com.au.
Want to find out more? mantherapy.org.au 1300 22 2638) beyondblue.org.au (also available 24/7 via 1300 22 4636) mensline.org.au (24hour support via 1300 78 99 78)
Be a friend to children in detention Want to help brighten the life of a child being held in Nauru detention? Just the simple gesture of sending a letter and a beautiful new book can do wonders for a child’s esteem. Find out more about becoming a pen-pal at befriendachild.com.
Sexist-Free Tunes If you enjoy hip hop but are tired of the sexist ‘gangster wannabe’ stereotypes that come along with many artists, make sure you pick up a copy of Tuka’s latest album “Life Death Time Eternal”. Including tracks such as “My Star” (a touching ode to his future child), the reflective title track “L.D.T.E”, and “Everything” (an honest and refreshing take down of the sexist stereotypes that often pervade the music industry), the Sydney MC’s solo album is full of thoughtprovocative and reflective storytelling. Catch him on tour during October and November! W: tuka.net.au
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CULTURE | Socials
LAUNCH CELEBRATION! T
hank you to everyone who joined us in September as we officially launched Provoke with a celebration and charity event at Moo Moo The Wine Bar + Grill, Broadbeach. It was a superb night made even better by the phenomenal support shown for our magazine and the generosity of our guests. A massive thank you to all of our sponsors on the night and to everyone who spent big in the silent and live auctions. We are proud to donate the total $1963 that was raised to Women’s Legal Service Queensland in support of their work to raise awareness of Domestic Violence in Australia. We look forward to seeing you all again at Provoke’s next night out.
Jake Taylor, Gabi Sharkey and Azmina Khan (MUA Azmina)
Crystal Main and Jen Richards
Mitch Assser and Federica Foti
Sam Jex and Wendy Smith
Maya and Perry Brosnan
Emma Heron and Jas Rawlinson
Kyle and Lesley Hansen
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Belinda Wasowski and Danielle Munroe
Logan Smith, Mark Thomas and Danielle Wyld
Maya Brosnan and Emma Heron
Pamela Railey-Mitchell, Brad Rush, Sed Crest and Anne Neotakis
Therese Cooper, Sarah Gallie, Brenda Gilbert, Linda Fraser, Caroline Esmond and Julie Zannes-Dowker
Musician – Ryan Gittoes
Logan Smith accepting Certificate of Appreciation from Natalie Davidson of Women’s Legal Service Queensland
Mark Thomas and Louise Stewert
Kloe Hynds, Renae Bruel and Wendy Smith October/November 2015 81
CULTURE | Law
TRYING TO CLOSE THE COURTHOUSE DOORS WORDS: DONALD ANTON PROFESSOR OF INTERNATIONAL LAW GRIFFITH LAW SCHOOL, GRIFFITH UNIVERSITY
R
ecently, Queensland Senator and Attorney-General George Brandis announced plans to repeal a key provision in the Environmental Protection Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBCA); a provision that allows the public to challenge the legality of decisions made by government. Such a repeal cannot stand scrutiny as it runs against the rule of law, democratic accountability and history. This decision has been questioned by the Senate’s scrutiny of bills
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committee and needs to be seen for what it is – another attempt to stop environmental concerns from getting in the way of economic priorities. As well as being a reactionary response to Mackay Conservation Group’s successful challenge of the decision to approve the Carmichael coal mine, it builds on the draconian funding cuts already made by the Government to public interest environmental litigation. The EPBCA is the Commonwealth’s flagship environmental legislation,
and was enacted (by the Howard Coalition Government) to improve on Australia’s first-generation environmental laws dating back to the early 1970s. It was touted by the Coalition Government for its efficiency and streamlined approach, and was the product of some very hard political bargaining between the Government and the now defunct political Democrats party – which at that time held the balance of power in the Senate. The Democrats supported the establishment of the GST, in exchange
for significant amendments to the exposure draft of the EPBC Bill, before its enactment. Those amendments are reflected most prominently in a host of section numbers peppered throughout the Act, which are followed by capital letters (eg sections 146A–146L on strategic impact assessment). One innovation in the EPBCA is reflected in section 487 of the Act. Note that there is no capital letter following the section number because it was enacted in terms drafted by the Government. Until section 487 was passed, environmental decisions of the Commonwealth were generally nonjusticiable under ancient common law rules to which the Attorney-General seeks to return. An individual or group concerned with ensuring compliance with environmental law had to establish special interest over and above the general public (ordinarily a direct injury to an economic interest) caused by the alleged breach before a court would entertain a lawsuit. Without a special interest, a person or group did not have “standing” (a sufficient connection with the alleged breach of law) to complain before a court. This was a very high hurdle and, not surprisingly, few individuals or green groups could meet the test. Section 487 relaxed this standing requirement in connection with judicial review of decisions made under the EPBCA. Individuals and groups are deemed to have a special interest (“persons aggrieved”) if at any time within the two years prior to the decision challenged they have engaged in activities associated with environmental protection. In the case of a group, its explicit purposes must include some form of environmental concern. It is true that the Democrats wanted more than this limited expansion of standing, but it was accepted for other trade-offs. The Democrats were pushing for the sort of “open standing” provisions pioneered by New South Wales and other Australian States in the late 1970s and early 1980s. For a long time now, the default position in many environmental laws found throughout our States is to allow “any person” to seek judicial review of decisions. Many also allow “any person” to sue to restrain or remedy a breach of environmental law – no track record necessary. It is not hard to understand why. The environment is a public good, deserving of public protection in cases of government failure. State Parliaments saw this and so did the international community. By 1992 we had Principle 10 of
the Rio Declaration, in which every country in the world proclaimed with unequivocal certainty that “[e] nvironmental issues are best handled with participation of all concerned citizens …”. In order for participation to be effective, Principle 10 makes clear that “access to judicial … proceedings, including redress and remedy, shall be provided”. This approach rests on the sound view that environmental protection cannot be left to governments alone. Rather, it requires and benefits from civic participation, including by way of standing to challenge environmental decisions. This is now a firmly entrenched principle in international environmental law and policy today, reflected in a host of laws around the world. It is not difficult to see why generous standing provisions are the norm in an environmental context. They bring more brains to decisionmaking and promote the rule of law. In an open democracy, it is essential that the citizenry be able to test the validity of governmental decisions about the environment, in order to check what would otherwise be naked power. In the mid-13th century, Bracton famously proclaimed the superiority of the law over the king as a norm necessary to eliminate arbitrary rule. So by giving the public a right to seek redress when the government fails to execute environmental laws as required, the rule of environmental law is strengthened. Moreover, by providing generous standing provisions and third party appeal rights, the legitimacy of the governmental decision-making process is enhanced. People have a strong sense that losing is not quite so bad if they have had a fair chance at playing the game. Sir Robert Megarry once observed that the most important person in a courtroom was the litigant who was about to lose, and it was the primary duty of the court to convince that person that his or her point of view had been heard and understood, even if the court found it necessary to reject it. Why then, does the AttorneyGeneral want to repeal a law enacted by his political forbearers – one that is recognised as salutary by state Governments and countries around the world? This question becomes more perplexing when one considers recent data from the Australian Institute. Since the EPBCA commenced in July 2000, it has been used a total of 33 times to challenge 27 projects out of a total of the 5500 referred to the Minister for a decision. In only two cases of those 33, did a green group
challenger succeed in obtaining the relief it sought. That’s a success rate of approximately 0.04 per cent. Add to that a miserly denial rate of 1.3% of applications made for approval under the EPBCA– yes, developers currently have a better than 98% chance of approval – and one is left with a sense that we have environmental law, but we do not have environmental protection. Nevertheless, according to the Attorney-General, a repeal is urgently needed. Some worn-out arguments have been used to try and turn back time, and the biggest criticism levelled against section 487 standing has been clothed with pejorative language. Suddenly, it supposedly permits “vigilante” litigation and “lawfare”. Putting the rule of law to one side, existing rules have long prohibited vexatious and frivolous litigation. You can be sure that if the Mackay Environmental Group had been a vexatious, ‘vigilante’ litigant engaged in ‘lawfare’, then government and highly paid mining lawyers would have disposed of the challenge to the decision on the Carmichael coal mine posthaste with little trouble. Another complaint by the AttorneyGeneral is that “statutory language is extremely loose” so that “virtually anyone” has legal standing to challenge developments. That is of course what is desired and intended. The complaint is really an appeal to the old “flood-gates” argument; that every man and his dog will rush to the courthouse and sue with open standing, but the reality behind the statistics above makes this complaint absurd. Further, these arguments have been recognised as false since at least 1989, when a judge with direct experience (former Chief Judge Harold Cripps of the NSW Land and Environment Court) wrote: “It was said… in 1980 that the presence of [open standing] would lead to a rash of harassing and vexatious litigation. That has not happened and, with the greatest respect to people who think otherwise, I think that that argument has been wholly discredited”. The long-recognised simple fact is that the environment is just too important to be left to the Government alone. Public participation and open standing provide critical input from those who actually live in the environment subject to controversy. The public provides an essential source of information about the environment, ensuring that the Government’s feet are held to the fire in the proper implementation of the law. The people of Australia should accept nothing less. October/November 2015 83
CULTURE | Money
FIXED VS VARIABLE INTEREST RATE WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE, AND IS NOW THE TIME TO FIX? WORDS: CHRIS SMITH CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER, FOUNDING PARTNER OF VISIS PRIVATE WEALTH
F
irst we need to understand the differences between the two. Fixing the home loan interest rate ensures the home mortgage interest rate remains fixed at the agreed rate with the bank irrespective of what the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) sets the cash-rate to be. So if Australia experiences a high inflationary period whereby the RBA raises the cash rate to counter potential inflationary issues, the mortgage rate will not be affected by the rising cash rate. This scenario is where a variable rate can be dangerous, as a rapidly increasing cash rate cycle could be potentially disastrous for the family budget. The reverse scenario can also be undesirable should a homeowner fix their interest rate and a low inflationary period occurs. They may be stuck paying a much higher rate of interest while the cash rate consistently reduces. A big downside for fixed-interest mortgage holders is that they can be caught in a fixed loan for a long time, and often they come with very high exit or break fees for a refinance – particularly if cash rates have reduced around them. Fixed-interest rates often do not allow for extra loan repayments, and if they do they will often be limited to a set maximum repayment amount, and may have extra fees for doing so. Furthermore, fixed-interest loans do not offer an offset facility as part of the loan, which is arguably one of the best home loan structures, as it allows mortgage holders to offset the interest amount payable by funds held in the offset account. If mortgage holders are not worried that volatile interest rates may disadvantage them financially, then fixed-interest loans can be beneficial when budgeting for expenses over the long term. If you are still uncertain, a common strategy to use is to combine fixed and variable interest rates. This allows you to take a 50/50 (or a different ratio) fixed and variable interest split on the home loan to hedge against interest rate movements, while offering flexibility with large or accelerated repayments. Looking at the current economic
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environment, what would be the best strategy to take? Due to a low inflationary environment and the plummeting commodity prices in recent years, Australia is currently seeing its lowest-ever cash rate. Taking into account the waning demand for Australian resources, there has been a strong financial fall in our key export markets of iron ore, gold and coal. With the forecast to continue softening, indicators point to a continued low inflationary environment for some time to come. Despite the consistent RBA cash rate cuts since October 2011 (which stood at 4.75%), Australia has been operating around the bottom of the inflationary target band (approximately 2-3%). In addition, recent figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics show that Australia’s current account deficit blew out by $19 billion in the second quarter of 2015 (its largest since December 2009), with the latest nominal GDP figures coming in at the lowest since 1962 – even worse than that of the recession of the early 1990s. All of this suggests that Australia could potentially be looking at a contraction in the economy in the near term, with data indicating that Australia will continue the easing cycle for some time to come. In their recent minutes, the RBA has noted that they
see potential rate cuts in the future; most likely this year. With this in mind, we suggest that now would be the time to benefit from a variable rate for at least another 12 months. If your cash flow is strong, you should use this period to pay off your loans at an accelerated rate. Long-term fixed-interest rates are being offered at rates below 5%. This is an extremely good rate when compared to long-term average mortgage rates. If there is evidence to suggest that Australia is coming to the end of its easing cycle – in other words, the first signs of an economic recovery are appearing – then it would be a good time to consider moving part or all of your mortgage to a longterm fixed-interest rate. However, you should be aware that quite often the long term fixed rates on offer increase before any movement in the cash rate or variable rates.
