We have moved

We have moved! Check out our new and improved website/blog here....

please update your links kids!

We're listening

A productive day is being had at Thaw HQ today.  No children in the house, and peace and quiet to allow us to get some serious work done.  So what do you do when you have a quiet house like this?  Listen to Black Sabbath - Paranoid, of course.  Peace and quiet is over-rated anyway!

What gets your creative juices flowing??

It's market time again...

Don't forget that this weekend is the Daylesford Makers Market again. I had lots of fun at the last one, and this one is going to be just as big.  So if you are lost for something to do this Easter Saturday - head on down and check it out.

P-A-R-T-Y, because I've got to!

We are planning a party.  Oooh, excitement is in the air.  It will be to celebrate the fact that we have seven whole issues out there.  And to thank the contributors who have put in so much time, effort, love and support to get us here.  First things first.... commit to a date, and send invitations.

To market, to market...

Lots has been going on in Thaw HQ lately, so haven't been doing a good job of keeping the blog updated, sorry.

We have had the place painted, fences ripped down, and rebuilt in much prettier fashion.  We have been on a little holiday down the beach, and now I'm preparing to meet with our new marketing gal, Conchi.  I am very excited about sitting down with her and talking about the future of Thaw.  She is joining the Thaw team to focus on all of our advertising sales, and getting our little mag into lots more stockists.  The more magazines we have in shops around Victoria, the more people will pick up a copy and read it - at least that's the plan.  She is excited to be coming on board too, so can't wait to sit down with her this weekend.  Might have to enjoy a couple of wines with her too.  It can't be all business ;-)

I met with the talented Matt Turner last week. He is also joining the Thaw team, to do the layout and design for us.  Can't wait to see how our next issue looks.  He has done lots of bits and pieces for us over the past six months, but has now committed to do much more, so it's exciting to have him on board too.

If you think you know of some shops or cafe's in your neck of the woods that you think would be a great place to stock Thaw, please drop me a line.

Cheers,

Kim

Blog roll

I just added a list of blogs that are by people found in our neck of the woods.  Please check them out.  There are some very creative, clever and interesting people in our area.  And please let me know if you know of any that I should add to the list!

Cheers,

Kim

Facelift and sickies

Thaw headquarters (otherwise known as our home) has been getting a facelift this week.  Although we have some people doing the work for us, it has thrown the household into a little bit of chaos.  But it has come up so nicely.  It looks so fresh and lovely now.  We changed the whole colour of the place, so it looks like a different house from the outside.

There are sickies in the house too, which means there is no time for working, just a lot of cuddles on the couch. 

I am meeting with our new Graphic Designer this afternoon.  More on this tomorrow....

Cheers,

Kim

Stuff gets in the way

Well I made it to the market, and had a great time there.  What a great atmosphere, with all the Chillout festival-goers coming by for a look.  Lots of people were introduced to Thaw, and it was nice to get some really positive feedback from others.  A lot of people from Melbourne were surprised to see something like our mag being produced in Ballarat.  It was nice to show them that there is so much more to the area than they realised.

I didn't make it to the Roller Derby which I, and my four-year-old, were disappointed about, as we were really looking forward to it. Tia was just too tired after a day hanging out with Pa, and having no naps at all. I had to spend the night making it up to Helena with a "princess" movie, and popcorn.  Turned out to be a lovely day though, despite all the rain and hail.

Loved the stuff at the St Mel stall

It's amazing what this gal can do with a button or two... Manca Un Buttone

Was nice to catch up with the clever and fun Darren - the Clunes Strangler

And listening to the awesome Geoffrey was just another added bonus 

Correct punctuation

I just love this, and had to share.

Chill Out

I am going to be at the Daylesford Makers Market this Saturday, and I'm really looking forward to it.  The last time I was there I had a stall, as I will this time, and the atmosphere was fantastic.  There were so many lovely things to see, and buy, and so many awesome creative people to talk to.  If you are anywhere near Daylesford this weekend come on by, and please come and say hello.  

After that I am heading down to the Roller Derby bout in Daylesford.  Can't wait to see the girls in action. There is so much going on, because of the ChillOut festival that's on in Daylesford and Hepburn this weekend, check out the website for details.

Photo from The Advocate

Deliveries begin

Oh my, what a week.  I feel like I have done nothing but make badges.  Who's idea was this badge thing?  Oh that's right.  Never mind. Scratch that. This week we have been madly making badges, and attaching them to the mags in preparation for deliveries today - the first day of Autumn! 

I have to say that I didn't really think about how difficult it would be to secure the badges to the mags. I tried glue, which worked for posting the subscriber copies, but didn't work for long, when they were put in a stand, upright.  We considered pinning them onto the cover, but then we didn't really want to wreck the cover, so Ro came up with the brilliant idea to tie them on with string.  The only problem was that it takes FOREVER! Thankfully, with the help of lovely friends Steph and Louisa, we managed to get them done in time.

We have now increased the price to $5 an issue, and I am hoping that this isn't going to be a problem for our regular readers.  I have been a bit nervous doing deliveries. It's been interesting to hear other peoples perspectives.  Thankfully all the comments were very positive, like "it was really cheap before, so I don't think it will be a problem". 

I have to get back to my deliveries for now. Would love to hear from you. Leave me a message.

Kim x

One of my helpers at work. 

