A Stylist Tells: 5 Things I Can’t Live Without
Ask Michelle Crawford to name something that makes her happy and the answer is a no-brainer. “My house is my favourite thing,” she says, of the 115-year-old building known as The Bowmont that she and her husband are restoring. Perched in the tranquil town of Franklin in Tasmania’s Huon Valley, the building will soon house accommodation, a studio and a workshop.
“It’s such a huge project. We live here, we work here. It’s almost an obsession. We’re researching its history to try to find the best way of fixing up the old brick work, the old plasterwork … it takes up so much of our time. We spend all our money, all our time, all our energy on it, but we love doing it.”
However, it’s not just the house the stylist loves. We got her to list some of the inside things she can’t live without.
Wooden spoons
I have a big pot of them by my kitchen window. I just love how they look, the patina as they wear. The more you use them, the more beautiful they become. They add a homeliness to kitchen and they’re also really lovely to use. I love the feel of the wood against the bottom of a cast-iron fry pan or pot. So many of my spoons have meaning – there’s one I’ve got from my mum, some that I picked up in my travels, others that were presents.
Portrait of the Queen
Tasmania has little retail outlets next to the tip, so instead of dumping your old stuff, you give it to the tip shop and they sell it. You can find really great stuff there, furniture and books and records. I picked up this portrait of the Queen at the Hobart tip shop. I love the dazzling frame and the fact that she’s crumbling. There’s something regal and beautiful about it, and she fits in any room I put her in. It works for us because we’re all a bit old and bashed-up here. I love her to bits.
The Aga cooker
This sits in a part of the house that we use as a studio and events space, and it’s fully electric so we have it idling on standby the whole time. It emits a beautiful warmth and is fantastic to cook on. It has three ovens that operate at set temperatures – one for roasting, one for baking, one for simmering. Instead of adjusting the temperature, you just move your dish into the appropriate oven. I’ve wanted one of these for more than 25 years, so it’s a dream come true.
Linen tea towels
There is something incredibly comforting about having a beautiful pile of crisply-washed linen tea towels close at hand. They play a big part in my work as a food stylist because they add texture and movement to any food photo, and are also handy when you are cooking. They don’t have an unlimited lifespan – when they get a little too soft to use in a photo shoot, they end up in my kitchen drawer. And that gives me the excuse to go and buy new ones.
Homemade knife
My son is 15 and his hobby is forging. We built a forge for him in the garage and he took part in a mentoring program with a highly regarded Hobart blacksmith. He made this knife for me and it makes me feel proud every time I chop an onion. It’s lovely to use; the weight of it in your hand feels really good. My husband and I can hear him hammering on the anvil from inside the house; it’s my favourite sound.