Audrey Tautou stars as Coco Chanel in Coco Avant Chanel - a biopic of the legendary fashion designer. From poor beginnings, Chanel managed to create one of the worlds most stylish and most successful design houses. With an eye for style, Chanel was full of confidence, charm, wit and a radical mindset. My kind of woman.
(Above: Italian pianist and composer Massimo Carrieri)
Today, the Melbourne Italian Festival kicks off. Running until June 7th, it features music, theatre, exhibitions, cinema and, of course, tasty cuisine.
Visit www.melbourneitalianfestival.com.au for the festival program.
First published on Trespass, May 13th, 2009.
A Big Year
Today is my 25th birthday. It’s a day I want to enjoy and remember as a milestone in my life. It’s a year ahead of me that I’m looking forward to. A year of challenges, adventures, changes and plans. And, because I’ve been looking forward, I’ve also found myself looking back. In the spirit of reflection, and learning, and 25 years of life on this fine earth, I thought I’d share some thoughts with you:
• Don’t ever go looking for love. It will always find you, even when you least expect it.
• The universe has a fantastic way of getting back at you, or others, for wrong doings – it’s called karma and try as you might, you just can’t escape it.
• Keep dreaming. Keep striving. You’ll never be perfect. You’ll never have it all sorted. And if you did, what’d be the point of living? Remember it’s the journey, not the finish line.
• Money makes the world go around.
• You are who you surround yourself with. You can’t soar like an eagle if you’re surrounded by turkeys.
• A good cup of tea can cure nearly anything. The older you get, the more obvious this seems to become.
• Knowledge is power. Indeed it is. But if you want to use that knowledge? If you want to turn it into something other than power, you’ll need passion. A hell of a lot of it.
• The only style and personality you can pull off is your own. Don’t try and adopt someone else’s. It’ll never fit.
• There is always someone, or more than a few people, waiting in the wings for you to trip up. What great motivation to show them what you’re really made of.
• Try and be as positive as you can every day. Look for the good, in things and in people.
• There’s no one right way of doing anything. Do things your way.
• Live like you mean it. Every single day. Live like you mean it.
Image by The Shopping Sherpra on Flickr
First published on Trespass, April 29th, 2009.
The Small Matter Of … Taking Stock
Have a think, just for a moment, about your high school years. Your dreams, your aspirations, your goals. Now, have a think about your life at present, whether you finished high school a year ago or twenty-five years ago. Are you where you thought you’d be? Do you have any regrets? Do you wish you could turn back the clock? Have you exceeded your expectations? Are you disappointed?
Last week my six year-old niece and I went to see 17 Again. Izzy went into the film expecting a High School Musical inspired tale; I went in expecting Suddenly 30. She enjoyed it; I seriously loved it. And no, it wasn’t all due to the dreamy Zac Efron (it seems I too am re-visiting my teen years). For those of you who are unaware of its storyline, it tells the tale of Mike, a man who magically becomes 17 again and gets the chance to relive his last year of high school – and change the course of his fate. In the end, he realises that the life he had – the one full of mistakes and missed opportunities – is the one he really wanted anyway. He just didn’t appreciate it at the time.
17 Again forced me to re-visit my high school days. It made me think of the many wonderful people I grew up with. We used to dream big. Really big. So what about you? Did you dream big? Did you reach those dreams? Are you on the way to achieving them? Or did you forget about them altogether?
When discussing this topic with people from here, there and everywhere, the common answer was that they’d ended up in a place far different from where they ever expected. Take Campbell, from Melbourne, as an example. “ I make my living from writing about wine (I’m releasing the Big Red Wine Book next month) but I always find it bizarre that I grew up in the lower-socio-economic Western suburbs of Melbourne, in a family that had no interest in wine and here I am writing (to some extent) for moneyed folks who’ve often grown up with wine all around them. If you’d asked me when I finished high school whether wine would be the focus of my future, I would have been horrified…as I laughed.”
