Start your sewing adventure with us.    Join Seamwork

Articles on this site were all published prior to 2017 and this site is no longer updated. Please visit our current Articles, Patterns, and Classes for the most up-to-date content and products.

Heading to Australia! Want to meet in meet in Melbourne?

Hey guys, I’m headed to Australia for the next couple weeks for a little workcation!

After a few days in Sydney, I’ll be spending several days in Melbourne. We have a couple intimate little events lined up, so if you’re in Melbourne I would love to see you.

Nov 13 at Stitch 56

I’ll be visiting the lovely folks at Stitch 56, where you can come and chat and shop – if you wear a Colette design, you’ll even get 15% off!

Date: Friday, November 13
Time: 2pm-4pm
Place: Stitch 56, 14/19-23 Clarinda Rd, Oakleigh South VIC 3167
Details and RSVP: RSVP at the Facebook event here

Nov 14 Meetup

Second, there’s a little meetup organized by the Sew Melbourne meetup group at Can Do Books. This is an informal meetup where we’ll chat, sew, and share. If you aren’t sick of looking at my face, you can come to both!

You can even bring your hand sewing or a machine if you like.

Date: Saturday, November 14
Time: 2pm-4pm
Place: Can Do Books, 608 Burwood Rd, Hawthorn
Details and RSVP: View the meetup page and RSVP here or RSVP on the Facebook event here.

I hope to meet some of you soon! Do you have any Sydney or Melbourne suggestions for me?

Sarai Mitnick

Founder

Sarai started Colette back in 2009. She believes the primary role of a business should be to help people. She loves good books, sewing with wool, her charming cats, working in her garden, and eating salsa.

Comments

Robin

November 3, 2015 #

Take a walk in the botanical garden on the bay in Sydney. It is wonderful and free too. I saw a flock of flying parrots and bats hanging in the tees and many wonderful flora+fauna. I only did an overnight there on my way to Fiji, and stayed in a hotel across the street so it was very convenient. Because I had an early flight, the walk was very early in the morning – so lovely! – followed by breakfast in a nearby cafe and the Sydney museum, all before 10 in the morning. Have a great time! Don’t take any dried fruit, fresh fruit, jerky, etc. on the flight there – the contraband beagle will find it when you arrive at the airport. I had no idea, and had to toss pounds of healthy food ?

Beck

November 3, 2015 #

Will there be any Sydney meet ups? I would suggest walking around the harbour from Darling harbour around Barangaroo under the Habour Bridge through The Rocks and Circular Quay to the opera house and around the botanical Gardens to Mrs Macquaries chair. You can then loop back to the CBD UP Art Gallery Road via The NSW Art Gallery and Hyde Park, passing the gorgeous St Mary’s Cathedral and it puts you back in the shopping zone and back to the Queen Victoria Building and Town Hall which is a 5 minute walk from Darling Harbour again. Also go to Taronga Zoo by ferry from Circular Quay, wear trainers because it’s steep and a big walk and allow half to full day if you can. Go to King St Newtown via bus or train for shopping. Come to Leichhardt for Italian food and either Chinatown or Ashfield for Asian food. Buy an Opal card for Sydney and a Myki card for Melbourne to use public transport. Bondi if you like the beach and The Bay Run in the inner west for a mostly flat circular 7km running track around the water. Email me if you have any more Sydney questions :)

Maree

November 3, 2015 #

Beck – I’m exhausted reading that post. Sarai if you only have 3 days I would suggest the walk above around the Harbour and Opera house, Botanical gardens (if you have the time the Bridge Climb is fabulous)., take a trip on the ferry to Manly and of course out to Bondi Beach – there is a beautiful walk that runs along the coast to Coogee, otherwise just walk to Tamarama Beach and back, have lunch/drink at the Icebergs the view is amazing and enjoy a swim. Mostly have fun and I hope the weather is perfect! If you only have a few days I would stick to things that you can access easily from the city.

Peta Louise

November 3, 2015 #

It’s so exciting that you’re coming to Australia – I hope you have an amazing time! You might be interested in seeing the Collette Dinnigan retrospective currently showing at the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney – the details and embellishments in her work are stunning. (Here’s a link for more info: https://maas.museum/event/collette-dinnigan-unlaced/)

Belle

November 3, 2015 #

Oh there are so many good places to go in Melbourne! Tessuti in the city is well worth a trip. It’s beautiful. And from there you can catch a tram (112) down Collins St and go to The Fabric Shop, which is great, too. Next door to The Fabric Shop is a designer outlet store. If you go in and up the stairs to the right, there is a whole pile of really cheap designer fabrics and trims. I’ve got beautiful silk there for next to nothing, and ridiculously nice wool, too.

I work on Fridays so can’t make the Friday meetup, but will hopefully see you on the Saturday!

Belle

November 3, 2015 #

OH! and The Nicholson Building is worth a visit too. It’s on Swanston st, near Flinders Lane. If you go up to level two, there are some great sewing related shops. Luccello is stunning, with vintange haberdashery and other lovely things, and Buttonmania has a massive array of gorgeous buttons etc. Kimono House is on the floor too, and has some stunning Japanese fabrics.