This information has not taken into consideration your personal goals and objectives; if you would like more information and would like your situation reviewed, feel free to call and set up a nil-cost, obligation free appointment. Email the author at csmith@visis.com.au
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CULTURE | Women in Business
HOW TO DEVELOP YOUR GOALS
F
orging your own career or business takes a lot of work, and while there are many challenges that women face specifically, that doesn’t mean you can’t make your dreams a reality! Staying focused while striving towards your goals takes persistence, but everything is achievable if you’ve invested in a well-thought-out plan. Below, we share some of the best tips for staying goal oriented. Baby Steps The first step in achieving your dreams is to write down a meaningful list of both short and long-term goals, and prioritise what is most important now. Start working towards the goals that are most achievable, and make notes along the way on what you need to do to achieve your future plans. Networking For the majority of women, the internet plays a big role in our lives (hello new shoes!), but don’t underestimate its power when it comes to chasing goals. Networking is one of the best ways to grow your vision, and social networks like LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter can allow you to market your content for free while connecting with like-minded individuals. Social media in particular has become one
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of the fastest ways to draw potential customers and investors. Don’t be afraid of the “F” word We all fear it, but is failure really the worst thing in the world? Remember that no-one ever got to where they were today without hard work and setbacks – even JK Rowling herself once felt that she was a failure, and worked for many years before achieving global success. Whether you’re searching for your dream career or starting your own business, at the end of the day all you need is one “yes” – so stay focused on marketing yourself to as many people as possible until you reach that goal. Get 24/7 help to break those habits! These days we are only limited by our imagination, and there are more apps than you could imagine to help you stay focused. Habit List ($3.99)
and Life Tick ($0 - 200) are two apps that will help you get to where you want to be faster! Want to break a bad habit? Feel you’re procrastinating too much? Need help with motivation to reach your weekly goals? Habit List is your go-to app. Likewise, Life Tick will help you to establish your core values, goal set, create the necessary steps to achieve your goals, chart your progress, and even provide you with online coaches. Another nice touch is that you can invite others to view your progress and add comments to your achievements, which will help support and motivate you along the way. Finally – take time to remember why it is that you started on this journey to begin with. It’s common to feel overwhelmed at times, so make sure you take time out to visualise what it is you want, and remind yourself that you have what it takes to achieve your goals.
FAMILY COMMITMENTS
If you’re constantly feeling bombarded by family and personal commitments – you’re not alone. It’s never easy to put 100% into your work when you have children and a booked-out schedule, but make sure you get support from family, friends and your partner so that you can remain focused on your goals.
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For those on the go...
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Travel
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Expedition | Voyage | Globe-Trotting | Explore | Wander
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TRAVEL | News
Whale of a time... T
he only thing better than seeing whales is seeing a whole family of them, and now is the perfect time to hedge your bets on spotting mother and calf humpbacks. October and November are the tail end of the whale-watching season in SE QLD, so if you haven’t already headed to sea, time is running out. If you’re really lucky, you might even spot Orcas off the Gold Coast at this time of year.
The best spots for spotting
• Hervey Bay – This is the safest place for the whales to feed their calves. • Moreton Bay – Recognised as one of the world’s best whalewatching locations. • South & North Stradbroke Island – More than 10,000 whales pass by Point Lookout annually. • Point Danger – The Tweed Whale Trail plots the 50 best locations to spot gigantic humpbacks on their annual pilgrimage. • Byron Bay – The Byron Bay lighthouse is the most easterly point in Australia, perfect for whale watching.
Whale watchers on the Gold Coast were treated to the extremely rare sighting of a white whale in August. The experts confirmed it wasn’t the region’s most beloved albino humpback, Migaloo, who is yet to be sighted this year.
You Picked It
THE TOP 10 “MUST DO’S” IN QLD AS VOTED BY THE LOCALS 1. Paronella Park, Cairns The nature-rubbed and heritage-listed castles, bridges and tunnels of Paronella Park look as though they have grown naturally from the landscape, inviting you to get lost as you explore every inch of its five hectares. We know where we’re booking our next holiday! W: paronellapark.com.au
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2. Australia Zoo, Sunshine Coast 3. Sand Tobogganing on Fraser Island 4. Travel The Great Inland Way 5. Whale Watching, Hervey Bay 6. Explore an ancestral Rock Art site on Guurrbi Tours, Cooktown 7. Boogie at the Gympie Music Muster 8. See the Cloncurry Stockman’s Challenge 9. Cuddle a koala at Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary 10. Night kayak the Brisbane River
The World Festival Navratri When: 13-21 October Where: India Navratri is a nine-night, ten-day festival that takes place in the Indian Autumn celebrating the Hindu goddess Durga. The feminine divine form is celebrated across India, with each region adding its own distinct flavour and rituals. See the vibrant colours of traditional Indian costumes in processions and dancing, and experience the ritual and ceremony of temple offerings. For the full experience try your hand at building a Batukamma to float down the river.
GO FURTHER As if we needed another excuse to escape to Melbourne for a weekend, Jetstar is launching a new daily direct Gold Coast to Avalon flight from 26 October. Sunshine Coast to Sydney will be available in time for Christmas.
Weighing In If you’re like us, you get around airline excess baggage charges by wearing 10 jumpers and five pairs of pants when checking in. Uzbekistan Airways is on our case! The airline recently announced it will begin asking customers to stand on the scales after they have had their hand luggage weighed. Apparently the new protocol is part of the safety requirements of the International Air Transport Association. October/November 2015 91
TRAVEL | QLD Spotlight
MALENY HINTERLAND Stuck in the office dreaming of a getaway to the mountains? Stop wishing and head out to the hinterland of Maleny!
peoples of the Gubbi Gubbi nation, and was known for its magnificent Bunya trees. Sadly, these trees were destroyed by white settlers to make way for dairy farming – a decision that deeply affected and devastated the local Indigenous peoples. Each year the community hosts a Bunya festival, where indigenous and nonIndigenous communities can come together in remembrance. Today, Maleny is well renowned for its breathtaking natural beauty, outstanding food and wine, perfect wedding locations and cute bed and breakfasts. Located around 85 minutes from Brisbane, or 35 from Caloundra, it’s also the birthplace of the Woodford Folk Festival!
TOP SIGHTS! Maleny Botanic Gardens Set within 110 acres of lush rainforest overlooking the Glass House Mountains, these gardens are 14 acres of magic! It’s recommended you take the time to walk around the whole property; discovering the beautiful wildlife and natural beauty. You can also take a tour of the Aviary, where grand macaws, brightly coloured finches and a variety of beautiful birds playfully interact and sit comfortably on your shoulder. With lakes, waterfalls, breathtaking flowers and stunning views, it’s surprising that the gardens haven’t been named a world wonder! Stuart Garnett Photography
O
ne of the wonderful things about living in Brisbane is that it doesn’t take long to escape the city. In just over an hour you can find yourself standing at the foot of the majestic Glass House Mountains, or if you travel a little further up the road, walking through the rolling hinterlands of Maleny and sampling the finest delicacies. With a population of less than 3000 residents, Maleny is considered a hive of creativity and socially conscious locals; a surprisingly diverse town with a rich cultural reputation. Although the town was officially settled in the 1900s, it was originally inhabited by the Nalbo and Dallambara
Open: 9am - 4.30pm Location: 233 Maleny-Stanley River Road (cnr Mountain View Road) P: 07 5408 4110
Image by Jasmine Rawlinson
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Lake Baroon Pocket Dam Nestled in a hollow at the bottom of Maleny’s countryside, the gorgeous Lake Baroon sits among rolling hills and thick forest. With the gentle ripple of the water, the company of a plump little kookaburra and the gentle sway of the trees, Lake Baroon is the perfect place to unwind. Enjoy a picnic by the water, fish from one of the ancient stumps, or push out in the boat for
TOP PLACES TO STAY! Maleny Lodge A delightful and historic little venue, the lodge features a roaring log fireplace, tranquil gardens, a swimming pool and full complimentary breakfast. Relax and unwind! Rates start at $159 for one night. Location: 58 Maple Street, Maleny W: malenylodge.com.au P: 07 5494 2370 African Cottages Sometimes it’s nice to spoil yourself and experience something new, and that’s exactly what Maleny’s African Cottages encourage! Choose from three different cottages, each featuring three spacious bedrooms (catering for up to nine guests), a fully equipped kitchen and a private BBQ area. Listen to uplifting African music, enjoy an aromatherapy
some exploration! Location: End of Narrows Road, North Maleny QLD Maleny Mountain Wines If you appreciate good-quality wine, make sure you drop by the Maleny Mountain Winery! With red, white, fortified and dessert wine, their expert staff can find something to complement your individual taste. They can also cater for group tastings and functions/Christmas parties! Location: 787 Landsborough-Maleny Road, Maleny P: 07 5429 6300 W: malenymountainwines.com.au Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve Voted the number one attraction in Maleny, the 55-hectare Scenic Reserve is an amazing ecological island filled with incredible species of flora and fauna. Make your way quietly through the forest and you may be lucky enough to see pademelons, spiny crayfish, beautiful frogmouths, or even some endangered and rare species such as the Coxen’s Fig Parrot and the Grey Goshae. Location: 148 Mountain View Road, Maleny
TASTY DELIGHTS Cocorico Hand-Made Chocolate One taste of Cocorico’s chocolates and you’ll never look at that Cadbury block the same way again! Provoke discovered this little shop when our Editorial Assistant Emma and her Fiance found a heavenly sample of chocolatey delights in their Maleny B&B. With the taste of rich madagascan chocolate and fruity undertones on their lips, they set off to find the shop! Lovingly and expertly made by Sebastien Clerc, who at the age of 20 is Australia’s youngest chocolatier, Cocorico’s chocolates are to die for! Tip: Make sure you try their Raspberry or Lavender flavours! Location: 344 Flaxton Drive, Flaxton P: 0434 633 768 W: cocoricochocolates.com
massage in your cottage, or slip into a warm bath overlooking the gorgeous 500-year-old fig tree out back. Kids will be delighted to find that there’s even a secret cubby house hidden inside a cupboard! Conveniently, the cottages are only 20 minutes from the zoo, and are just across the road from the Maleny Cheese Cafe. To book, call Matilda on 07 5435 2445 or log on to malenyqueensland.com/africancottage Location: 943 Maleny-Montville Road, Maleny, QLD Roseville House Oozing romance and relaxation, Roseville House is perfect for a getaway weekend or special event. Featuring bright, open spaces with charming touches such as fragrant flowers, fluffy bathrobes and afternoon tea served on arrival, this B&B is a favourite amongst visitors. Located at Balmoral Lookout between Maleny and Montville, Roseville House has incredible views to the ocean, as well as the rich valleys and mountains. Location: 640 Maleny-Montville Road, Maleny, QLD P: 07 5494 3411 W: rosevillehouse.com.au
Maleny Cheese Cafe & Cheesery Producing the finest cheese and yoghurt products, Maleny Cheese Cafe & Cheesery are a staple location for both locals and visitors to the region. With more awards than you could poke a stick at – including the prestigious Australian Grand Dairy Award – the factory produce 19 cheeses and 12 yoghurt products. Ensuring they use only the freshest milk from local farmers, the Cafe/Cheesery have been wowing their customers since 2004. Drop in to try some of the finest dairy produce yourself, or take a tasting tour. Location: 1 Clifford Street, Maleny P: 07 5494 2207 W: malenycheese.com.au Key Restaurant A magnificent fusion of African, Caribbean and Moroccan flavours, Key Restaurant is the number one venue for dining out in Maleny! With their delectable menu (featuring dishes such as Honey and Ginger marinated prawns, South African style Lamb Sosatie and spicy Ghanaian soups), unique atmosphere and fantastic service, it’s no surprise that people have travelled up to an hour just to eat here! Location: Cairncross Corner, 10 Mountainview Road, Maleny P: 07 5429 6536 W: keyrestaurantmaleny.com.au October/November 2015 93
TRAVEL | Travel Tech
SNEAKY SCARVES
Fuji X100T with Fujifilm WCL-X100 & TCL-X100 Conversion Lenses, & ONA bag Photo by Robert Mynard / CameraPro
Never Miss a Picture Wanting the perfect lightweight camera for your travels? CameraPro in Brisbane recommends the Fuji X100T as your next travel companion! Loaded with awesome features, such as built-in WiFi connectivity, a quiet shutter for discrete shooting, traditional mode dials for
ease of use and a fixed 23mm (35mm equivalent) f/2 lens. The camera also includes inbuilt film modes that produce classic rich colours from the film era. Your creativity can be expanded further with easy to use double-exposure settings that allow you to capture unique images on the go.