For me, 25 is fast approaching and, for some reason, 25 is an age that makes you sit back and take stock of your life. Am I where I thought I’d be? Yes and no. I always had an idea of where I wanted to be going, I just never planned the route. Some of my aspirations are done and dusted; some of them seem miles away. I’m happy, with my choices, with my achievements, with my life. If you had of told me in high school that I would have been editor of a magazine at 22, I would have believed you. If you had of told me that I would be writing, as a career, I would have believed you. There are some things I always knew I was going to do.
I decided to be a writer when I was 6 years old. I still have the journal I wrote that in. The same journal features a blank page with a single entry “If I was in a running race and someone beat me, I’d bash them up.” To be clear, I never did “bash” anyone, but I never lost a race either. The entries in that diary show so much about my character it’s frightening, because the very core and very basic elements of me have not changed. I hate losing. Whether it’s in a running race, or at a trivia night. And it got me to thinking that so much of who we are is really about the basics; who we’ve been, where we’ve come from, what we’re born like. I believe those factors, ingrained personality traits and character features, have the ability to steer us or veer us further along in life.
Nikki, from Sydney and owner of beloved-boutique.com says, “Leaving school I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do. I guess “fate” or something like it took a hold, and my career moved in a different direction. It’s only really once I found my feet grounded after a taste of marketing/business that I became inspired and motivated to do more and move forward with it. I set goals now – things I want to do and places I want to be, but comparing now to back then – it’s a bit of both. I feel in some ways, I am better than I wanted to be – and other areas I am lacking.”
When I think back through my own personal story, there is nothing unexpected about me working in magazines, or having the unbelievable optimism that is needed for a budding entrepreneur. I’ve always been terribly optimistic and confident. I’ve always questioned everything. When I was in Grade 5 I created my own magazine using our ancient typewriter and sold it in the schoolyard. When I was in high school I bought Smash Hits and a myriad of foreign magazines, carefully tore out the pin ups and pictures and then individually sold them, for a much higher fee, to my classmates. For a long time, I dreamed of owning my own book/magazine/music store. I also dreamed of being a stylist. When I look back and realise that I’m living a fairly close version of the life I always wanted, I feel truly lucky. But there is so much more I want. So many things that have nothing to do with a career. So much more I am not at all close to even sniffing.
Think though, about this; if we got everything we ever wanted, would we be truly happy? If we got everything we ever wanted, what would be left to strive for? Remember when Jennifer Garner’s character in Suddenly 30 realises she obtained everything she ever wanted – the sports star boyfriend, the editor’s title at her favourite magazine, the swanky apartment…remember her being awfully disappointed, with her choices, and herself?
I graduated from high school in 2001, and so much has changed since then, it’s mind blowing. So much has been packed into the past eight years. So many memories and experiences. But when I think about it, everything and nothing have changed. Some days, I actually still feel 17. I have to remind myself that I’m not, but I hope to never lose that spirit. I hope I never lose the ability to feel 17. To me cars and careers and titles and stuff matters, but not as much as the one wish I wrote when I was 17 in my high school year book, “I wish to remain blissfully happy, content, unconventional, in love, rebellious and passionate for the rest of my life.” If I, now and in the years ahead of me, can only ever be granted that wish, and if that wish is the only thing that ever makes sense to me, that ever inspires me, then that is more than enough. It’s worth more than anything else and it matters, so much more.
Your weekly guide to luxuriate in. Be inspired, be motivated, be entertained.
SEE: John Brack Exhibition
One of the great artists of the twentieth century is celebrated in this extensive exhibition at The Ian Potter Centre, NGV at Federation Square. With over 150 paintings and works from all of his major series, it’s a visual feast on display until August 9. Visit www.ngv.vic.gov.au for more.
READ: Black Saturday – Stories of Loss, Love and Courage from the Victorian Bushfires edited by John McGourty
‘They warn you it comes fast. But the word “fast” doesn’t come anywhere near to describing it. It comes at you like a runway train. One minute you are preparing. The next you are fighting for your home. Then you are fighting for your life. But it is not minutes that come between. It’s more like seconds. The firestorm moves faster than you can think, let alone react… For 25 years, fires were something that you watched in the distance. Until Saturday.’ – Garry Hughes, reporter for The Australian and St Andrews Bushfire Survivor.
