| By Kelley Sheenan | 28/5/2025

Digital Download: Issue 63

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It's almost here! 🎉⁠
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The Finders Keepers Melbourne Design Market features almost 270 stalls and rolls around but twice a year. So, if you’re in the business of collecting mindful treasures and giving meaningful gifts, you’ll want to make the most of your day at the fair. Lucky for you, being the Type A bunch we are, we’ve already pulled together a game plan — including strategic snack stops. ⁠
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So, details. The autumn/winter event runs from 11 to 13 July at the Royal Exhibition Building in the Carlton Gardens. General admission is $12, under-13s are free and, if you like to peruse in peace, there’s a low sensory hour from 9am on Sunday, 13 July. Outside that time, you can expect live music, bars and kid-friendly communal art. It truly is an extravaganza with a mind-blowing range of trinkets and food trucks, which is why we suggest you prep ahead. Let’s get ready together - head to our website (link in bio) to see our guide on how to plan your day!⁠
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Market details: ⁠
🔷 The Finders Keepers Melbourne Design Market⁠ ⁠
📍 Royal Exhibition Building, Carlton Gardens, Narrm⁠
🗓️ 11-13 July⁠
🎟️ Get $8 early bird tickets online now and save! ⁠
♻️ BYO reusable bags⁠
🚌 Public transport recommended⁠
🐾 No pets allowed, service animals welcome⁠
💌 Share this post with your mates to make plans!⁠
👁️ Learn more at thefinderskeepers.com ⁠
@TheFindersKeepersMarket⁠
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Photos: @Samsette⁠
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#TheFindersKeepers #MelbourneMarkets

PepTalks - Singalong! 🎶⁠
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If you came to the last PepTalks event, you'll know how much of a hit the singalong at the end was. Hillary (@hillwallart), the multi-talented founder of @CorkAndChroma, is back to round out the night with a tune... nothing beats a good community karaoke to dust off the cobwebs and feel some connection! Any requests?!⁠
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📍 Morningside School of Arts Hall @MSA4170⁠
📅 26 July 2025⁠
🕕️ 6-9.30pm⁠
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$5 from every ticket sold will go to @DangerousFemales 💕⁠
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Chats, treats, tunes and cheers galore... grab your ticket via the link in bio!⁠
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⁠Huge thanks to our pals at @AustralianMakersDirectory for supporting PepTalks. 🫶🏼⁠
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#PeppermintPepTalks #PmPepTalks #BrisbaneEvents #PeppermintMagazine

"For me, participatory art is a way to build community and participate in the everyday practice of democracy. By making art together and creating projects that invite audience participation, I believe artists can help dissolve that feeling of hopelessness and isolation that is a product of hyper-individualism (in ourselves and in others)."⁠
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Across Australia and the world, people who aren’t quite on board with the status quo are threading resistance into every stitch, weaving defiance into tapestries and knitting communities together in the fight for justice. Artist, researcher, and craftivist @TalFitzpatrick's vibrant textile creations blend appliqué, embroidery and activism to address pressing social issues.⁠
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Read more from our 'Crafting Dissent' feature in issue 63, at newsagents and stockists now!⁠
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Photos: Ross Swanborough and Claudio Kirac⁠
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#PeppermintMagazine #Craftivism #Activism #ArtForChange #Justice #Applique #Embroidery⁠

Come and hear from proud Ngarabul and Torres Strait Islander woman Lauren Rogers, our Issue 63 cover artist, at PepTalks!⁠ 🙌🏼
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"Each brushstroke is a conversation – with the land, the past and the future. I see storytelling as a cultural responsibility, and I use visual language to share knowledge, spark curiosity and gently educate. It’s a way to bridge worlds – an invitation to walk with us, to listen deeply and to leave only footprints." – @Lauren_Rogers_Art_ from Issue 63.⁠
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We were so excited for Lauren to create our beautiful cover for Issue 63, and you can read more about her incredible work and background in the latest issue. And now Issue 63 is coming to life at PepTalks, with Lauren joining us as one of our speakers!⁠
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📍 Morningside School of Arts Hall @MSA4170⁠
📅 26 July 2025⁠
🕕️ 6-9.30pm⁠
⁠
$5 from every ticket sold will go to @DangerousFemales 💕⁠
⁠
Chats, treats, tunes and cheers galore... grab your ticket via the link in bio!⁠
⁠
⁠Huge thanks to our pals at @AustralianMakersDirectory for supporting PepTalks. 🫶🏼⁠
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Photos: @KelleySheenan for Peppermint⁠
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#PeppermintPepTalks #PmPepTalks #BrisbaneEvents #PeppermintMagazine

Say hey to Em! 👋🏻

Em aka @DesignWithEm_ aka @EmilyHowardArtist aka our new community manager! Such a joy to have her join our team. This multitalented (and super sweet) human is also a great sewist - give her a follow for some fab upcycling and sewing tips!

From @DesignWithEm_

“Welcome back to another Love It for Longer episode! ✂️❤️‍🩹

I hadn’t done much appliqué before, but after realizing I was only wearing this paint-stained jumper at home, I knew it needed a little love so I’d feel good rocking it out and about. 🤭

A few months ago, I thrifted this adorable hen house appliqué kit, and its color scheme felt like the perfect match for the jumper. 🍂

I’m so happy with how the patchwork turned out - it covered the paint stains beautifully and gave the piece a whole new life. 🐓

Surprisingly, I really enjoyed the blanket stitching too - it was so satisfying to do. 🧵

What do you think of this upcycle? 👋🏼I’d love to hear your thoughts on my patchwork chooks ❤️”

#SlowFashion #SustainableFashion #SlowFashionMovement #Sustainability #Sewing #Sew #Upcycle #Upcycling #Thrifting #Thrift #Applique

“Believe in your bold ideas” 🌈

Some bright, colourful inspo to start your weekend from Anaïs Lobmeyer of Funky Zebra. Have you picked up Issue 63 yet? Run don’t walk!