Jam-packed with fantastic features, lightweight and with a cool retro style reminiscent of traditional film cameras, the Fuji X100T is the ideal choice in digital camera for your next overseas adventure. – Louise Wright, CameraPro RRP: $1487 W: camerapro.com.au
“Some can even fit a flask in them! I call this version the Prohibition Scarf – a scarf your grandparents would’ve loved!” - Beth Salvon (owner) For anyone who has ever worried about keeping their belongings safe while travelling, this invention is genius! With hidden zippered pockets, the Speakeasy Scarf gives you the perfect hiding spot for your wallet, makeup or passport! Available in a variety of colours and designs! W: etsy.com/shop/ SpeakeasySupplyCo
LIGHT AS AIR Stylish, lightweight and convenient – Apple’s 11-inch MacBook Air is the perfect travel companion! What’s even better though is that this little beauty has up to nine hours of battery life and can also survive for 30 days on standby mode! Whether you’re off on a business or heading away for some down-time, the MacBook Air is an essential. W: apple.com.au mama_mia / Shutterstock.com
Make Your Phone Invincible! If you like to travel light, it’s easier to just pack a phone than a camera. As most travellers will know, however, it can be difficult when constantly trying to protect your phone from all of the elements, so the best thing you can do is get yourself a lifeproof case. With a range of styles to suit Apple, Galaxy and Motorola phones, you’ll never have to worry again! RRP: $AUD99.95 W: lifeproof.com
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Lost & Found It’s the stuff that nightmares are made of – lost luggage. Luckily, some clever individual has created the Trakdot luggage tracker, a handy device that automatically texts or emails when you land to let you know your bags have arrived safely. Using bluetooth, it can even point you in the right direction to your luggage! RRP: $89.99 W: trakdot.com
Open Wed-Fri : 4 - 9pm Corner of Stephens Lane & George Street, Brisbane City
treasurybrisbane.com.au Treasury Casino & Hotel practises the responsible service of alcohol. Must be 18 or over to enter.
AUSTRALIA FROM A TOURIST PERSPECTIVE For many Asian tourists, Australia is a popular destination. Not only do we have breathtaking landscapes and a unique culture, but our country is also much easier to apply to visit than many others, making it a favourite destination among young travellers. So what’s it like to travel Australia as a foreigner? WORDS: JAS RAWLINSON & STEPHANIE YI-FANG CHANG
W
hen 24-year-old Stephanie Chang came to Australia two years ago to work and travel, she had no idea of the exciting, challenging and hilarious cultural exchanges awaiting her. In the days leading up to her return to Taiwan, she shared some of her favourite photos and memories with me, reminiscing the highlights, the challenges of living in a car, and how a Taiwanese movie star is inspiring locals to travel Down Under!
Travelling Australia… When I got to Australia I was surprised by how different it was. I’ve never seen this sort of natural environment before! I didn’t like Sydney much, but I liked Melbourne city; the culture and streets. My favourite place was Tasmania – you can see so much 96 PROVOKE.COM.AU
diversity in one island, and eating oysters is not a luxury thing to do because all you have to do is to drive three minutes down the road and dig them off the bay! it’s like eating in your own kitchen. I also loved Uluru, it’s just so different from any other places I’ve been; the red sand and the clear Milky Way. The wildness is very unique for me; I don’t have this kind of scene in my country. [During my two years] I travelled to Brisbane, Gatton, Toowoomba, Cairns, Whitsundays, Uluru, Coffs Harbour, Sydney, Tasmania, Melbourne and Western Australia.
talking with at the park said, “Life isn’t about avoiding the storm, it’s about learning to dance in the rain”. It really gave me goosebumps – that was one of my favourite memories. This man had always had a really stable job, then one day [nine years ago] he thought, “If this is the rest of my life, I don’t want it” – so he quit his job and started to travel with his little dog! He doesn’t even have a car, he just walks everywhere! It’s so cool. [Another favourite was] seeing quokkas! They are so cute! Taking a selfie with them is hard – it takes a lot of time to make them look into the camera with you.
Favourite memories… One night when we were in Bay of Fires and it was raining really heavily, and [as we were trying to hide under shelter] a man who we had been
Challenges of travelling Australia… Australia is very spread out, so you really need to have friends, a car and money to travel around – especially in Western Australia. It’s worth it though!
Tourist Perspective | TRAVEL
me with this passionate gaze and his friend kept teasing, “Come on!” I just wanted him to leave me alone, so I said OK. Very very awkward! (laughs)
s wo A yo ( t
Image by li-ting lu
Funniest Australian word... Bogan! (laughs).
The challenges of finding work… When I arrived I got a job working in a restaurant, but the pay was very bad so I ran away (laughs). Finding a good job is very hard [for tourists]. When I was cherry tomato picking [on a farm] the contractor made us work from 5am until 5pm with no break, in 38-degree heat... I made $36 [before tax] that day. The best job I had was cherry picking in Tasmania. We worked very hard and the pay was good! I also worked in a few massage shops, and even a cake factory in Toowoomba. After work my friends would say “Let’s go and get some cake”, and I would be like “No, no more cake!” (laughs). Even now I still don’t really feel like eating it! Staple items for travelling Australia… Money, water, the internet, and definitely a camera (I used an Iphone 5S for 99% of my photos). Also, a sleeping bag to keep your body warm, and a car! It was like our house and stopped us sleeping on the streets (laughs)! [When travelling] you need something you can cook – for when you find a BBQ facility (it’s glowing when you see one) – and uncooked food for when you can’t. We would usually eat cereal and toast for snacks – we’d just eat it all the time (laughs)! Also, my friends always talk about these things called Knoppers – they are very popular with Asian tourists and you can get them from ALDI. They are like a chocolate biscuit.
Top spots for Australians to see before they die… Lake Gairdner in South Australia – it’s really, really beautiful. There was a very famous and handsome star from Taiwan, Jin Tsheng Wu, who did a TV commercial in that place, so a lot of Taiwanese people go there and do the pose with the product (BoMy). It’s a vegetable and fruit drink that is very famous in Taiwan. Also, if you go to the Whitsundays you have to see the heart-shaped reef from the aeroplane! Strangest thing about Australians… Aussies use a lot of slang and shortened words! It’s so confusing. Also, [Aussie men] like you in, like, 20 minutes! (laughs) That’s one of the strangest things.
Most overrated places or tourist spots… Hobart, and also Wineglass Bay in Tasmania. I don’t know why people name it ‘Wine Glass’? [I thought] Bay of Fires was much prettier with its red rocks. I also have to say Vivid Festival [this year] was a bit disappointing. I stayed in Sydney to see it, but people said this year wasn’t as good. The place where I will leave a piece of my heart… Tasmania! Freycinet National Park is my favourite. Also, Little Blue Lake – I miss that place. What Australia has taught me… One night I was sleeping at St. Clair Lake National Park; it was a cold night and I was still wide awake at 3am. Somehow I thought of my parents. It’s been so long since I last hugged them, and thinking of this suddenly made my eyes tear up. I was homesick for the first time in one and a half years. Maybe that’s why people have to leave their homes; to realise what’s most important in their lives. And for me, I guess I’ve found the answer.
Memorable moments... At the Great Ocean Road I was taking photos and felt someone staring at me – an Italian guy. I just looked at him and smiled politely, but still, he was staring! After about 10 minutes of him walking around me, he said “Can I have a picture with you?” I didn’t really want to, but he kept looking at
Images by Yu-ting Lai
Thoughts on Australian food… I didn’t get to eat too much Australian food as we were on a tight backpacker budget, but someone told me to eat Vegemite. Oh my god, it’s so disgusting! Who would eat that?! Also, I didn’t really enjoy the Australian style of BBQ because it’s just sausage, onion, and salad. Too much burn!