The bushfires that started on February 7, 2009 would go on to become Australia’s worst ever national disaster, a tragedy that resulted in the loss of at least 210 people and 1800 homes. This book is an emotional collection of stories from Black Saturday survivors. The stories are sad, compelling, courageous and at times incredible. All proceeds from the book sale go to The Salvation Army Victorian Bushfire Appeal.
HEAR: Woodend Winter Arts Festival
Snap up your tickets fast for this Victorian festival held over the Queen’s Birthday Weekend in the historic town of Woodend. Featuring an array of musical styles, ensembles, choirs, workshops and concerts, it’s bound to be entertaining and amazing. Just be sure to bring your winter woolies. Visit the Woodend Winter Arts Festival website for more.
EAT: At Miss Libertine
Located at 34 Franklin Street, Melbourne, Miss Libertine is the kind of place that’s perfect for anything. A drink (or several), a coffee (or hot chocolate), a Porterhouse steak (or $5 gourmet pizza), a salad (or risotto). It’s eclectic, funky, comfortable and spunky. Something for everyone. Just the way we like it. See here for more.
LEARN: How to Trespass…
In case you didn’t know, I write a weekly column over at the Gen-Y centric online mecca, Trespass. And in case you did, there’s so much more to be discovered there – Arts & Entertainment, Beauty & Style, Film & Music, Travel and a whole heap of opinions. Click here and take a gander at the freshly made over Trespass. You won’t be disappointed.
BUY: A Lap Rap
If there is one thing I thought I’d never need, it was a lap rap. But now? If there’s one thing I don’t want to live without, it’s a lap rap. The concept is simple: laptop stickers and skins that protect your lap top as well as making it look uber cool. You can create any skin you like for your lap top by using a favourite and much loved photo. The process is simple, the price is cheap and the effect is superb. Visit www.lap-rap.com to customise your own (or choose from their gorgeous ‘gallery’ range).
I THINK, THEREFORE I AM: “Every exit is an entry somewhere else” – Tom Stoppard.
When I first heard of Aromababy’s Barrier Balm, I assumed it was a good product, in the vain of paw paw salve. It wasn’t until I tried it that I realised it was so much more. It’s my new wonder product. It’s a multi-purpose balm that has a myriad of uses. Rhys from Make Me A Supermodel uses it on his lips (as do I), Tina Arena uses it on her curly locks (I too have discovered it’s a brilliant problem solver when it comes to flyaways) and designer Belinda Fairbanks uses it to soothe dry skin (my favourite use for it too). Aromababy may be made for babies, but adults using it end up with baby soft skin.
Crammed full of natural goodness – calendula, organic evening primrose oil, certified GMO-free natural vitamin E oils, sweet almond oil and chamomile, it’s perfect for treating sunburn, windburn, chafing, nappy rash, dry lips, broken skin and exceptionally wonderful for creating glossy locks.
Visit www.aromababy.com and find one of the 500 stockists Australia wide and snap up a jar – entering such a harsh and cold winter, we’re going to need it.
First published on Trespass, April 29, 2009.
Last week I was judged on account of my background. It bothered me greatly but was, paradoxically, something I easily dismissed. I’m Australian. My background, my heritage, is Italian. Both my parents were born in Italy – my father emigrated when he was five years old, my mother when she was twelve. Birthplace aside, they are Australian too. They were raised here, went to school here, married here, worked here, and had children here. Are they considered Australian? Not for a moment.
Am I, the child of two migrant parents, considered Australian? That’s not as easy to answer. I’ve been asked, on too many occasions to remember, ‘where do you come from?’ I always wondered whether I looked like an alien, because growing up it was a question I was asked all too often. ‘I must really look different to everyone else’, I used to think. But did I? Are there not brown haired ‘Australians’? I’m expected to eat pasta every day, adore the Pope and love soccer. Truth is, I hardly ever eat pasta, am neither here nor there on the Pope and find soccer boring. Give me udon noodle soup and AFL any day.
