Issue 64: Our gorgeous summer issue is full of creativity, inclusivity and belonging
- Words by Peppermint
Our new issue is here! And its beautiful cover art by Lisa Congdon proudly proclaims a sentiment near and dear to our Peppermint hearts: you belong here. Yes, you do.
We interviewed Lisa for issue 64 and she said of this artwork: “We are in unprecedented times in the United States, at least in terms of having a government who openly and unabashedly disparages, rejects and causes harm to trans folks and other marginalised groups, including immigrants. So my team decided I should make a piece of art that included the words ‘You Belong Here’ that people could hang in their homes, and this piece was born.”
Our gorgeous summer issue is full of creativity, inclusivity and belonging. Our cover is the front door, welcoming you into our house of hope. You are welcome. You are valued. Take a seat at our table. YOU BELONG HERE. 🫶
Visit the tiny, off-grid house of Sophie Kovic, founder of Seed & Sprout, and listen and learn from four trans or non-binary folk championing their right to belong – Georgie Stone, Rudi Landmann, Sunday Jemmott and Kim Leutwyler. Hear about the power of preloved and style to reclaim identity with Nat Shehata, and Perth photographer Amanda Battle explains how her Women Of Water Project has brought sisterhood and second chances from the sea.
Read how zero waste designer and sewist Birgitta Helmersson is turning fabric scraps into fashion gold, while a sewing side hustle from Famin Ahmed has helped lift the lid on domestic violence. Indigenous filmmaker Rachel Perkins shifts her focus to fashion with Atyene, and Amanda Hayman of Aboriginal Art Co helps us show solidarity with the oldest continuing culture on Earth with a roundup of deadly brands. Explore the handmade felt world of maker Cat Rabbit (plus a FREE Lucky Pickle DIY!), pore over the beautiful embroidered tapestries by the Porgai Artisans as documented by Melanie Hinds and be inspired by Jen Jeavons who decided to walk away from ‘having it all’.
And, of course, there’s a new sewing pattern – meet the Daisy Dress! Created with support from our pals at Potter & Co and Sew Your Way, this flowy, blousy dress offers a bounty of fun features and custom styling options. Raglan sleeves promise fullness and fabulousness, topped off by the optional insertion of lace or trim (swoon!). Designed with lots of ease (with a tie belt to cinch), a button placket down the front, pockets and a band collar, the Daisy can be easily shortened or lengthened to suit your whims or weather. The digital pattern for the Daisy is free with Issue 64!
We’re so grateful to our sewing partners for helping make this pattern happen. Potter & Co, proudly based in WA, are a small-but-mighty wholesale and retail textile merchant that has been supplying fabric to the fashion industry for over 25 years. While they specialise in linen – all OEKO-TEX certified no less – their bricks-and-mortar and online store also carry plenty of other fabrics to tempt your textile tendencies. Thanks also to Sew Your Way and their stylish sewing accessories. Keep pins handy with the Magnetic Pin Cushion Wristband or the Terrazzo Pin Dish, and their SiliPins are a must; the heat-safe, silicone head pins are designed for accessibility and ease – game-changing for sewists with arthritis, grip issues or dexterity challenges.
We hope this issue helps spread the important message of belonging, along with a liberal dash of sewing, style and sustainability. To get your copy, swing by our online shop or your closest stockist. Happy reading! 🌈
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“My piece of advice for makers and designers? Run your own race… make sure your key decisions stay anchored in your brand’s core beliefs.”
- Bec Bligh
Quick show of hands: who’s opened a water bottle expecting a refreshing sip… and instead been greeted by the unmistakable whiff of uh-oh?
Because for something that follows us everywhere (desk, car, hikes, yoga…), the humble drink bottle is strangely prone to becoming a science experiment. Hard-to-clean corners and gaskets. Mystery smells. Bec Bligh and her husband Tim know it well. A six-month sailing trip along the Queensland coast left them with a lifetime of memories and one stubborn annoyance: mouldy water bottles they couldn’t properly clean.
So they did something about it.
Enter @EverVessel. Thoughtfully designed borosilicate glass and stainless steel bottles that keep things beautifully simple: durable materials, wide openings, easy-to-clean parts and none of the techy gimmicks that tend to age badly. Turns out simplicity, done well, is pretty powerful stuff. (Their many design awards agree!)
