Country Race Fashions – SA Life
Country style reigns supreme, with the Limestone Coast boasting a number of finalists in SA’s premier ‘Fashions on the Field’ competition. I recently interviewed three of the gorgeous ladies for the April 2014 edition of SA Life magazine, discovering how a fire prevention officer, a swimming instructor and an electrician charmed the judges with their homegrown creativity. It’s not easy living in the country away from major department stores and boutiques, but these savvy girls know all about improvisation, with quick outfit changes in public toilets en route to the race track, and innovative hats sporting everything from wire trivets to chopsticks! What a transformation – love a ‘Before & After’ shot…
Nature’s Pantry – Hamilton, Victoria
There are swings and roundabouts…and then there’s spinach and roundabouts – particularly if you’re driving through one of Victoria’s largest country towns. Leafy greens are popping up in the middle of some of Hamilton’s busiest thoroughfares, giving new meaning to the concept of ‘lunch on the run’.
“The vegetables can be eaten, but they are still an aesthetic feature, and the cost is no different to annuals, which can take a fair bit of maintenance,” says parks and gardens co-ordinator Jenny Hurse. “We want to be the most healthy, liveable Shire, and this makes a real statement about sustainability.”
My story on this terrific initiative of the Southern Grampians Shire Council appears in the Dec/Jan edition of Outback magazine.
Willalooka Eco Lodge – Outback Magazine
Willalooka Pastoral Company is the featured station in the Dec/Jan issue of Outback magazine. Incredible country in SA’s Upper South East, with its own spectacular 810ha wetland precinct featuring a series of interconnecting basins.
The Marcollat Watercourse
The owners, Kate and Thyne McGregor, have opened the property to overnight guests. This self-contained, four-bedroom Eco Lodge set in total seclusion amongst gum trees is all yours for as long as you like.
Imagine kicking back by a roaring fire looking looking out over Big Reedy Swamp…
If you’re tempted, you can book here, and read more about my article on the property here.
The warmest of welcomes for a refugee
After moving to Australia as a refugee late last decade, Lal Lian was lured to Mount Gambier in 2010 by the promise of work in the horticulture industry.
Photography by Sharyn Cairns
But the opportunity that knocked was beyond even his dreams. Kalangadoo apple growers Chris and Michelle McColl offered Lal almost a hectare of highly prized fully certified organic soil to produce his own crops.
Photography by Sharyn Cairns
My story about this kind family man who accepted a helping hand in a new farming land is in the November 2013 issue of Country Style magazine. Editor Victoria Carey writes:
The story of how a couple of apple farmers at South Australia’s Kalangadoo gave Lal a plot of land on which to grow organic market vegetables, and the way he seized the opportunity with both hands, is one of the most inspiring we’ve had in the magazine recently.
Favourite Bride – Real Weddings Style
I have lots of articles in the new issue of Real Weddings magazine. It’s impossible to pick a favourite – what bride doesn’t look amazing! – but Monique Sola was a standout. Divine looking girl, exquisite headpiece and smoking eye make-up. Photography by The White Tree.
She and husband Daniel make a stunning couple! They married at Barwon Heads in Victoria, adding a fresh touch of glamour to the coastal town.
One of many sweet love stories in the latest edition. And as always, so many ideas to inspire.
Outback Magazine: Spotlight on Depression
Grab the thickest, heaviest, grey woollen blanket you can find. Soak it in steaming hot water, and completely cover yourself with it while lying in bed. Then, try to climb out and go about your normal day with that suffocating weight hanging over you.
Queensland’s Rural Woman of the Year, Alison Fairleigh, says this is what depression feels like. She knows, because she has worn this cloak of misery, and she is using her award to encourage others to emerge from such a dark place. Alison was fascinating to interview – her profile is in the latest Outback magazine.
Outback Magazine Towns: Port MacDonnell
A recent assignment for Outback Magazine led me to a place very close to my heart, where the rising sun on a still winter’s morning is absolutely magical.
The Southern Rock Lobster capital of Port MacDonnell is the feature town in the August-September edition.
You won’t find many shops or cafes in this part of the world; it’s all about getting back to basics…
Enjoying the outdoors and the company of loved ones…
And if your timing is right, a lobster feast.
Best pick up lines – Real Weddings
Picture this: pretty girl walks into a hip nightclub, and the owner greets her at the top of the stairs with:
“I thought I knew every hot girl in Melbourne. Where are you from?”
I’ve been writing for Real Weddings magazine for several years now, and this would have to be the best pick up line yet. And it worked! The couple – Nick and Rozalia Russian – are now husband and wife.
Image by David Higgs
The bride wore J’Aton, and this ultra glam romance is one of many gorgeous stories I’ve shared in the latest issue of Real Weddings out this week.
Penola’s Best Kept Secret
A thriving herb garden is tucked beyond a rustic picket fence and two timber slab cottages on Penola’s Petticoat Lane in South Australia’s Limestone Coast.
Entry is free, and visitors are encouraged to wander and enjoy the bounty of some beautiful volunteers.
I’ve shared their story in the latest edition of Australian Country Style, and was delighted to read the following in the editor’s opening letter:
As we put the magazine together, my team often tells me which stories they like the best. One that has inspired more comments than most is Gretel Sneath’s piece on the National Trust Herb Garden.
Yay!
The May issue also features my article on Wagner’s Rose Nursery which features in an earlier blog post. More gorgeous people and their roses are the best I’ve seen – magazine pix are exquisite!
Smell the Roses
My latest magazine assignment delivered me to a field of roses. While the uber talented Sharyn Cairns snapped away, I was busily planning planting schemes for my garden at home. Oh and doing interviews.
The scent was just incredible – these were your true garden bush roses.
A tricky day trying to escape the harsh sunlight and find pockets of shade, and I was able to take several buckets of blooms home, so there are now beautiful vases everywhere.
Here is the article in my portfolio.
I’m Gretel Sneath, accomplished freelance writer & storyteller. When I'm not on the road, you'll find me on South Australia's Limestone Coast.