In this week’s fascinating cover story Sarah Ayoub addresses the topics of gangs and racism. She discusses belonging and it’s an issue that’s highly important. In Australia, I’m considered Italian. Whether I like it or not, the general consensus is that I’m some sort of ‘other’. It could be the way I look, it could be my surname, it could be anything. Funnily enough, when I spent three months in Italy, I was considered Australian. As were my parents. How do they not feel displaced? It’s a mad, mad world when they, born in Italy, are considered Australian there and I, born in Australia, am considered Italian here. How do you not get confused?
The sad fact, and the honest truth, is that racism is not dead. It’s not a thing of the past. It’s alive, and kicking. I see and hear it almost every single day. On the train, in the newspaper, on a television show. My parents endured years of struggles, battles and fights when they first came to Australia. Because of their name. Or their shiny leather shoes. Or the contents of their lunchbox.
Coincidentally, I’ve also been judged. Because of my name. Or my shiny leather shoes. Or the contents of my lunchbox. Maybe it’s not such a coincidence. The thing is, racism is learnt. Children aren’t born, ready and willing, to hate and judge. They don’t care if their two year old playmate is white, black, yellow or green. It’s their parents that do. It’s their newspaper that creates the distinction.
When it comes to racism, there is one thing we have to eradicate, one thing we must forget and that is tolerance. To tolerate is to put up with something, to endure something. People and cultures are not to be tolerated. You tolerate bad odours and noisy neighbours and windy days. People and cultures need to be accepted. They need to be welcomed, loved and affirmed. Tolerance is useless. I can tolerate anyone and hate them all at the same time. But to truly accept someone? That requires effort and understanding.
The biggest thing I’ve realised over the past twenty-four years is that those who judge another culture are those that don’t take pride in their own. Those that hate another culture are those that don’t understand it. Ignorant, sheltered, small-minded individuals are usually the ones that complain and criticise without a clue in the world. Every culture has their own traditions. Every culture is entitled to uphold those traditions. Why are people so scared of that? Are we not all the more rich for having such a wonderful variety of people, and cultures, and foods, and traditions? Are we not supposed to learn from those cultures?
It’s the people that simply don’t understand, that have absolutely no tradition, that are frightened. Of course they are; everything is foreign. Everything is weird and strange. If they had even half a clue, if they understood and accepted, rather than tolerated, then other cultures wouldn’t be so foreign. They wouldn’t even matter.
Albanian, French, Vietnamese, Greek, Serbian, Dutch, Indian, African, whatever – we’re all Australian. Whether we’re born here or we’ve only been here for just one day.
Let’s try and move the barriers and borders of separation and distinctions and get to a point where it’s not tolerated, or even accepted. Let’s try and get to a point where it truly and honestly doesn’t even matter.
First published on Trespass, April 15th, 2009.
It has been said that money can’t buy happiness. I tend to agree. It has also been said that whoever believes money can’t buy happiness simply doesn’t know where to shop. I tend to agree with that too. I’m stuck, somewhere in the middle, in the case of money VS happiness. And I’m not sure there is going to be a clear winner anytime soon.
I believe money is inextricably linked with our happiness. That money, and the things it can buy you, affects our happiness greatly. Material items make us happy. Do I believe anyone who dares suggest they do not? No. That is not to say we would be unhappy without material items, because I’m sure we’d all cope rather fine, but having material goods – cars, shoes, mobile phones, computers, books and all sorts of products – brings a certain amount of happiness to ones life. For some, it’s bikes. For others, it’s handbags. The item is irrelevant, the point is clear: stuff, things and objects that you buy, can and do make us happy.
