Private Capital: Men, it's time to brooch up

Kicking off on Friday June 11, Bro.och is a collection of brooches, aimed at “all, especially men and manly men”.

It features brooches by designers from all around the world, plus locals Simon Cottrell, Johannes Kuhnen, Helen Aitken-Kuhnen, Phoebe Porter, Nellie Peoples, Eugenie Keefer Bell, Bifei Cao and Mio Kuhnen.

Designer and co-director of Bilk Gallery Mio Kuhnen said she was inspired by her artist father.

“My Dad always wore brooches. And growing up around the art community a lot of people will wear brooches,” she said.

Mio, who “always wears a brooch”, said a brooch was the perfect addition to any outfit – particularly in the cooler Canberra weather.

“People spend a lot of money on suits and jackets – a brooch really draws attention to what they’re wearing,” she said.

“In the '80s they were a big thing. We seem to be resurrecting everything else from the '80s – why not brooches?”

Only time will tell if men jump on board and take a stab at wearing them.

Bro.och is on at Bilk Gallery, Manuka From July 11 to August 9. For more information visit bilk.com.au.

If you’re a fan of markets, Canberra has you covered. This weekend alone is The Way We Wear Vintage Fashion Fair, Fash’N’Treasure, Hustle&Scout, The Forage, plus the regular Old Bus Depot Markets, Capital Region Farmers Markets and Southside Farmers Market.

Soon you’ll also be able to get your market fix midweek with the first ever Honkytonks Night Market. The event kicks off at 7pm on Wednesday July 23 at Honkytonks in Garema Place.

There’s set to be a wide range of wares to browse and buy from local makers including Terrorariums, Amy Hick, Britt Nichols, Rachel Byron, Luke Chiswell, Diana Lawrence and Zaric Jewellery, plus stalls from Landspeed Records, Aprils Caravan and Yellow Canary.

Word has it, new Honkytonks chef Israel Meza, former personal chef for the Mexican ambassador, will also be making tacos out the front by request.

The Honkytonks Night Market is on July 23 from 7pm. Free entry.

If you want to escape the cold this weekend, both Westfield Woden and Westfield Belconnen are celebrating GiveAbility Day on Saturday, to raise funds for Cerebral Palsy Alliance ACT.

The day will be filled with activities for the whole family, including face painting, kids arts and crafts, live music, food and more. Plus, there will be a very special appearance from the Brodburger red caravan, which will be selling three types of hot dogs – the American classic with tomato and mustard, a New Yorker with sauerkraut, and a chilli dog. All the proceeds will go to the alliance. The van will be there from 11am.

Helping out the celebrations at Westfield Woden will be Catherine Coe from Gordon and her two-year-old daughter Bailey, who has cerebral palsy.

Catherine says her bubbly daughter's cerebral palsy means she can’t walk or speak, and has to wear a helmet most of the time because of instability.

“It makes everything harder for her, and I think she’s starting to get to the age where she looks at other kids doing things and she wants to do it but she can’t,” she said.

“She doesn’t understand why she gets so very frustrated.”

Catherine says the support they receive from Cerebral Palsy Alliance ACT has been crucial for helping not only her daughter, but also herself as a parent of a child with a disability.

“They have days where we can all go and enjoy ourselves. A lot of the time it’s hard when you have friends who don’t have special needs kids; it’s hard for them to understand just how tricky a normal outing can be,” she said.

GiveAbility Day will take place at all Westfield centres around Australia, with the aim to raise $500,000 for a variety of charities supporting children living with disabilities and their families.

To find out more visit westfield.com.au.

It seems Canberra went Nick Kyrgios mad this week – and quite rightly so. The 19-year-old beat world No. 1 Rafael Nadal and made it through to the quarter-finals at Wimbledon. One of our favourite Kyrgios-related creations were these cupcakes from Erindale Cakery Bakery.

As we trudge through the dark mornings and freezing days, now is the perfect time to learn to knit.

The Warm Trees exhibition at the National Arboretum will see a wide range of knitted creations on display wrapped around trees.

Everyone is encouraged to get involved, by donating knitted scarves that are 25 centimetres wide and at least one metre long, with bright colours.

If you don’t know how to knit, the Friends of the National Arboretum are holding free knitting sessions from 10am-2pm every day from July 5-13 at the Arboretum Village Centre.

And to really kick off the project, they have received a 35-metre scarf, knitted by local Marie O'Sullivan, to form part of the display.

The chair of the Friends of the National Arboretum Jocelyn Plovits said the incredibly long donation would form part of the major display, but was tight-lipped about the details.

“It’s going to be in the dragon tree area – that’s all I will say,” she said.

Any knitting donations can be dropped off at the Arboretum gift shop by July 15.

Warm Trees will run from July 25 to August 31. For more information visit arboretumcanberra.org.au.

ABC’s ACT 7.30 presenter Chris Kimball announced on social media this week that he’d been given the all clear from cancer.

Chris was diagnosed with hodgkins lymphoma in 2011, and went on to have six months of aggressive chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant from his brother Sean – who he said was permanently on top of his Christmas gift list.

Chris said he was now feeling good, and happy for life to return to normal.

“I guess the thing is trying to make it something that happened, rather than make it something that defines your life,” he said.

“It’ll be good to not be the cancer guy.”

It has now been 840 days since his transplant, and Chris’s doctors have told him that as far as they’re concerned, he’s cancer free and healthy.

Chris shared his journey with the public, going on television and telling his story with a shaved head. Now, with a head full of hair, he said it was a relief to draw a line under the experience.

“The response through sharing the story was overwhelming in terms of people coming and wishing me all the best, right from politicians to little old ladies at the fruit market. To be able to wrap it all up and say I’ve had a nice outcome is great,” he said.

“Now the little old ladies all tell me I need a haircut.”

Until July 19 outside Canberra Theatre, locals can get a taste of Vivid Sydney. Running for three minutes, The Spirit of Patyegarang was the first indigenous contribution to the Vivid Light Walk in Sydney, bringing to life the story of the country’s past. The display will run in the lead-up to Bangarra Dance Theatre’s production of Patyegarang, on at Canberra Theatre from July 17-19.