The Farmer Wears Prada is a lifestyle blog and discussion forum motivated by my move to the country, as well as a desire to share my inspiration and favourite things.
I have worked in retail for the past 20 years, showcasing fashion, furniture and homewares, and currently own a store in Sydney. I lived in New York for 5 years in my early 30s and have traveled extensively to Europe and USA for buying with my business. I guess I’ve lived the Fashion girls dream – visiting high end showrooms in Paris, New York and Milan for weeks on end. The thing is it is hard work and not all it is cracked up to be. I do feel very blessed for the experience – I have met people and seen things I would never have had the opportunity to do otherwise.
I recently relocated to a remote property on NSW Central Coast, and became a mother. Living with my partner and son on 105 acres, surrounded by animals and National Park, has been an amazing life-change, however being a new mother living at the end of a dirt road has been a major adjustment to say the least. I realize that we are not as remote as many properties in Australia, but relative to what my previous life has been, it is the polar opposite.
Being on a farm has made it difficult to integrate into the local community and meet like minded people, especially with a new baby. The nearest store is a 40 minute round trip. I am not a Mother’s Group kinda girl and although I go to Sydney once a week to check in with work and see family and friends, the feeling of isolation is tough to fight on a good day. I looked to the Country Womens Association – despite the amazing CWA coobooks and its recent influx of members of a younger demographic, I did not feel it was my cup of tea and scones. So I figured I would cast the net wider and tap into my own online community. I want to create a platform for a lifestyle forum and to connect people from all over the globe through interests and inspiration - travel, shopping, bars, restaurants, food and recipes, beauty, sport, health and fitness, politics, current affairs, finance, spirituality and religion, art, film, music, radio, tv and books.