Eco Valentine’s Day Gift Ideas
- Words by Peppermint
Forget the imported roses and hastily scribbled cards destined for the bin – we’ve chosen a few sweet, stylish and unusual gifts that have been designed and made with passion, so you can float someone’s boat this Valentine’s Day! Will you be ours?
1) River Glass Necklace (handmade in Sydney from vegetable tanned leather and recycled coke bottle glass beads), $49, from Eva Cassis, an Australian artisan jeweller and clothing designer creating beautiful products from recycled materials and natural fibres. See below for details of how to win!
2) Happy Valentine’s Day Chocolate Gift Pack (including coconut & goji, sour cherry & vanilla, mint and rose flavours), $29.90, from Pana Chocolate, who make their raw, organic and vegan chocolate by hand in Melbourne.
3) Jar of Hearts Candle (fair trade, made in Thailand), $6.95, from Oxfam Shop – where you’ll also find a selection of fair trade homewares, jewellery, kitchenware, fashion, books and toys from around the globe.
4) Bamboo Underwear Gift Set (two pairs of boxer trunks made from 95% bamboo), $59, from Bamboo Village, an online store featuring a great range of sustainable bamboo clothing, homewares, gifts and more.
5) Whiskey Barrel Cuff Links (handmade in Dublin from reclaimed Irish oak barrels), $49, from Upcycle Studio, an online store that sells an inspiring range of stylish recycled, repurposed and sustainable apparel, homewares and gifts.
6) Wild Flower Lingerie Set (made ethically from 100% cotton), $124, from Madonna Bain, an Australian purveyor of pretty pants, beautiful bralettes and splendid sleepwear.
7) Love and Happiness pillowcases (screen printed in Melbourne using non-toxic inks), $35 each, from Feliz, who create bright, beautiful, ethically made homewares that’ll brighten up any living space.
8) Vanilla Summer fragrance by LaVanila (made without parabens, sulphates or synthetic dyes and fragrances), $79.95, from Beautiful Because, an Australian online store selling a range of natural bath, beauty and skincare goodies from brands including Inika, La Mav and Vanessa Megan. See below for details of how to win!
To be in with a chance to WIN the gorgeous Eva Cassis River Glass Necklace or the sultry Vanilla Summer fragrance from Beautiful Because, leave a comment below telling us which of the two you’d like and what you’ll be doing to spread the love this weekend. {Entries close 5pm AEST Friday 13 February, 2015}. And feel free to tag your significant other in our Facebook post telling them which of the above you’d love to receive this Valentine’s Day… hint, hint!
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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
