sausage dogs

healesville.

Being the dags we are, Tim and I took a day trip to Healesville recently. We went to the sanctuary, which I must say was awesome. I didn't have that nasty zoo feel (says she who got married in a zoo), lots of nice planting and bush land to walk through, but the highlight was definitely the bird show. Normally I find birds pretty boring, but having all the birds of prey swoop inches above our heads was amazing. Definitely recommend.

design made trade.

As mentioned, I went to Design Made Trade on the weekend, which is basically a fair or market showcasing Australian designers, in the areas of textiles, furniture, craft, jewelry, lighting and more. The standard was very high, and there was a lot of talent and enthusiasm going on. 

All the brands are relatively small - some more established and well known, but others I've not seen before, so it's a great place to stock up on original finds. For this reason it's particularly good for presents. 

Here are some of my top picks, with links below.

Aegis Made
Felt laptop, iphone and ipad sleeves (I bought matching for my iphone and laptop)

Cloth
The cloth brand is quite established now, and for good reason! Their prints are beautiful.

Dick & Dora
No, i don't need to see yet another bird badge.. Or maybe I do because these ones are particularly great.

From Woop Woop
According to the website "non cringe-worthy Australian gifts", and I couldn't agree more. I wish I had these printed place mats to give as gifts whilst traveling! Striking Australian flora motifs, with clever "puzzle" design which has pull out coaster and trivet pieces, all flat packed into a handy cardboard folder. 

Harvest Textiles 
Childrens clothing and softies kits. There's a lot of softies kits going around, these ones are particularly good. And they had very cool onesies too.

Keep Cup
I bought these for the designers in my office last year. They look great and they actually work: a year later they're still going strong. That's a lot of disposable coffee cups saved.

the carnival is over.

We've been back a week now. Everyone says ironically "I bet you're happy to be back", but we are! We've missed our friends, family, dog, Melbourne. Three months was a long time, and I feel like I have a fresh perspective on things, and I'm appreciating what we have a bit more. Which will probably last a week before I start whingeing.

This weekend we did the things that I missed most about Melbourne: the pub with friends, and brunch at a café in Fitzroy with mum and dad. It's good to be back.