Proofs and badges

We have had the proofs delivered and they look good.  Phew! It's always a little exciting, as well as scary, having a look over the proofs.  There were a couple of little changes needed, but it's always nice to see the colour pictures came out well.  Now we can sign off and go to print.

Now it's time to get cracking on making badges for the release of this issue.  Every issue is going to come with a free badge, so we are working on the design and making them this week. This Japanese origami paper, kindly lent to us by the lovely Lou, will hopefully provide some of the inspiration.

Done!

It's gone to the printers... phew!

Eclectic Tastes

I love this place.  We have been doing our Four Plates review at Eclectic Tastes this week, and we are changing things a bit this issue.  Instead of four dishes from four different places, we are sampling four from one place.  The food was superb, but I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise, so am just posting photos of the decor.  Eclectic is the word! I got to have a good chat with Margot, one of the owners who was there with her husband having dinner, on the night. She and co-owner Julie have created a great place. Check it out if you get a chance. 

I LOVED this cigarette holder. It just looked like a bottle when closed.

Sneak peek #2

We are including two gorgeous fashion shoots in this issue.  Here is another sneak peek at one of the shoots....

Photos by the wonderful Teagan Glenane...

Production mode

At the moment we are in mad "last week before we go to print" mode, which can be rather chaotic.  No matter how organised and prepared we are, it always seems to be the same at this time of production.  Why do we always have to "leave things to the last minute".  I know I always had that comment on all my school reports, and it appears nothing has changed.  Rohan and I are holed up in our teeny home office doing our thing... he says (of a page he will have just laid out) "check out this page, what do you think?"  or I'll receive another article via email, and start giggling as I read the text.  When we realise we haven't done something that needed two weeks preparation, and we only have one week to do it we generally start swearing, or deliriously laughing, it depends on how many coffees or (if it's later) wines we have had.  But on the whole I think we love the drama, so that's why it keeps happening. So I can't really complain, can I?

Here's a sneak peak of what you can expect in Issue 7...

Beautiful photos by Rohan

Another great stockist - Leeloo

Leeloo is an online shop that supports creative designers making unique, handmade and often limited edition items.  All their stuff is made in Australia, and they are all about "nurturing young creative types" much like we are.  Check out the stuff at Leeloo, and maybe you could find something a little bit different for your love, this Valentines.  If you choose to celebrate that kind of thing ;-)

Oh yeah, and they now stock Thaw. Yippee.

Cheers,

Kim

I have recently discovered this blog, (thanks to Rachel) and felt I had to share it.  It's all about one girls attempt to spend one year only buying her clothes second-hand, and using her creativity and sewing skills to make clothing she loves.  With $365 dollars and 365 days, she is making it work.  Inspiring stuff.

Check out New Dress a Day.

Cheers,

Kim

Before

After

For all the zine lovers

Have just been sent an invitation to this event at Sticky.  If you love all things "zine" you might want to check it out...

When:
Friday, 12 Feb 2010, 06:00 PM

Where:
Degraves Street Subway, right next to Sticky Institute
Melbourne
Victoria
3000

The official launch of The Undiscovered Press exhibition! Come along and be a part of The Undiscovered Press being unleashed upon the masses. In the form of 12 separate artworks by dedicated zinesters, zines in all their undiscovered glory will be on display.

Cheers,

Kim

Don't miss out

We have another new stockist, which is always exciting... Breakfast and Beer are in Daylesford, and we love this place.  It has great atmosphere, awesome food and friendly staff.  And now you can buy great magazines there, too ;-)

In other news, it's not long before we go to print for Issue 7.  This weekend we are shooting one of the fashion shoots, and are excited that this issue will include not one, but two separate fashion spreads.  I might post a sneak peak of one, soon.

If you were interested in submitting something for our Secret Love piece in the next issue - don't forget submissions close this week.  Get your stuff published! Send them in now. 

Thanks to those of you who submitted work so far.

Cheers,

Kim

Little Helper

For those of you who order you copies of Thaw online, and receive them in the post - I hope you don't mind an envelope with a little extra character.  I have a very persistant 4 year old who likes to help Mummy when she is in "work" mode.  Sometimes stamping can be a little tricky ;-)

Secret Love

Do you have a secret love?  Is there something that you love doing, collecting, looking at or creating that you feel just slightly shy about owning up to? Some people collect tea towels, love crocheting or can't take their eyes off clouds. We don't really care what it is, we want to hear about it!

In our next issue - out 1st March - we are including an article about secret love.  We already have a couple of writers to tell us about their hidden passions, and now I want to hear from you.  If you are interested in submitting your article, it needs to be just 300 words, and you can email it to editor@thawmagazine.com.au or post it to Thaw Magazine, PO Box 346, Ballarat, VIC, 3353. There is a free copy of the magazine in it for you.  Don't be shy. Get writing. 

Cut-off for submissions is 1st Feb.

More new stockists

Yesterday I had an eventful day, with a visit to Daylesford and Hepburn Springs.  I met the lovely Connie and Kyla of Portal 108, had a look through the shop, and bought a couple of things for myself.  They have some wonderful stuff in there.  Many items are hand-made, and they have a simple motto... they only sell things that they love.   Their theory is that whatever doesn't sell, they get to keep for themselves, so it's a win-win.  Clearly they love the same stuff that I love.  I found it hard not to buy one of everything.  And now you can find Thaw on their shelves, too. 

Cheers,

Kim

I couldn't resist picking myself up one of these cute sets of babushka measuring cups from Portal 108.

More fun stuff to be found at Portal 108