From @Funky.Zebra.Studio:

“Seeing Funky Zebra featured in @PeppermintMagazine? Big moment. Holding the mag in my hands? Even better. 🪩

Fun fact: we shot those photos in my apartment, with natural light, no fancy setup… just colour, laughter, and @AntoineBouchina’s camera.
Proof that sometimes, imperfect is exactly what makes it real.

And a little reminder: believe in your bold ideas, you never know where they’ll take you. 😃

🦓 Mini Sunny Earrings
Adjustable Lucky Token Ring in Pink/Yellow”

📸 @AntoineBouchina

#PeppermintMagazine #SupportSmallBusiness #PeppermintInTheWild #DopamineArt #Colour #LifeInColour #BeBold

PepTalks 26 July! 🥳⁠
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Come and hear the fabulous Jes from @DangerousFemales, who we know WILL be awesome!!!⁠
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Reposted from @Jes.Hallagan:⁠
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How it feels writing my first ever speech or “Pep Talk” if you will for @PeppermintMagazine ⁠
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Turns out the speaker process is very similar to the creative process.. (loving step 1 sick, just BTW)⁠
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Step 1. THIS IS AWESOME⁠
This is my first ever speaking event where I’m on stage by myself, no emotional support best friend, no emotional support drag queen, just me and a room full of people who genuinely think I’m gonna knock their socks off talking about my experience as the co-founder and Managing Director of @DangerousFemales⁠
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If you’ve been to a @DangerousFemales event you know it’s not my favourite and the imposter syndrome kicks in real quick as soon as I’m handed a mic... but right now I’m on cloud nine… literally the funniest person alive - not like a regular Managing Director, I’m a cool Managing Director 😎⁠
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Tickets are online now, and $5 from every ticket is being donated to @DangerousFemales, which is a really generous initiative from @PeppermintMagazine to Do Something, Don’t Do Nothing. ⁠
Grab a ticket, wear a tee, come and support me! ⁠
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Link to tickets and more info in bio.⁠
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Image description: 3 photos of @Jes.Hallagan looking badass wearing the @DangerousFemales x Australian Artist Collective tee design (100% profits donated) and the final photo is about the creative process... the text reads:⁠
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CREATIVE PROCESS⁠
I. THIS IS AWESOME⁠
2. THIS IS TRICKY⁠
3. THIS IS SHIT⁠
4. I AN SHIT⁠
5. THIS MIGHT BE OK⁠
6. THIS IS AWESOME⁠
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📸 @LoveStepha ⁠
🎨 @KateQuinnArt & the Australian Art Collective⁠
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#PeppermintPepTalks #BrisbaneEvents

Oh so sweet! 😍

From PoppyJoySewing:

“I have been holding onto this adorable floral denim for a while now since jumping at the chance to get some from local gem The Sewing Club. It was so cute I couldn’t help it! I had ideas for some denim short shorts (daisy dukes? Too on the nose?), but when Peppermint Mag released this pattern and it landed in my inbox, I was cutting it out later that same day.

I’m so happy with how it came together! The pattern and instructions were fairly simple, and it didn’t take long to make. I made a straight size F as per my measurements (39-30-40) but ended up taking it in a bit at the back darts as it was a tad loose. Honestly the most difficult part of this whole project was choosing what colour to do the topstitching and zipper in. Some of you probably remember me polling in my stories. Well, I ended up trying a bit of every option and landed on the light blue as it popped the most, and unpicked the others. Doing some topstitching on the actual garment helped me greatly to see the differences.

This is such a cute make and I foresee it getting a ton of wear. The pockets are so useful and can carry a lot! I’ve styled it here with a fave tee from @thesparkdotcompany , but it excited to style it with other me-mades as well.

Pattern - @PeppermintMagazine #PeppermintAcaciaAlineSkirt (a pay-what-you-can pattern! Up to 60” hip)

Fabric - cotton daisy denim from @The.Sewing.Club”

#PeppermintPatterns #MeMade #SewingPatterns #SewLove #SewistsOfInstagram #MakeItYourself #PeppermintMagazine

Call them craftivists, call them protest artists – one thing’s certain: their work is vital, now more than ever. Through thread, fabric, words and images, these makers articulate what many of us are too afraid to say out loud, raising dissent against injustice, exploitation, and destruction. While their tools may be humble – a knitting needle, a sewing machine – their impact is anything but. ⁠
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Craftivism, a term popularised in the early 2000s by knitter and anti-sweatshop activist Betsy Greer, merges craft and activism, using creativity as a powerful form of protest. Historically, ‘women’s work’ was seen as ‘unthreatening’, paving the way for crafts like sewing and quilting to become potent tools for change, often carrying coded messages of resistance. ⁠
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Creativity isn’t just an outlet – it’s a form of resistance. Our voices matter. The time to push back is now. We highlight and speak to some of the makers and creatives doing just that in our 'Crafting Dissent' feature in Issue 63, such as @TalFitzpatrick, @KateJustKnits, @CassieArnoldFiberArt, @MakedaDuong, @MollyHKent, @Michelle_Hamer, @KnittingNannasSyd, @LauraShaw.Quilts and more.⁠
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Grab a copy of Issue 63 at newsagents and stockists now!⁠
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#PeppermintMagazine #Craftivists #ArtForChange #StandUp #Knitting #Sewing #Quilting #Activists #SpeakOut

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