I know the pleasure centres of my brain light up when I see pretty things draped in shop windows. I know that, for the thirty-nine minutes after I purchase a brand spanking new pair of high heeled shoes, I walk down the city streets with my purchase swinging in its oversized carry bag like I own that street. Putting those shoes on weeks later and walking into a party makes me swagger just as earnestly as when I first bought them; because I like shoes. I love them. They make me happy.
Would I cease to exist if I was not able to purchase gorgeous shoes? Of course not. Am I happier for being able to buy them? Yes and no. I like them, so they make me happy, but I’d rather lose them than many other things in my life. I’d rather eat, or see a movie, or spend time with a friend than be alone with a shoe.
It’s a documented fact that richer individuals tend to be happier than poorer ones. That richer individuals, when surveyed, were twice as likely to say they were happier than pooper folks. That could be because they are privy to a different lifestyle – an easier and healthier lifestyle, a lifestyle that involved more quality and luxury or both.
Think about the last time you got a mobile phone. Were you happy? Did a particular function on it make you smile? Did a certain feature on it make your life easier? My BlackBerry changed my life. I could live without one, but by golly I sure as hell wouldn’t to.
Think about the last time you bought a good fitting, good quality item of clothing. You may have spent a large amount on it. An exceptional amount in fact. Think about how it feels when you wear that item, how the fabric touches your skin, compared to other clothing items you may have that just don’t compare. Think about how you feel when you wear it. Imagine that feeling every time you wore anything.
A friend of mine once made a big purchase: a leather jacket from Giorgio Armani selling at half price. Half price meant the cost of the jacket was $3000, as opposed to $6000. I am not joking. It was the most stunning, beautiful tan leather jacket I had ever caressed. When he wore it people actually gasped. Did he love it? Oh yes, he did. So much so that on New Years Eve when a small splosh of red wine landed on his sleeve he panicked and immediately rushed it to a very expensive, very experienced dry cleaner, recommended by Giorgio Armani & Co. To cut to the chase: the drycleaners permanently stained the entire sleeve, and inset, of his jacket. It was no longer wearable. It looked like something you’d find in a dumper. He was devastated. I was too, for him and his pennies. What ensued was a battle between an angry man and a terrible dry cleaner. Court cases nearly erupted, and, without dragging out the story, my friend, after a very long time, finally and luckily received his money back.
I use this story to highlight a point – money often has a lot to do with perception and value. What you perceive to be important, and what you value as being so. My friend spent years searching for the perfect leather jacket and he finally found one, one he thought was going to be an investment that lasted the rest of his life. The jacket for him was a mark of success, and a signifier of change. If he could only get the perfect jacket, he could secure the perfect life.
As you know, the beautiful jacket never made it as far as a lifetime. Depending on how you look at it, the whole exercise – searching for years for a jacket, finding one, spending an incredible, even ridiculous amount on one, then having it ruined and spending months and months trying to gain back the value of it – was an entirely pointless one. He is now back where he started, with no jacket and still searching for the perfect jacket to supplement the perfect life.
Conversely, what about this: for the few times he got to wear that utterly amazing jacket, his entire being transformed. His confidence soared. He looked simply incredible. He felt like he was on top of the world. He made men and women swoon. All because of one material item, one jacket. For the few times he wore that jacket he became a happier version of himself. He threw himself into situations that he normally wouldn’t have, situations that resulted in more happy moments. Can you put a price on that? Was his happiness a direct result of wearing a piece of designer clothing? Is that shallow? Would he have been just as confident and happy in a leather jacket from a generic chain store?
Earlier this year, researchers at Stanford University in California gave a cross section of subjects the exact same wine, in different bottles, labelled with different price tags. Most of the subjects said they liked the expensive wine more than the cheaper one, which is somewhat impossible seeing as they were in actuality all the same. Here’s where the line is blurred however: researchers actually undertook MRI brain imaging scans whilst the subjects drank their wine and their brains were registered as experiencing more pleasure whilst drinking the more “expensive” wine. How can you explain that? I put it down to perception and value. The subjects believed the expensive wine carried more value, and that they as a result were more valuable as people. That others would perceive them as being more valuable for drinking expensive wine.