October/November 2015 97
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Home | Garden | Architecture | Property | Habitat
LIVING | News
HONEY, DON’T FORGET TO VACUUM THE GARDEN! We’re still not sure if we are on board with the garden carpet idea, but these outdoor rugs are sure pretty! Outdoor rugs are designed for practical use in your garden or terrace, they are soft underfoot and stand up to the sun and rain. If you aren’t a fan of mowing the lawn, perhaps this is the grass-free garden idea you’ve been looking for. W: ecochic.com.au
EASY GREENS Do you love having some greenery in your home, but struggle when it comes to keeping your blooms in bloom? Let us introduce you to the plant that thrives on neglect – the succulent! Succulents keep on keepin’ on with just sunlight and a spritz of water every now and then. Keep your succulent looking cute with our favourite Brissy-made Vessel and Vine Gelato Planter in a range of divine pastel and marble options. RRP: $35 W: vesselandvine.com.au
Inspired by What? There’s no telling when inspiration will hit, but how is this for a majorly out-ofthe-box design muse. 432 Park Avenue, New York City’s new luxury condo tower was inspired by a rubbish bin. Not just any rubbish bin though, a $225 elegant wastepaper basket by Wiener Werkstätte (Vienna Workshops). Oh la-la, bring on the luxury! Closer to home, Melbourne is getting a 226-metre-high skyscraper inspired by Beyonce’s Ghost video, where she cavorts around inside what looks like a giant white pillowcase. 100 PROVOKE.COM.AU
Jupiters Gets a Makeover! Keep your eyes peeled for the exciting changes coming to Jupiters Hotel and Casino over the next year, as the Broadbeach venue gets a $75 million makeover! You won’t have to wait too long for a sneak peek, however, with the hotel ready to reveal over 600 newly refurbished hotel rooms by the end of this year, featuring the latest state-ofthe-art lighting, technology and luxury finishes.
@jupitersgc
Valley Boom Rydges hotel group are set to open Rydges Fortitude Valley at the Brisbane Showgrounds in 2016.
For Sale The funky Fortitude Valley TRYP Hotel – Brisbane’s only street art hotel – is on the market. It’s good news for architectural art lovers though, as the sale coincides with the owner’s decision to focus on developing additional TRYP hotels in key locations such as Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide and the Gold Coast. If you haven’t checked out TRYP Fortitude Valley yet, we strongly suggest planning your next outing at its rooftop bar, Up on Constance, and its iconic restaurant, the devilishly delicious Chur Burger. W: trypbrisbane.com
SECRET STUFF The original TRYP building was once the clubhouse of the Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes, the Brisbane chapter of an international and mysterious secret society.
Facade Face-Lift Home renovations can be daunting, expensive and time-consuming, but boosting the street appeal of your place doesn’t have to be. Add value and style with these five simple tips for the ultimate home exterior face-lift: 1. Make a bold statement by giving your front door a vibrant blast of paint. Don’t be afraid to try something bright and eye-catching. Your front door can be the showstopper of the facade. 2. Decorative house numbers and light fixtures can add modern and personalised style. 3. Landscape lighting makes a huge impact on your home’s kerb appeal while also
providing safety and security. Solar lights are easy to install and can be moved around the garden as you like. 4. Pot plants add a welcoming feel to any home exterior, quickly and affordably. 5. Give your yard edgy appeal by adding weather-resistant artwork. Birdbaths, metal cutouts, sculptures, and wind chimes are good choices for outdoor art.
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LIVING | Interior Design
COLLECTED, CHARMING, TRADITIONAL Fabric on the walls, one-off gypsy carpentry, then a flourish of nautical nostalgia, and this 1960’s beach hotel became an Anna Spiro treasure. WORDS: EMMA HERON
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Photos by Kara Rosenlund
B
risbane’s boldest interior decorator, Anna Spiro, has a self-confessed “natural eye” for colour, patterns and making them get along. At Halcyon House on Cabarita Beach, she showed exactly how “a little bit off” could be spot-on when she artfully scribbled her eclectic and nostalgic design signature on to every surface. Opened in May this year, guests of Halcyon House are greeted by Spanish-style archways and breezeways, a scoop of homemade ice-cream and an Anna Spiro room that would sit just as comfortably in Capri as Cabarita. Don’t believe us when we say she’s bold? Anna didn’t just paint the walls of her biggest project yet, she upholstered them with fabric, as though wrapping a precious gift from the inside. The Black & Spiro head designer and owner was fulfilling the brief given to her by hotel owners (sisters Elisha and Siobhan Bickle) to create something that was completely different to what was being offered in Australia. For every “Are you sure?” thrown at her, Anna would quip back an assured “Of course I am!”, and so the 21-room boutique hotel was given new life by the seaside. A walk through Halcyon House is like a tour of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory – you can never be sure what fanciful delight is hidden behind each door. Whether a marketing masterstroke to keep guests coming back, or a demonstration of just how much of a visionary Anna is, every room at Halcyon House is a new work of art. That’s 21 uniquely beautiful rooms. “I wanted it to be a divine, traditional beachside retreat similar to what you would find in Europe,” Anna says. “I wanted each room to be different so that guests can find their favourite room and then keep coming back and choosing to stay in that room each time they come.” And so it becomes clear that Anna’s designs are not only an aesthetic treat, but an emotional one too. She urges guests to want to connect with their favourite suite and pen it into their diary for every anniversary getaway to come. This essence of creating tradition is echoed in the styling choices Anna made. Nothing feels shiny or new, and yet every room oozes homely luxury. “I wanted it to be decorated in a way that it looks and feels as though it has all been collected over a long period of time, as though it has always existed,” she said. The “collected” look and feel was achieved by doing just that – collecting. Anna and the Bickle sisters trawled u
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the Brimfield antique fair in Massachusetts and scoured antique dealers, junk shops and estate sales in Australia and New York for charming bespoke pieces. There are glass jars and wicker baskets that have been fashioned into lamps, side tables that Anna has handpainted at her home and salonstyle hung images of beach life, bird life and life in general. Inject some high-end luxury with John Derian sofas, Madeline Weinrib rugs and drawings by Wayne Pate, and old and new collide to create “perfectly imperfect”. If you hadn’t been inside Halcyon House, you could be excused for thinking it all sounds a bit haphazard and overwhelming. But add some more Anna with her signature blue and white palette and everything just “belongs”. “The colour blue is used predominantly throughout, so this is the link that ties everything together,” Anna says. “People who know me know that I have a very big soft spot for blue and white. I grew up in a home that was always decorated in a blue and white colour palette. I also felt that this was the perfect location to be able to use blue being beside the ocean.” With many of the rooms boasting terraces with ocean views, the frothy whites and clear blues of the interior have made the most of their idyllic location. Another Anna trademark is her daring use of contrasting, but never conflicting, prints. So what’s the secret to mixing spots with stripes and floral and fish? “It’s hard to explain,” Anna admits. “You need to have a natural eye to do it. Linking the different colours is done by finding common
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Check In
What: Halcyon House Where: Cabarita Beach, 15mins from Gold Coast Airport How Much: From $440/night W: halcyonhouse.com.au
Photos by Kara Rosenlund
@_halcyonhouse
ground and then being able to use a contrast of patterns and scale to balance it all out so it doesn’t look ‘matchy’ or contrived is key. I also think the biggest secret is to never match things perfectly. A little bit ‘off’ is always a good thing.” We weren’t exaggerating with our print picks either. Anna’s favourite room, one of the bedrooms in Suite 208, features a zigzagged and squared William Yeoward fabric on the walls, a grandiose fish fabric covered bedhead and a geometric glass chandelier. And the choices not only work – they excite. It’s clear that Anna’s design philosophy is all about mixing – textiles, prints, colours, furniture, eras – but not necessarily matching. In the bathrooms, Anna dials down the colour and shows that while she is obviously a master of bold and bespoke, she can also serve up the perfect minimalistic and fresh room where white dominates. If it isn’t useful it’s not there cluttering up the stunning space. All of the bathrooms are fitted with elegant English tapware, marble vanities and handmade floor tiles (welcome back blue), and the master, deluxe rooms and suites have the added luxury of a deep bath. Anna showed off her design panache by also making the outdoor areas elegantly European with million-dollar u October/November 2015 105
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Australian views. Comfort is king when luxuriating in one of your terrace deck chairs under a beach umbrella. The creative interior design doesn’t stop at the hotel rooms and suites. Halycon House is accompanied by Halcyon Spa and restaurant Paper Daisy. Dining at Paper Daisy is all about confident coastal cooking in a relaxed setting. One of Australia’s most promising young chefs, Ben Devlin, runs the kitchen and Anna has taken care of the dining room. The chairs don’t exactly match, and the photo frames aren’t even close to matching at all, but everything invites you to sit down and spend some time long after the last plate is licked clean. A large, sturdy, wooden table takes centre stage and any diner who sits here will undoubtedly feel like the special guest. Skirting the room is bench-style seating, but there are enough mismatched pillows scattered along the wall that this is obviously the side of the table you want to be sitting at. Now that we know you will be heading to Halcyon House next time you make a trip south, make sure you keep an eye out for Anna’s favourite pieces. “The standout is probably a beautiful little gypsy table in one of the suites. I found it at the Brimfield markets and carted it around with all the other things we picked up! When it arrived here I took a few of the tables we’d sourced home and handpainted them myself in an array of Porter’s Paints blues. They look fabulous in their new homes! I also can’t go past the table in the entrance to the restaurant without stopping to admire it.” Alternatively, pick your own favourites and find the room that will be “the one” for you.
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More from Anna Spiro
Store: 768 Brunswick Street, New Farm Blog: absolutelybeautifulthings.blogspot.com.au Book: Absolutely Beautiful Things, RRP $49.99 Other projects: Mr & Mrs G Riverbar, Buzz Bistro, Victoria Park Golf Club W: blackandspiro.com.au
Photos by Kara Rosenlund
@blackandspiro
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LIVING | Home Renovation
Get The Look Walls covered with Khalana Marine fabric by William Yeoward RRP $102/m
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A world of beautiful possibilities at DOMO. Contemporary, classic, and outdoor living.
Brisbane
07 3852 6188 | 44 Abbotsford Road, Bowen Hills
Gold Coast
07 5564 3388 | 91 Bundall Road, Bundall
Sandringham
03 9277 8888 | 256 Bay Road, Sandringham
Hawthorn
03 8803 8803 | 55 Camberwell Road, Hawthorn
Willoughby
02 9958 0700 | 598 Willoughby Road, Willoughby
Paddington
02 8354 6222 | 188 Oxford Street, Paddington
North Adelaide
08 8361 7388 | 164 O’Connell Street, North Adelaide
Visit www.domo.com.au Contract enquiries welcome.