And lately they’ve added a little extra delight: the Artist Series, where creatives like Paola Castro, Ben Miners and Martin Thompson transform these everyday companions into tiny travelling artworks. There are more colabs in the works, too: hydration, but make it joyful! 🎨💧
We chatted with Bec about the sailing trip that started it all, the philosophy behind Ever Vessel, and why the most sustainable product is often just the one you keep using.
Tap the link in our bio to read the full conversation. 🚰
#EverVessel #ReusableWaterBottle
Pull up a chair… there’s room at this table!
For the first time, Feast for Freedom is bringing people together for a spectacular long-table dinner as part of the Melbourne Food & Wine Festival.
A Longer Table is exactly what it sounds like: one beautiful shared table inside the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (@Asrc1), piled with generous dishes inspired by this year’s hero cooks, Noha and Nige.
From 6 to 9pm on Wednesday, 25 March, this is what you can expect:
🍽 A three-course shared feast
🍷 Matched drinks
🎶 Live entertainment
✨ A room full of good humans
Your ticket doesn’t just buy you a delicious dinner. It supports the ASRC’s vital work and helps create a fairer future for people seeking asylum.
Seats are limited, and long tables have a way of filling up quickly – head to @MelbFoodAndWine’s website to book now: feastforfreedom.org.au/mfwf
#FeastForFreedom #MelbourneFoodAndWineFestival #LongTableDinner #FoodForChange
Sew versatile! 🪡
Another great make from Lisa from @SunnySewsEveryday:
My #PeppermintWaratahWrapDress is finished and I’m so proud of it. It has been designed not to flap open and flash your pants in the wind, so I feel confident it will be a great wheelchair or standing dress in English weather.
#PeppermintPatterns #WrapDress #WrapDressPattern
Frame your face with the Peppermint Bucket Hat!
Stay safe and stylish in the sun with your very own self-sewn and self-drafted wide-brimmed bucket hat. This beginner-friendly sew is perfect for a sunny day. Get out your pencils – this pattern is created using equations and maths!
This DIY project was featured in Issue 53 and now you can access it for the lovely low price of only $5.
Sun-safe chic is always in style. ☀️
Find it via the link in our bio!
Photos: @KelleySheenan
#PeppermintPatterns #PeppermintBucketHat #BucketHat #BucketHatPattern #DIY
✨ INSTANT CLASSIC ✨
The Peppermint Myrtle Shift Dress is a beginner-friendly make with a few special details based on the ever-stylish shift shape – the perfect dress you need in your wardrobe right now!
Myrtle cuts above the knee with options to customise the length. Don’t think she’s reserved for hot weather either: try a heavier-weight fabric to turn your Myrtle into a pinafore-style garment for layering.
For our fabrics we chose two from our lovely sewing partner @Karmme_Apparel – the bold Rottnest Stripes in a lightweight, soft-drape cotton, and the quality linen in the handpainted Mexico Collection.
Get making the Myrtle – the only question is, can you stop at just one?
Link in bio 🪡
Fabric: @Karmme_Apparel
Sewist: @Laura_The_Maker
Photos: @KelleySheenan
Models: @SerahSews and @Pins_And_Tonic
Location: @ShareTheDignityAustralia
#PeppermintMyrtleShiftDress #PeppermintPatterns
It’s time to Feast!
Some recipes travel a long way before they land on your table to delight your taste buds. This year’s Feast for Freedom invites us to gather our friends, cook something delectable and raise funds for the incredible work of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (@Asrc1) while we’re at it.
The 2026 Feast features recipes shared by two remarkable cooks: Noha, who brought the flavours of Palestine with her when she arrived in Australia, and Nige, a Sri-Lankan Tamil cook whose journey with food began in the most unexpected of places.
You can host your own Feast up until 30 April – simply register online and get planning! Host a dinner, organise a workplace lunch, or gather your community… However you do it, the idea is simple: cook, connect and celebrate the cultures and stories that shape Australia.
Want to find out more? Head to the link in bio to meet Noha and Nige, learn more about their stories, and discover a delicious recipe to try.
#FeastForFreedom #PeppermintMagazine #FoodForGood #ASRC
