Country Style

CALL ME old-fashioned, but I still believe in dressing appropriately for an occasion. While it’s acceptable to wear more casual attire everywhere, from work to a wedding, I like to dress up. Don’t get me wrong – I like dress-down Friday as much as th

ACT Beltana Farm Tucked amid a truffiere of 800 trees and just a 10-minute drive from Canberra CBD, you’ll find Beltana Farm. Host and general manager James Souter runs this picturesque country retreat offering cosy accommodation, along with an on-si

Editor KYLIE IMESON Creative director SARAH FARAGO Deputy editor HANNAH JAMES Queensland contributing editor CLAIRE MACTAGGART Art director BERNHARD SCHMITZ Stylist KATE LINCOLN Features writer REBECCA HOOTON Features writer RACHEL WHITE Junior write

During April, I joined my friends Nev, Glen and Martin on a cycling trip along the Central West Cycle Trail over six days and 377 kilometres. The ride commenced at Dubbo with overnight stops at Wellington, Gulgong, Dunedoo, Mendooran, Ballimore and a

MOUTH-WATERING AROMAS from Delilah & Co Catering’s food van greeted guests at Cotswold InOut Furniture’s Mittagong showroom on March 14. It was a lovely afternoon in the NSW Southern Highlands and as people arrived, they were met by the Cotswold team

THE OFFICIAL OPENING of Country Style’s 2024 art exhibition with Michael Reid Galleries was held on a sparkling autumn day in Avalon, NSW. With the gallery walls freshly painted to complement the artworks that made up part of the Our Country exhibiti

Three cheers for the companies still making their products in Australia. It’s no small feat, particularly for big-ticket items like furniture. Domayne’s Eliseo Daybed Chaise, from $5999, is locally made, and can be customised to suit you and your hom

Barrow stainless steel barbecue fire pit, $1595, from Cotswold InOut Furniture. Inferno stainless steel original flat-pack fire pit, $489.95, from The Fire Pit Company. Eva Solo stainless steel firecone, $950, from Hardtofind. Yabbi mild steel outdo

I LIKE WINTER FOR its lack of snakes, for the promise of spring, for comfort food and firesides. I like a hot drink when I’m in from the cold. I like a long bath, and the way the winter sun hits my desk for most of the working day. And that’s about i

WHEN THE WEATHER starts to cool, you’ll find Carina Chambers and her English springer spaniel, Butter, among the oak trees searching for something special: French black truffles. “Our truffle groves are some of the oldest in Australia. They were plan

AFTER “LOOKING AND LOOKING” for their forever farm for what felt like eternity, Kate Kirkpatrick and John Keynes stumbled across a sign in a real-estate agent’s window. It showed a picturesque property in Pomonal, at the foothills of the Grampians in

A classic farmhouse in the Adelaide Hills was given a colourful country makeover. PHOTOGRAPHY LEAN TIMMS ■

THE SECRET TO LIFE, Beth Macdonald suggests, is in slowing down and finding joy in the little moments. “Living in the country has given me clarity on those small moments which are actually what you remember in the end,” says the popular blogger and o

KISMET, FATE, divine intervention – whatever you want to call it, as far as the owners of this home in rural Victoria are concerned, its very existence is the work of benevolent forces. Not so long ago, this was an empty block of land; the country we

GROWING UP IN Adelaide, Luan and Wendy both fondly recall backyards brimming with fruit trees and the crisp, crunchy bounty they offered. The couple craved a similar experience for their own children, Vinh, 13, and Van, 10, and a place they could ret

VINEYARDS, GRASSLANDS, alpine forests and historic rural townships converge in the North Canterbury region of New Zealand’s South Island, where you’ll find Saddlewood, a picturesque, 119-hectare property owned by Anita Todd, 58, and her husband Richa

AT THE TOP of my random internet searches right now (“What is the Korean word for nosebleed?”; “When is the HSC timetable published?”; “Recipe for tteokbokki?”) is “How to attract owls to my garden”. I love owls. Almost as much as I love goats – and

Tim and Lauren Sayce’s compact farmhouse outside Ipswich, Qld (featured in our April 2024 issue), had a smart renovation in 2023, courtesy of their own construction company, Kai Konstruct. Lauren designed cabinetry for the office, kitchen and mud roo

AN UNORTHODOX GIFT from her father, a passionate engineer, more than 40 years ago was the catalyst for a life spent DIY-ing for museum curator, academic and small business owner Christine Hansen. “My dad was a man with a shed,” she says. “When I was

ON THE BANKS OF the Murray River in Victoria’s Rutherglen winegrowing region sits the historic All Saints Estate. Home to a majestic castle built by the vineyard’s founders in 1864, the property boasts 33 hectares of prime vineyards. With a food offe

AS THE TEMPERATURE drops and winter settles in, my mind turns to warm bakes. The shorter days and lingering woodsmoke make me homesick for the nostalgic treats of my childhood: sticky date pudding; apple pie; and fruity crumbles topped with vanilla i

Beat the chill with cosy attire in natural fibres and weatherproof boots. PHOTOGRAPHY ALANA LANDSBERRY PHOTOGRAPHY ASSISTANT LAUREN TROMPP STYLING MATTIE CRONAN STYLING ASSISTANT LILLY VEITCH ■

BEAUTY TIP Get Anneliese’s flawless complexion with Natio’s Soft Focus Pore Perfecting Primer, $24.95, a hydrating balm that blurs pores, redness and fine lines. On her eyes is Natio’s Mineral Eyeshadow Palette in Earthy Tektites, $19.95, with nine r

CLOCKWISE, FROM TOP LEFT Culture Probiotic Night Recovery Water Cream, $66, from Antipodes, hydrates skin and promotes a healthy microbiome. Add clarity and radiance with Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair Synchronized Multi-Recovery Complex, $135, f

PICTURE THIS: YOU’RE walking down the main street in a country town, the wide sky shading into night above you. Ahead, warm light spills from a shop onto the pavement, and the sound of music and laughter drifts towards you. As you get closer, the sho

Broinowski’s The Director is the Commander, a Country Style ‘Best of 2017’, was a world scoop. It’s an account of a film she made in North Korea. Kim Jong Un respected her freedoms (pretty much) and though sardonic at times, it showed us a unique vie

THIS PLATE IS approximately six inches in diameter. I believe it was my grandmother’s. Do you think it is an original Guy Boyd ceramic? Sue Maxwell, The Basin, Vic Guy Boyd was the son of Merric Boyd – the potter, and the younger brother of Arthur B

A top brand in Switzerland for 40 years, Perskindol is now in Australia. Powered by essential oils, the spray and gel target muscle and joint pain. perskindol.com.au Indulge in Beddie’s luxuriously soft, pure cotton bed sheets. Pair with Nanna’s Kis

IN ABOUT 1810, Richard Goodman, a cabinet-maker in London, made this exceptionally large library table. Featuring numerous classical motifs fashionable during the Regency period, including acanthus and the anthemion motifs on the lyre-shaped base, th