LIVING | Garden
SHAPING THE EARTH Modern-style blooms in the traditional Queensland family garden – and even the trampoline has a place. WORDS: EMMA HERON
W
hen Brisbane landscaper Joseph Nagel talks about his work, his passion for creating is palpable. He talks of “stripping an area back to its bare bones and shaping the earth”, and you know that his work is less a job, and more a labour of love. A walk through the Brookfield garden of one of his latest Definition Landscape and Design clients confirms it – the man is an artist. Overlooking the tree-lined hill of
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the Brisbane hinterland sits a Cape Cod-style home resting within a modern oasis. What used to be a traditional family back yard has been transformed into a picturesque vista that offers up alfresco dining, fresh herbs for outdoor cooking, a pavilion and hideaways for work and play. The garden’s best feature is that its function is just as stunning as its form, and that’s exactly how Joseph planned it. “To me, there’s no point in having a garden that looks amazing in a magazine but that doesn’t work,
because people won’t spend time in it,” he says. It was thanks to functionality that Joseph’s top design aspect was crowned. “My favourite feature is the pavilion – it creates a new room in the garden. It’s really multi-purpose and could easily be used for outdoor entertaining, lounging, dining, but I love that the owners have set up a work studio in this space. If you’ve got to work, what’s better than working in an airy garden room, away from the distractions of the house?” To answer
Joseph’s rhetorical question, the only thing better is having a sandpit and swing attached to the pavilion where the kids can play safely under your watchful eye. And he delivered that too. It is with the pavilion that Joseph granted his clients’ wish for an injection of contemporary style into the property. It also showed his panache for building design. Plantation shutters, a skillion roof and timber bifold doors made the pavilion a Hamptons-style hideaway. These features also kept true to Joseph’s constant desire to promote environmental sustainability by allowing easy adjustment of natural light, temperature and airflow without a reliance on airconditioning. Having only recently finished the Brookfield project, the plants are still in their infancy and the set-up obviously caters to a family with young children. Give it a year though and the plants will have established into healthy and generous coverings. The exposed timber planters and
retaining (made from red ironbark) will have faded to a soft silver/ grey colour, fading into their landscape authentically. Joseph says within this timeframe the climbers (Trachelospermum Jasminoides) will have filled out around the posts and reached the pergola-roof framing. In five years the climbers will have formed a “green roof” over the deck pergola and pavilion entry arbor, providing shade for the outdoor dining and play areas. The new trees will be beginning to mature and providing structural height to the garden. Shrubs, grasses and succulents will have spread and filled out to their mature sizes and the Rhapis Excelsa (Lady Palms) beneath the pavilion will be screening this area, in readiness for a future pool. Not only will the plants have flourished, but the family’s need will have changed, and Joseph says the garden is designed to change with them. “The spaces are designed to be multi-purpose and easily changed u
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Planting natives ensures longevity in a garden and Joseph finds a planting solution in every indigenous Queensland plant. @definitionlandscape with the age and stage of the family. The sunken trampoline space will convert to a sunken outdoor lounge, and the sandpit to garden beds when the kids grow up. There are no wasted areas or construction.” The Brookfield canvas was by no means a small space, but fitting everything in while still maintaining a refreshing openness can’t have been an easy feat. Joseph admits he was old-school in his approach, and hand sketched concept plans from onsite so he could truly get a feel for the lay of the land. “I don’t like including elements just for the sake of having them. I prefer to design simple, u
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Who Lives Here?
The magic of Brisbane footwear brand frankie4 happens inside this Brookfield pavilion. Check out Caroline McCullough’s shoe empire where she is “saving soles in style” at frankie4.com.au
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Looking for some natives for your home patch? Check out some of South East Queensland’s most beautiful at provoke.com.au
visually pleasing spaces where quality design and materials communicate the feel and intent of the garden. This always helps to create an open and spacious feel.” If your landscape designer can make the trampoline look good you know you’re on to a winner. The hidden trampoline nook nestled below a sandstone retaining wall is a testament to the creativity of the design. Not only is it a favourite hangout for the kids, but the sunken design means the homeowners haven’t lost their bushland views. Ensuring the new garden felt authentic and not jarring within the landscape was important not only aesthetically, but also environmentally. Planting natives ensures longevity in a garden, and Joseph finds a planting solution in every indigenous Queensland plant. “I often use Elaeocarpus Eumundii for narrow areas requiring height, Randia Fitzalanii as a small shade tree, and Waterhousea Floribunda for a lovely tree if there’s enough space...I often use Lomandra Bunyip or Pennisetum Nafray for mass grass plantings, Westringia Fruiticosa for a tough native hedge, and Viola Hederacea as a groundcover,” he says. It’s hard to image this hinterland home garden getting any better, but stage two is yet to come. Joseph is raring to go with the addition of a swimming pool and surrounds planned below the new pavilion. When asked if he had any advice for novice landscapers, Joseph’s response was simple: “Don’t be driven by the latest style and trend. If you love it, build it or plant it. It’s your garden and you’ll derive the most pleasure from things you appreciate.” 114 PROVOKE.COM.AU
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LIVING | Get the Look
STYLING BLOOMS
Flowers in your home are like landscaping for the lounge, so choosing the perfect vase is essential. Here are a few of our favourites to get you started.
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1. Karlie Hurricane, from $49.95, Village Stores W: villagestores.com.au
5. Kata Vase, $49.95, Hamptons Style W: hamptonsstyle.com.au
9. Vase of 7 nights, $239, Space Furniture, W: spacefurniture.com.au
2. Quail Ceramics tiger vase, $99, Happiness Place W: happinessplace.com.au
6. Blue & White Hand Painted Vase, $990, St Barts, W: st-barts.com.au
11. Blow Away Vase, $1,680, Space Furniture, W: spacefurniture.com.au
3. Circa Solid Timber Small Vase, $210, Matt Blatt W: mattblatt.com.au
7. Traditional Vegetable Basket, $245, St Barts, W: st-barts.com.au
4. Indigo vase, $29.95, Hamptons Style W: hamptonsstyle.com.au
8. Rectangle Copper Vase, $50, Jones & Co, W: jonesandco.com.au
10. Leather Plant Hanger, $140, The Minimalist, W: theminimalist.com.au 12. D’Avril Vase XXL, $329, Space Furniture, W: spacefurniture.com.au
LIVING | The Zone
NEWSTEAD’S TRANQUIL CENTRE Introducing Laguna, the calm oasis in a suburb that is humming with new energy. WORDS: EMMA HERON
T
he cogs are turning again in Newstead and what was once a forgotten industrial district has become the new “it” suburb in Brisbane. The hip inner-city hub is a mecca of trendy shops, eateries and bars nestled harmoniously within the heritage-listed Gasworks precinct. Monolithic landmarks with art deco architecture like the Waterloo Hotel share blocks with blazingly modern light shows, and still nothing seems out of place or overdeveloped. Even Newstead’s historic WWII hangar has found as new voice as one of the city’s newest live-music venues, The Triffid, developed by ex-Powderfinger bassist John Collins. In a suburb burgeoning with undeniable star power, Newstead Central’s Laguna is ready to take centre stage. While Newstead buzzes, Laguna will whisper as the tranquil centre of the suburb in transformation. Laguna is the second of five ultra-modern towers that will make up Newstead Central – a $400 million luxury apartment project by Metro. The development is the latest addition to Metro’s already hefty multi-million-dollar property portfolio, and its second bite of the Newstead apple. The $160 million Newstead Towers is also currently under construction on Longlands Street. Tower one of the Newstead Central, Aqua, is already sold out, but for those who missed out, Laguna will boast a further 189 units, offering up a suite of one and two bedrooms luxury apartments across 20 levels. When all five towers are complete, Newstead Central will comprise 920 luxury apartments. The aptly named Laguna development has been designed with pure luxury in mind and will make stunning use of water features and greenery to create a lush vista hidden within the surrounding landscape. It is immediately clear that the Metro project has prioritized the creation of an atmosphere just as highly as the construction of a home. Among its most impressive drawcards – a two-storey waterfall cascading down the building’s Ann Street entrance. Vertical gardens hang from the facade and frame the waterfall to give the ultimate illusion that Laguna is carved from the earth and hung with its greenery. The sparkle of the constantly flowing facade will create the perfect prelude to stepping inside the glistening five-star lobby designed by world-renowned architect Cox Rayner. 118 PROVOKE.COM.AU
High ceilings hung with a grandiose chandelier and the use of luxury materials carry the cool Laguna opulence inside. Plans for the lobby include marbled walls and floors gilded with golden decorative railing. The hard surfaces are delicately offset by blonde, wooden, feature panelling. Again, greenery is the gem in the design, with more vertical gardens making sure that the natural essence of the Laguna theme is not lost. You know the landscaping of the entrance will be impressive as massive windows will keep it on constant display from inside. RPS Landscape Architects are behind the design for the resort-style gardens that continue from Laguna’s facade and lobby and into the lagoon paradise at its heart. Here, multi-million-dollar man-made beaches steal the limelight and introduce resort-style living that will excite even the most ardent city dweller. With the apartments marketed towards young professionals, the creation of a landscape for relaxation within the confines of the apartment dwelling was essential. And it doesn’t get better than a beach at your doorstep. Residents will be able to sink their toes into the white sand while luxuriating in their own private lagoon surrounded by established gardens. It’s hard to believe that outside this quiet centre Newstead will still be raging with activity, and that’s exactly what is intended. On the homefront, Cox Rayner’s proposed Laguna u
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apartments are reflective of the progress happening outside the walls of Newstead Central. The vibe is undoubtedly modern. Natural light and open living will give Laguna living a breezy elegance. A crisp, white palette will work to give the illusion that the walls are wider and higher, adding to the desired sense of space that is essential to apartment living. As any discerning apartment dweller will attest, white is also by far the easiest colour scheme to create your own personal space within. Sleek black window fittings and door frames will add an effortless and chic monochromatic hit to the rooms, ensuring that the looks stay fresh and in touch with the new Newstead. The city views are not wasted, with grand floor-to-ceiling windows ready to maximise the prime location and allow apartment balconies to feel as though they are a seamless extension of the living space. Inward-facing apartments will be no less spoilt for views, with the man-made beach and lagoon glistening below, inviting guests to enter their own private oasis. A major priority in the creation of Newstead Central was the need to foster a “community feel� between the five separate towers, even though each will have its own individualised design. This is where the luxury facilities come into play. The Laguna beach oasis forms the centre of the Newstead Central project and will become a hub for residents to form a community. Interconnecting walkways and lagoon decking will create a seamless journey between towers. BBQ facilities, sundecks and lawns will be perfect for gathering, and a communal gym and billiard room will 120 PROVOKE.COM.AU
also be open to everyone who calls Newstead Central home. Ground-floor retail space is also planned for the Aqua and Laguna frontages. Construction has begun at Laguna’s Anne Street site and residents are expected to start moving in from March 2016. Laguna is now selling, with apartments listed from $428,000– $944,000. Tower three, St Tropez, is also under construction, and Tower four, Capri, is now selling. For sales enquiries visit newsteadcentral.com.au and register to check out the fully furnished Laguna Apartment display suite.
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BRIDGEMAN DOWNS SOUTHPORT
Award Winning Masterpiece 27 Egerton Street -–PID: 798375 Absolute Luxury AtSTUNNING Every Turn! RENOVATED HOME!
ON AUCTION
– With Brian McGrath on the 24th October at 4pm, on Site.