Personally, I choose wine by the pictures on their labels. Some are winners, some are binners, but I give them all a shot. I’ve dined at the most expensive restaurant in Melbourne where the waiter searched the underground cellar for some incredible wine for us to enjoy. It was fantastic wine, but I’ve had $10 bottles just as good. I don’t ever want to be the kind of person that feels as though their value is a direct result of their drink, handbag label or postcode. I hope I never am. I’d rather be valued for my contribution, or intelligence, or creativity, or ingenuity.
Does that mean I cannot buy Giorgio Armani heels, of which I did that very day my friend bought his jacket, and not stride more confidently? Not be slightly happier for owning them? No it does not. I couldn’t care less if, upon dying, I was remembered for my shoe collection just as much as my intellectual contribution. Both define me. Both are part of me. Why does there have to be one or another? Maybe, at the end of the day, money doesn’t actually verse happiness. Maybe it has nothing, or everything, to do with it. I don’t have all the answers but what I do know is that happiness can be bought. It can also be sold. It can also be created. I know that things and objects can inspire you just as much as people and art itself. That value does not have a limit. That perception is an individual thing. That maybe, through the mist of all the purchases, gold coins and coloured notes, happiness has always been there and will always be there. Maybe we, all of us, are the ones trying to mask it or define it or subject it rather than leaving it to just be.
COMING SOON
Miss Sandi’s New Project
Follow us on Twitter and become a Facebook fan.
On June 1st, 2009, Onya Magazine will launch into the online world and mark its place as one of the freshest, most interesting magazines available to an online audience. Based entirely on all things Australian – people, businesses, culture, places, fashion, environment, politics, lifestyle, music, issues, arts, products and ideas – it will be a hub of inspiration and information for its readers.
Onya Magazine will not be afraid to push issues, ask questions or be honest in its content. So, let us be honest with you: at no time will there be any cost to access Onya. Every reader will be able to peruse the website, or flipbooks, entirely for free.
Each week a different, prominent, emerging or everyday Australian will be interviewed. Each week opinions will be published. Issues will be tackled. Beauty products will be reviewed. Artists will be celebrated. Every week new articles will be uploaded to the website, allowing readers to navigate freely and choose articles and features they are interested in. Every second month, a flipbook in a magazine style will be released showcasing photo shoots from jewellery to home wares to fashion.
Every product and item of clothing featured will be 100% Australian owned and made.
International markets, businesses and people are all incredibly interested in Australia as a country and a culture. It is time all Australians became just as passionate as them. It is time to support Australian people and businesses. To realise that whilst we may be a small country in population, we are a big country in heart and talent.
Onya Magazine is not about supporting a stereotypical Australian image or idea -although we may every now and again. Its true purpose is to present all Australians, and the rest of the world, with a firm idea of what this country is really about: style, fun, class, intelligence, humour, community and some mighty fine spirit. There’s more to Australia than cork hats and kangaroos. It’s time to show the world what we’re really made of.
If you are well and truly sick of purchasing items made in China, or of not being able to have a platform to comment on issues, or of only ever reading about international stars, then Onya is the magazine for you.
Australians don’t ever limit themselves, so why should an online magazine celebrating Australia limit its readership? Onya Magazine is for students, mothers, uncles, sisters, fathers, teenagers and grandparents. It will suggest the best booties to buy your new bub, as well as the best local band to see on Friday night. It will not discriminate between cities and states. It will set a new benchmark for Australian talent, through its content and contributions. It will provoke, inspire and engage. It will be your new favourite magazine. It’s Australia – the real version.
On board? Good Onya.
For further information contact:
Sandi Tighello, Director and Editor
EMAIL: sandi@onyamagazine.com
The past couple of weeks have seen me dash to Melbourne International Comedy Festival shows all around town.
Click the links below to read a few of my reviews:
Bart Freedbairn in Doppelganger
Dwayne Robbins’ Inspiration Hour
Dan Willis in Control Alt Delete