Laura

November 3, 2015 #

When in melbourne you definitely need to take a walk through the city and discover the lane ways. Centre place between flinders lane and collins st is great with beautiful hand made lights. Then in collins street is the block arcade which also leads into another laneway. While in the lane ways sample the coffee! The National gallery of victoria is all wonderful. There’s the australian collection in fed square and the international collection a 5 minute walk down st kinda rd.. The architecture of these buildings are worth seeing too. Hope you enjoy Melbourne. It’s a great place to be :)

caitlin

November 3, 2015 #

Oh! This is excellent and I’m so disappointed that the Melbourne event is on the one weekend ALL YEAR that I’ll be out of town.
Suggestions for Melbourne:
Tessuti fabrics on Flinders Lane in the CBD. This is Melbourne’s best fabric store, both in terms of the fabrics and the staff. L’ucello and Buttonmania in the Nicholson Building on Swanston st, also in the CBD, have some cool bits and pieces. (Side note, L’ucello should totally stock your patterns.) On your way between these two locations, take a walk up Hosier Lane to check out the street art. Also get a coffee from one of Melbourne’s trillions of good cafes.

The Botanic Gardens in South Yarra are honestly like heaven. Just absolutely beautiful. A picnic there or on the banks of the Yarra River next to it is lovely. The gardens are surrounded by the Tan Track, which is an excellent place to go for a run. Nearby-ish is the Chapel St Bazaar in Prahran, an enormous antiques/vintage store that is a lot of fun to browse.

The inner north (Carlton, Fitzroy, Collingwood, Brunswick) is the hipstery part of town. It’s an interesting mix of the very wealthy, the very poor, students, cool people etc, with all of the types of things you’d expect to find in such a place.

The National Gallery (NGV) often has cool clothing/fashion-related exhibits, so check for that.

Have fun!

Phyllis

November 3, 2015 #

Sydney: The Queen Victoria Building (QVB) is a must see, fabulous for a glass of wine, macarons and *excellent* people watching. Paddy’s Markets for el cheapo souvenirs, really great stuff. If you want an American style coffee order a “Flat White”. Sydneysiders love argula (they call it “rocket”) and pumpkin all year round (savory not sweet though.) The Sydney Fish Market is the largest in the southern hemisphere and you can get sashimi cut to order right in front of you. Asian food at all price points from food stall to fine dining is incredible. BTW water really does drain counterclockwise down under. The garment & fashion district of Sydney is in Surrey Hills and check out The Fabric Store and Tessuti. Face of Australia is a great drug store makeup brand. Cue is the premier Aussie fashion brand and their clothes are *stunning* (I had to stop goiing into their stores because I kept spending money). The Powerhouse Museum in Ultimo almost alway has a great fashion exhibit going. Have fun…it won’t be hard.

Kangafrog

November 3, 2015 #

Melbourne: from now until 17 January, there is a free exhibition at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) in Federation Square in the city. It is about the life and work of Hollywood costumer, Orry-Kelly, who is an Australian man. From the website:

Winner of three Academy Awards, Australian costume designer Orry-Kelly created magic on screen, from Casablanca (1942) to Some Like it Hot (1959). Working on a staggering 295 films, he lived a colourful life, on and off the set. Featuring original costumes, Oscar statues, sketches and more, this exhibition, the first ever to celebrate Orry-Kelly’s life and career, pays tribute to a legendary Hollywood costume designer and genuine Aussie larrikin.

https://www.acmi.net.au/exhibitions/current/orry-kelly-dressing-hollywood/

You need about one hour to see the costumes, movie clips and other things, including correspondence between Orry-Kelly and the film studios in relation to the costume requirements. Well worth a visit.

https://www.acmi.net.au/exhibitions/current/orry-kelly-dressing-hollywood/

Tanya

November 4, 2015 #

How thrilling! For Melbourne I second everything Belle has suggested. I am always haunting the Nicholson building (Swanston street) – call in to “Button Mania” while you’re up there, it had to be seen to be believed. The “upstairs” of ClearIt on Brunswick street is great for wonderful designer fabric and trims, you can pull the commercial-width bolts out yourself, and there is a thoughtfully positioned mirror for draping things all oneself. Brunswick Street is in a great part of Melbourne, too. I think you’d like it Sarai!

I’ll get to the Saturday event if I can – all the best for the loooong flight.

Dana

November 4, 2015 #

No Sydney events? What a shame.

Kenn

November 5, 2015 #

Hi Dana. Because our Sydney stay is short, we didn’t think we’d have time for a formal event. But as it happens, a (very) last minute brunch and fabric shopping outing was thrown together for Saturday in Surry Hills. Details on a new blog post here.

Lynda

November 7, 2015 #

I’m new to sewing and living in Tasmania these days. I’d love to come over but I can’t this week but I’ve bookmarked this page for a future fabric trip to Melbourne. Have heaps of fun and foraging..