FOR SALE - offers over $695,000 6 3 3 23 2
Rarely offered in the exclusive TSS area is this private home filled with light that represents an alluring sunny
5 Estonia Avenue retreat; this irresistible home combines 1950's charisma with renovated quality.
Having received the Master Builders luxury “Display Home of the Year” award after its completion, this remarkable six bedroom residence guarantees an opulent lifestyle second-to-none, and is sure to impress upon inspection. Offering absolute class and only the highest of quality fixtures, fittings and first-rate inclusions throughout, the home features stylish poolside entertaining, open and spacious living and entertaining
zones, while parent privacy is assured, with the master suite completely separate from the other bedrooms. Sitting proudly in one of the most prestigious and highly sought-after pockets on the Northside, this magnificent residence boasts exceptional street appeal, blending a versatile floor plan with contemporary features to create a truly outstanding modern family home that will cater to all family sizes.
professionals southport Ground Floor, 16 Nerang Street, Southport W: www.professionalssouthport.com.au P: 07 5591 8333 - F: 07 5591 8855
Features Include: • Grand entry and foyer leading to a sweeping staircase to the upper level; • Master bedroom with walk-in-robe, feature-step ceiling, sitting deck and HIA award-winning ensuite with spa bath; • Downstairs full guest room with separate entry, ensuite and walk-in-robe; • Dedicated media/rumpus room with granite wet bar and surround sound; • In-ground pool with timber decking.
Andrew Wright andrew@professionalssouthport.com.au P: 07 5591 8333 M: 0417 634 038
All information contained herein is gathered from sources we believe to be reliable. We cannot however guarantee its accuracy and interested parties should make and rely on their own enquiries. Print & marketing powered by
BRIDGEMAN DOWNS SOUTHPORT
City Acreage Living27Has Never Been So Good Egerton Street - PID: 798375
Offers- offers Over over $4,000,000 FOR SALE $695,000 6 3 3 23 2
80 Tiverton PlaceSTUNNING RENOVATED HOME!
Rarely offered in the exclusive TSS area is this private home filled with light that represents an alluring sunny retreat; this irresistible home combines 1950's charisma with renovated quality. Set among 10,120m2 of immaculately acreage addresses, this unique property, • 70m2 master suite with glamorous full manicured grounds, this architectural is located only 14km from the busy CBD dressing room; masterpiece offers around 1300m2 of and is handy to all of the must-have • Full wet-bar with mood-lit façade, living, and will provide one privileged conveniences of city living. stainless-steel benchtop, display cabinet family a city acreage lifestyle second to and a climate-controlled cellar; none. Recently constructed by a multiFeatures Include: • Chef’s galley-style kitchen featuring a award-winning builder, 80 Tiverton Place • 4 spacious bedrooms with deluxe 4m Calacatta Marble island benchtop, boasts only the highest standards of ensuites and walk-in-robes; stainless-steel cooktop bench, quality state-of-the-art fixtures and luxurious • All bathrooms with 2 pac & Grigio Miele appliances and butlers pantry; fittings throughout. Quietly nestled Carnico marble vanities and floor-to• Dedicated home theatre / media room in one of Brisbane’s most prestigious ceiling designer tiles; with built-in surround sound. professionals southport Ground Floor, 16 Nerang Street, Southport
Brian McGrath, of Ray White W:Chermside www.professionalssouthport.com.au P: 07 QLD, 5591 83334032 - F: 07 5591 8855 704 Gympie Road, Chermside, P: 07 3350 1800 M: 0418 785 044
Andrew Wright andrew@professionalssouthport.com.au P: 07 5591 8333 M: 0417 634 038
All information contained herein is gathered from sources we believe to be reliable. We cannot however guarantee its accuracy and interested parties should make and rely on their own enquiries. Print & marketing powered by
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Properties | LIVING
[TAG] Living | Property
SALISBURY 3 IN 1 Dual Living + Granny Flat
49 Hayling Street That’s right, this 10-year-old home can be used as one or can be isolated into three separate living areas. On the lower level of the home there is a double-car garage, four bedrooms, one bathroom, kitchen, laundry and access via main door, as well as an internal staircase leading upstairs with a lockable door. The main area upstairs consists of one bedroom, one bathroom, kitchen, formal dining area and formal living, again with its own access through the staircase at the front
of the property. Adding to that, there is a granny flat-style unit attached to the upstairs portion of the property; this can be accessed either through the shared deck or via the ramp wrapping around the property. This space includes a living area, bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and laundry. The property is well appointed, airconditioners are throughout as well as built-in wardrobes, master with walk-in, blackout electronically controlled blinds, hardwood flooring upstairs and tiles
SALISBURY 3 IN 1 Dual Living + Granny Flat 49 Hayling Street
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this 10-year-old home can be used as one or can be isolate downstairs.That’s Theright, property sits on a corner living areas. On the lower level of the home, there is a double car garag 607m2 block of land, all within walking bathroom, kitchen, laundry and access via main door as well as an inter distance toupstairs parkswith and public transport. a lockable door. The main area upstairs consists of one be This property be area perfect for that kitchen,would formal dining and formal living, again with its own access t at the front thean property. Adding to that, extended family orofas investment, as there is a granny flat style uni upstairs portion of the property; this can be accessed either through the the property could be potentially rented the ramp wrapping around the property; this space includes a living area out as three separate units with a few kitchen and laundry. very small alterations. The property is well air conditioners are throughout as well a Private inspections areappointed, welcome by master with walk-in, black out electronically appointment, please don’t hesitate to controlled blinds, hardwood tiles downstairs. The property sits on a corner 607m2 block of land, all w call for further information. to parks and public transport.
This property would be perfect for that extended family or as an investm could be potentially rented out as three separate units with a few very sm
Michael Kanik Property Consultant 2 Dorchester Street, South Brisbane, QLD, 4101 E: michael@stylerealestate.com.au M: 0433 690 962
Private inspections are welcome by appointment, please don't hesitate t information. Michael Kanik Property Consultant 2 Dorchester Street, South Brisbane, QLD, 4101 E: michael@stylerealestate.com.au M: 0433 690 962
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LIVING | Properties
ROBINA OFFICE SPACE FOR SALE AND LEASE Scottsdale Drive CBD ROBINA Brand new two-storey offices for sale and lease, featuring: • 163m2 to 304m2 flexible open-plan floorspace available • Uniquely designed stand alone buildings, • Extensive signage opportunities • Easy access in a central location.
Marcus Weld mweld@robina.com.au M: 0414 726 207 W: robina.com.au
BONOGIN Private Luxury Escape – Ocean and Skyline Views! SOUTHPORT 27 Egerton Street - PID: 798375
143 Chesterfield Drive
FOR SALE - offers over $695,000 5 20 3 24 2
STUNNING RENOVATED HOME!
in the exclusive TSS area is this private home filledrecedes with lightto that an alluring sunny Poised atop a natural ridgeline is this Rarely offered ocean beyond. A seamless indoor/outdoor therepresents dining room and living irresistibleishome combines 1950's voids, charisma with renovated quality. enjoys coastline views contemporary multi-storey residence retreat; thispresence delivered by soaring space, which defined by spectacular views and a raft of banks of mobile glass, natural materials and the ambience of a fireplace. The impressive lifestyle features. and a grand sense of space. entertainment room, with a bar and wine Positioned amid the tranquillity, Sheltered courtyards, exposed fridges, opens seamlessly to a covered seclusion and security of a 4.25ha land terraces and an observation deck are alfresco lifestyle room with bench seating and a granite built-in barbecue kitchen. parcel accessed via an electric gate, the accessed from an open-plan lifestyle Frameless glass fronts the infinity-edge architect-designed home embraces space serviced by a chef’s kitchen with integrated refrigeration, Miele range pool and there is a separate in-ground breathtaking views across native bushland to the imposing Gold Coast skyline and and a preparation area. An island bench spa and a fenced tennis court.
Nick Cole professionals southport Lucy Cole Prestige Properties Ground Floor, 16 Nerang Street, Southport M: 0421 647 441 W: www.professionalssouthport.com.au P: 07 5591 8333 - F: 07 5591 8855
Andrew Wright andrew@professionalssouthport.com.au P: 07 5591 8333 M: 0417 634 038
All information contained herein is gathered from sources we believe to be reliable. We cannot however guarantee its accuracy and interested parties should make and rely on their own enquiries. Print & marketing powered by
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Properties | LIVING
PARADISE WATERS Tomorrow’s Lifestyle Today
4 Seafarer Court
SOUTHPORT 27 Egerton Street - PID: 798375
FOR SALE - offers over $695,000 5 3 3 25 2
RENOVATED fitted dressing room and ensuite with Impressive modern architecture and STUNNING adjoining loungeHOME! includes a gas log fire in the exclusive TSS is this private home filled with light that represents an bidet. alluring sunny and the media room is area sound proofed spa, rain shower, toilet and an idyllic waterfront location put this Rarely offered retreat; this irresistible home combines charisma with renovated quality. and fully equipped. Rustic 1950's stone features prestige property in the ‘must see’ are underfoot on the large waterfront Features Include: category. Gleaming timber floors feature from the atrium entry throughout living terrace, with a glass fence overlooking • Security gates, cobblestone driveway, areas, while extra high ceilings create the sandy beach and serviced pontoon. 3-car garage with storage area; an air of light and space. Just off the Discreetly sited along the side boundary • High ceilings throughout, zoned ducted foyer are a luxury guest suite, a study is the lap pool, with the convenience of a airconditioning & sound system; overlooking the lap pool and a dedicated powder room off the side path. A special • Textured carpets to bedrooms, fully sound-proofed media room. The feature of the foyer is the elegant Art designer bathrooms tiled to ceiling north side of waterfront living areas Deco staircase in timber and stainless height; opens fully to an undercover bbq terrace steel, which winds up to a circular void • Upstairs gym overlooks lap pool, for al fresco entertaining in privacy. The lit by an ornate modern glass pendant. master suite with city skyline views; • Solar-power panels, heat pump HWS, large open-plan kitchen features stone Four upstairs bedrooms plus a 2nd gatehouse with video intercom; benchtops and white lacquer cabinetry, study or gymnasium offer luxury-level professionals southport Andrew Wright all bedrooms with • Boat shed with rollerdoor under with Miele appliances, including a gasGround Floor, 16accommodation, andrew@professionalssouthport.com.au Nerang Street, Southport private ensuites, two with P:walk-in robes. terrace, large pontoon + jetski pontoon, cooktop and integrated ovens. FormalW: www.professionalssouthport.com.au 07 5591 8333 M: 0417 634 038 dining overlooks the water while the P: 07 5591 8333The balcony, metres to main river. - F: 07master 5591 8855 features a large All information contained herein is gathered from sources we believe to be reliable. We cannot however guarantee its accuracy and interested parties should make and rely on their own enquiries. Print & marketing powered by
Lucy Cole Lucy Cole Prestige Properties M: 0412 755 709
October/November 2015 125
MARKETPLACE | Beauty
Taking Beauty by the Hand
Gold Coast Glamour... That Comes to You!
