In the beginning of 2020 I started my first sewing journal.

I was starting to get serious about sewing and mending, I had just watched a YouTube video about it, the world was in chaos, and I was at home in our first experience of a lockdown.

I had a lovely blank journal I had made years previously in a fleeting affair with bookbinding as a hobby. A sewing journal was the perfect use for it.

In early June I hiked the Carnarvon Great Walk for a second time. The first time I went with a friend in 2018 and we didn't speak to another human being for 6 days. This time I went with my brother and we had another group of 3 people on the same timetable as us and we had a great time chatting in camp each night.

It was a totally different experience this time, and just as challenging and beautiful as the first.

Hiking in most of Australia during summer is not the best idea ever. It's very hot, can be unbearably humid, and summer is our fire and storm season so the weather can be pretty wild. If you want to get out there though, you can do it reasonably safely and have a great time! 

I've wanted to volunteer for some time now, and have been looking for an organisation that aligns with my values on sustainability and caring for the environment.

At the start of 2023 I reached out to my local Repair Cafe at Woolloongabba to find out if they needed more sewing volunteers to help people with mending and keeping their textile items out of landfill. I attended all 6 cafes during the year and hope to volunteer at many more.