Beautiful nails are no longer a luxury thanks to Little Boutique Nails. Nail technician Bridget Little has 13 years of experience, specialising in acrylic, gel and Shellac nails and carries a wide range of tip styles, glitter acrylics and shellac colours. The marvellous manicure options are endless! At just $40 for a full set of French Tips, there is no longer an excuse for nail neglect. Search for Little Boutique Nails on Facebook. LITTLE BOUTIQUE NAILS Location: Heads Unlimited, Robina Quays Shopping Centre P: 0415 850 169 @little_boutique_nails
Are looking to up your glam-factor at your next big event? The Gold Coast’s Bewitched Boutique has you covered for head to toe – literally! Beautician Gabi Sharkey specialises in everything from foot detoxes to spray tans and waxing and she will even come to you with her specialty professional mobile makeup and makeovers. Whether you’re headed down the aisle or just want to feel extra special on your birthday, Bewitched Boutique can help bring out the best in you. Search Bewitched Boutique on Facebook or Instagram. BEWITCHED BEAUTY P: 0408 361 764 @bewitched_makeup
Makeup That Loves Your Skin
Dazzling New Designs
With high quality, organic, cruelty free products that doesn’t cost the earth, Zuii Organics are by far one of the best Australian cosmetic brands in the market. Based in Nerang QLD, the certified organic brand have perfected a unique range of makeup products, using essential oils, vitamins, minerals and organic floral ingredients (such as Rose, Jasmine and Chamomile) to nurture, protect and improve your skin. With foundations, primers, colourful lip products, mineral blush, mascara and various eye-catching palette’s, Zuii can provide something to suit all skin types! ZUII ORGANIC W: zuiiorganic.com @zuiiorganic
Hot pinks, vibrant yellows and crisp blues have dominated the catwalk this season and Secrets have created the perfect fine jewellery designs to follow trend. Featuring exquisite statement jewels, Secrets limited edition Resort Collection is all about vibrant, fresh and playful poolside glamour for Spring/Summer 2015-16. So roll up your beach towels ladies, put on your favourite lipstick, and tilt your hat and shades to reveal your beautiful Secrets. Secrets limited edition Resort Collection is priced from $A95 and is available in stores now. SECRETS SHHH... Pictured: Bird of Paradise Necklet, RRP $240 W: secrets-shhh.com @secretsshhh
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Food | MARKETPLACE
Italian Goes Poolside at Jupiters
Award-Winning Japanese Cuisine
Delicious Delights
Let’s Get Lunch!
Set in lush tropical gardens nestled around a tranquil pond, with bubbling waterfalls, tinkling wind chimes and the sounds of nature surrounding you, the Spirit House is a delight for all senses. With their sensational Award winning contemporary Asian food, friendly staff and enthusiastic chefs, the venue is one of Queensland’s most highly regarded restaurants. This fantastic venue also offers Asian inspired cooking classes, with the finest master-chefs available to teach you all the techniques needed to make dishes that are the envy of all your friends. SPIRIT HOUSE Location: 20 Ninderry Road, Yandina P: 07 5446 8977 W: spirithouse.com.au
Lunch doesn’t have to be a grab-and-go affair thanks to Moo Moo The Wine Bar + Grill. Book your next luncheon at the best steak restaurant on the Gold Coast or Brisbane and tuck into a sumptuous two-course offering for just $45 per person. There’s no excuse for skipping the added dessert for only $10 more. With a glass of wine, bubbles or local beer rounding out the meal, it’s the perfect plan for a business lunch or overdue catchup with loved ones. Call the Moo Moo team to book a table and wow your guests today! MOO MOO THE WINE BAR + GRILL P: Brisbane 07 3236 4500 / Gold Coast 07 5539 9952 W: moomoorestaurant.com @moomoorestaurant
As they celebrate their 30th birthday, the award-winning Broadbeach hotel and casino now have their first ever outdoor dining venue, Cucina Vivo. Celebrating the values of good company, great food and beautiful surrounds, the Italian restaurant boasts stunning poolside views, a two-metrelong wood-fire oven and a gorgeously distinct Italian seaside atmosphere. Inspired by cliff-top restaurants along the Amalfi Coast, Cucina Vivo has gained world-class recognition by winning the 2015 Australian Hotel Association (AHA) Best Restaurant/Accommodation Division award, a coveted place on the shortlist for the prestigious International Restaurant & Bar Design Awards 2015 and was shortlisted in the Design Awards’ International Category for Best Australian & Pacific Restaurant. JUPITERS HOTEL & CASINO P: 1800 074 344 W: jupitersgoldcoast.com.au
Offering some of the best authentic Japanese cuisine in the Gold Coast region, O-Sushi are well known for their local and fresh ingredients, high-quality Japanese chefs, stylish menu options and vibrant restaurant locations. They have made their mark in the Japanese cuisine industry, with a diverse menu offering traditional favourites (such as teriyaki and noodle soups) alongside inspiring fusion chef specials, vegetarian and GF options, and a variety of seasonalchanging tapas. Another marker of their success is their strong focus on local and organic ingredients such as fresh fish, biodynamic brown rice, and Puremelt raw chocolate – which can of course be enjoyed with a beverage from their extensive selection of beer, wine and Japanese sake. O-SUSHI Locations: Byron Bay, Coolangatta & Broadbeach W: osushi.com.au
October/November 2015 127
MARKETPLACE | Home
Fragrant, Beautiful and Ready to Take Home Add flourish to your home with soft pink Hyacinth, pink Snapdragons, Sweet Avalanche Roses and Thryptomene Calycina. Spring is the season for fragrance, so now is the perfect time to visit Magnolia Flowers in Ashgrove. Let the expert florists help you to make your next special occasion memorable. With years of experience, the Magnolia team know their way around a posie and can advise you on how to make blooms the wow factor in any setting. Magnolia delivers fresh flowers throughout Brisbane six days a week. MAGNOLIA FLOWERS AND GIFTS P: 07 3366 5522 W: magnoliaflowers.net.au @magnoliaflowersandgifts
Give Your Home a Revamp! Add some new life to your old furniture with the help of Ruma Has It, a Burleigh based business with a special knack for revamping and restoring well-loved pieces. Whether you’ve got a special look in mind, or you’d like help finding something new to suit your home, Ruma Has It can help transform your vision into reality. With excellent customer service, artistic flair and a true passion for helping her customers achieve their dream piece, business owner and mother Lara Fieldhouse is proving that with a splash of colour and a little TLC, old furniture can be given new life. Contact Lara to find the right piece for your home! RUMA HAS IT P: 0412 409 014 W: rumahasit.com.au
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Snuggle Fall in love with the littlest Snuggle from Plush Sofas! This modern take on the loveseat features a clever swivel or fixed base, and is the perfect place to cuddle up. Crafted with care, and constructed with quality timbers and foams, the Snuggle is sure to stand the test of time. Even better, it also comes in a range of colours to suit any interior, and is backed by a 10-Year Peace of Mind Plush Warranty. Head online to their website for your closest QLD showroom. PLUSH Pictured: Plush Snuggle Petite Swivel Chair W: plush.com.au @plush_think_sofas
Make Someone’s Day, or Brighten Your Own Spoil your special someone and show them you care with a beautiful floral arrangement from Hacienda Flowers and Furnishing. Better yet, spoil yourself with blooms to liven up your office or home. The Ascot based team specialise in the freshest and highest quality flowers and potted orchids along with hand-picked furniture and homewares direct from Mexico. With over 20 years in the flower industry, let Hacienda Flowers cater for your next big occasion or make a small one sublime. HACIENDA FLOWERS & FURNISHING P: 07 3868 3346 W: haciendaflowers.com.au @hacienda_flowers
Home | MARKETPLACE
Furniture Perfection
Environmentally-Friendly Styling
As a family owned company established in 2002, ownders Paul and Di Sparrow have been in the furniture Industry for over 35 years. In 2011 they were awarded the Vice Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Australian Furniture Industry. They pride themselves on their customer service, product knowledge and quality products. Their brands include: IMG Action Comfort chairs designed in Norway and solid timber dining tables and buffets in Tasmanian Oak or Blackwood manufactured in Brisbane to customer requirements. They also carry a range of quality leather sofas and beds from Kuka Sofa in a large range of colours and combinations. INSPIRATIONS FURNITURE P: 07 5570 3885
Your world will be made ever more attractive with the new signature collection rugs by Eco Chic! In funky bright colours, these environmentally-friendly rugs are the epitome of fresh outdoor décor. It’s high time to organise that al fresco dinner party you’ve been dreaming about, and be the role model for your friends with your sustainably chic way of living. We love an easy care product that looks good, is practical and good for the planet, so it’s no surprise we love these fun rugs! Made from recycled polypropylene plastic bags, these colourful rugs are a rewarding way to reuse, recycle and reduce. ECO CHIC W: ecochic.com.au
Award-Winning Luxury Designer Chaise Lounge
Cabinetmakers Since 1904
Every now and then, you come across a piece of furniture that is a showcase of master craftsmanship with every detail well thought out and perfectly crafted. This is one of those breathtaking feature pieces. An original design by Australian Award Winning Furniture Designer & Master Craftsman, Will Marx. Handmade from Walnut, a highly decorative and superior timber valued for its rich golden dark brown colour and lustrous texture. The chaise is wrapped in Mokum’s beautifully designed tree-motif white fabric. WILL MARX P: 07 3348 2170 W: willmarx.com.au
On the strength of its ability in expressing workmanship and time periods, Grange mainly creates cherry-wood furniture, in keeping with the high tradition of French cabinetmaking. Adapting French style to modern world demands, Grange is constantly creating new furniture and new customisation options. Each Grange furniture piece is unique thanks to the wide range of stain, sheens and sizes. Introducing the Medaillon Collection. DOMO Locations: Bowen Hills, Brisbane & Bundall, Gold Coast P: Brisbane 07 3852 6188 P: Gold Coast 07 5564 3388 W: domo.com.au @domoaustralia
October/November 2015 129
PUZZLES | Words
WORD SEARCH:
AWARDS
Find all the words listed hidden in the grid of letters. They can be found in straight lines up, down, forwards, backwards or even diagonally. The leftover letters will reveal the mystery answer.
BADGE
GROUP
NOBEL
SPORT
BOOKER
HUMAN RIGHTS
OFFICIAL
STAGE
CERTIFICATE
INTERNATIONAL
ORDER
STATUE
CUP
KNIGHTHOOD
PEACE
TEAM
DECORATION
LITERATURE
PINS
TELEVISION
EMMY
MAN OF THE YEAR
PRIZE
THEATRE
EMPLOYEE
MEDAL
PULITZER
TONY
EXCELLENT
MERIT
RAZZIES
TROPHY
GOLDEN GLOBE
MILES FRANKLIN
SCIENCE
WOODEN SPOON
G R O U P S T S T R O P H Y W P
M A S N E M L E C O R E D R O R
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I E U T A T S A L I N D E B O I
L Y G E H P B F I E E Y S A D Z
E E T A U G E O M C V N T D E E
S H S C T C I P O E I I C G N B
F T N N A S L R R K T F S E S O
R F I E M O A U N N E P F I P L
A O P E Y T T I E A O R I O O G
N N D E I A G L L R M F V Y O N
K A E O R H L I T M A U A M N E
L M N E T E M E R I T Z H M N D
I C T H C E R T A E H T Z E O L
N I O X P U L I T Z E R L I B O
L O E E T A C I F I T R E C E G
D A I N T E R N A T I O N A L S
ARROW WORDS Find the clues in the ‘black squares’. The arrows tell you which space the clue applies to. The answers to clues are written from left to right or top to bottom.
October/November 2015 131
PUZZLES | Words
CROSSWORD 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
15
18
19
20
22
25
26
28
36
29
30
50
46
51
57
58
69
59
70
88
72
84
90
96
107
118
119
108
120
110
111
122
124
146
133
138
147
151
139
144
148
149
153
156
159
160
172
180
187
190
173
174
158
162
175
181
168
182
183
189
191
192
194
196
169
170
176
188
193
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161
167
171
195
157
166
179
140
152
155
165
125
143
145
114
129
137
142
164
113
132
136
150
123
128
131
141
112
117
127
130
178
109
121
126
154
101
116
135
97
103
115
134
85
100
106
80
92
95
102
105
74
91
99
104
73
79
89
94
98
71
83
87
93
66
78
82
86
55
62
77
81
54
65
68
76
44
53
64
75
34
47
61
63
33
43
52
60
67
14
39
42
56
177
32
38
45
163
31
41
49
13
21
37
40
48
12
23
27
35
11
16
17
24
10
197
184
185
186
ACROSS 1. Left unoccupied 6. Resuming (investigation) 11. Parchment rolls 15. From Baghdad 16. Depiction 17. Parody 18. London’s ... Square 21. US honeymoon falls 22. Chewy confectionery 23. Customer 24. Delayed 28. Hindu robe 30. Horse feed 32. Skirt around 35. Fermenting agent 37. Inner layers 38. Immature insects 40. Junior 43. Baaed 45. Cease! (nautical) 47. Model 48. Removed covering 52. Computer modifying key 53. Bishop’s church 56. Lubricant container 58. Wage recipient 60. Agreeing 61. Reads superficially 62. Enlivens 64. Boxing legend, Muhammad ... 65. Spanish coast, Costa del ... 67. Still 69. Supermarket lane 72. Tennis umpire’s assistants 75. Angler’s lure 77. Taverns 78. Consequently 79. Hearing organs 81. Kenyan capital 83. Slushy hail 84. Grounded (appliance) 86. Snow monster 87. Sacred likenesses 90. Earliest 92. Catnap 93. Charge with crime 95. Little Bighorn state 96. Fireplace ledge 98. Calculations 99. Rare pleasure 100. Green (of stone) 101. Title document 102. Bedouin 103. Opposed to 104. Rope-making fibre 106. Less in number 110. African republic 113. Powered by battery or mains (1,1/1,1) 115. Skewer 116. Permits 117. Relaxed (2,4) 118. Couch potato 119. Miss 122. Seaweed and rice snack 125. Clean break 126. Not anywhere 127. Killer (disease) 129. Iron-deficient 130. Bereavement 131. Unfilled space 132. Truck’s unloaded weight
133. Kit 134. Smallest interval in music 137. Restraining cord 138. Committee president 142. Drunkard 143. Negotiable (1,1,1) 145. Stalk vegetable 146. Anaesthetic 149. Shipping routes (3,5) 151. Duration devices 152. Far away 154. Thin blood vessel 156. Atmosphere 157. Desensitising 159. Scoff 161. Inlaid (3,2) 163. Frog stage 168. Enthusiastically 171. PC disk (1,1-3) 172. Rename 176. Crockery 177. Carried 180. ... & gentleman 181. Spoken exam 183. Schedule 187. Taunts 188. Shirk responsibility (3,3) 190. Scramble up 191. More frugal 192. Sloping type 193. Of sound system 194. Tax-evasion scheme 195. Provisional 196. Raucousness 197. Vitamin C source, ... syrup
DOWN 1. O utspoken 2. Metallic ringing 3. Copy outline of 4. Slimming regime 5. Whiskered aquatic animal 6. Ceremonies 7. Large-headed sea bird 8. ANC hero, ... Mandela 9. Lasses 10. O dious 11. T elegraphed 12. ..., willing & able 13. Alpaca relative 14. G raze crusts 19. Unfeigned 20. Behaves 25. Fuss 26. Doomed person 27. C loth colorant 29. S hreds 31. Ancient 32. LA suburb, ... Air 33. Tartan fabric 34. Litigate 36. Exploding 39. Forgoes 40. Thine 41. Appraisal 42. Tubular pasta dish 44. V alley 46. Army vehicle 47. Single article 49. Candle string 50. Turn aside 51. Categorical
53. Crevices 54. Obliterate 55. Queensland’s Great Barrier ... 57. I ndians & Koreans 59. Contend 63. Fetuses 66. Give false advice to 67. Blemishes 68. Dexterous 70. Sicily or Corsica 71. Latitude 73. S hipboard rebellion 74. Had (to) 76. I nklings 80. Youth 82. Dog-inflicted wound 85. C ash points (1,1,2) 88. C anadian province 89. Smudged 90. Plumpness 91. Jogs one’s memory 94. Sadistic 97. Valuable possession 104. Bumped in crowd 105. Mould in relief 106. Measurement of depth 107. Abrade 108. Procession 109. Takes (company) public 111. Acquire 112. Reclaim 113. Allocate 114. Pranced 120. S peed 121. Nest egg 123. F inancially unviable 124. Hassled 127. P urifying strainer 128. Pakistani city 135. Do well (at) 136. Socially cut off 139. R ekindle 140. Informed 141. Stumble 144. Jeans pioneer, ... Strauss 147. Russian emperor 148. Goes astray 150. S hoo! 153. Grotesque 155. Data entered 158. N ephew & ... 160. O gled 162. For all eternity, ... after 164. M uslim leader, ... Khan 165. L iquid crystal display (1,1,1) 166. I n direction of 167. Burial garments 169. T op credit rating (1,1,1) 170. G lass stopper 172. A llergy symptom 173. Song words 174. T he ... Tea Party 175. T ie 177. D esert plants 178. B ake (meat) 179. G lowing coal 180. Reveal secret (3,2) 182. Feudal masters 184. Incites 185. W hinny 186. Greek fable writer 187. S treetcar 189. Terrace October/November 2015 133
PUZZLES | Numbers
SODOKU Fill the grid so that every column, every row and every 3x3 box contains the numbers 1 to 9.
Difficulty
Difficulty
Difficulty
Difficulty
Š Lovatts Publications Pty Ltd - www.lovattspuzzles.com
134 PROVOKE.COM.AU
Lotus
Words & Numbers | PUZZLES
BINARY
To solve the Lotus Logic puzzle:
LOTUS
• Each arc must contain the numbers 1 – 7. • Each ring of shaded petals must contain the numbers 1 – 7. • Each ring of white petals must contain the numbers 1 – 7. Each square in the puzzle may contain either 0 or 1 • No number can be repeated in any arc or ring.
1. No more than two adjacent squares may contain the same digit, ie you cannot have three adjacent squares in a row or column of the same digit. 2. Each row and each column must contain the same number of 0s and 1s, eg for a 10x10 grid, each row and column will contain five 0s and five 1s. 3. No row may be the same as another row and no column may be the same as another column. However, a row may be the same as a column.
To solve the Lotus Logic puzzle: • Each arc must contain the numbers 1 – 7. • Each ring of shaded petals must contain the numbers 1 – 7. • Each ring of white petals must contain the numbers 1 – 7. • No number can be repeated in any arc or ring.
MAGIC SQUARES
Lotus_001 © Lovatts Puzzles
Lotus
Solve the clues and fill the words. The same word will fit both Across and Down in the crossword grid.
To solve the Lotus Logic puzzle: • Each arc must contain the numbers 1 – 7. • Each ring of shaded petals must contain the numbers 1 – 7. • Each ring of white petals must contain the numbers 1 – 7. • No number can be repeated in any arc or ring.
For the solutions to this issue’s puzzles go to provoke.com.au
Magic Squares 170 © Lovatts Puzzles ANSWERS: 1. Emerge, 2. Mixers, 3. Exudes, 4. Red Sea, 5. Greedy, 6. Essays.
October/November 2015 135
FINAL THOUGHT | Respectful Relationships
WILL SCHOOL-BASED EDUCATION HELP STOP THE CYCLE OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE? With domestic violence costing Australia over $13 billion per year, will ‘Respectful Relationship’ programs help change our future generations? WORDS: JAS RAWLINSON
R
ecently it was discovered that one in four young Australians believe it’s OK for a man to hit his partner during a drunken tiff, or to pressure her into having sex. Devastating as this is, should we really be so surprised given the staggering rates of family violence in our country? In 2015, Australia has seen an average of two women murdered each week, with 60 male related deaths recorded by the end of September; the majority of which were committed by a current/former partner (Research: Real For Women). Given the alarming rates of family violence in our country, it’s unsurprising that many children are growing up around violence and accepting it as the norm. So how do we change this? Many Australians, including Dame Quentin Bryce, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, Australian of the Year Rosie Batty and Indigenous author/ advocate Lani Brennan, believe that educating our youth about the realities and impact of family violence is an essential step in the fight to end a culture of violence against women. In recent months, QLD, NSW and Tasmania announced they would invest in the future of our youth by introducing ‘Respectful Relationship’ school programs, and in late September came the heartening news that the programs would be embedded into the Australian school curriculum by no later than 2017. Many hope that these programs will help to stop the cycle of violence early, by addressing toxic and unhealthy attitudes before they can come to fruition. While the programs have been met with positive feedback, some Australians feel that the school education system shouldn’t take the place of parents when it comes to social issues; expressing concern that such programs would take away
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Domestic violence costs QLD between $2.7 to $3.2 billion each year (‘Not Now, Not Ever’ Report by Quentin Bryce)
from the already-packed curriculum. While it would be ideal for parents to teach their children about treating others with respect, this just isn’t a reality for many children living in abusive families. Considering education systems exist to prepare our children for healthy futures, and are the dominant space (beside the home) where children spend the majority of their time, surely it makes sense to include programs such as these as part of their life education. If we can create healthy, welladjusted youth who contribute positively to society and know how to
engage in respectful relationships, surely the benefits far outweigh the costs associated with picking up the broken pieces? Violence against women and children is an epidemic issue terrorising our country, and the only way to stop the cycle is to teach our future generations to stand against it.
What do you think? Join the conversation by commenting online @provokemag or sending us an email!
WOMEN’S LEGAL SERVICE HELP QLD WOMEN & CHILDREN WHO EXPERIENCE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Last year we assisted 3,500 women. Thousands more need our support. www.wlsq.org.au/support-us/donate ndavidson@wlsq.org.au | (07) 3392 0644
Happily designed and supported by Focused Marketing Solutions. Women’s Legal Service is a statewide not-for-profit, charitable organisation with a 30-year history of helping Queensland women and children (CP555, IAO3518). All donations over $2 are tax deductible.