Spotted by locals: Arabella Ramsay's Macedon Ranges

We’re sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. We’re working to restore it. Please try again later.

Advertisement

This was published 10 years ago

Spotted by locals: Arabella Ramsay's Macedon Ranges

By Julietta Jameson
Weekend delights ... Arabella and Chris in Kyneton.

Weekend delights ... Arabella and Chris in Kyneton.

The Melbourne designer returns to her Kyneton roots for a weekend spent rediscovering the local gems on the region.

Arabella Ramsay's designs speak volumes about her upbringing on a sheep farm near Kyneton, in the Macedon Ranges north-west of Melbourne.

“I use a lot of earthy elements, I love relaxed style,” says the Melbourne designer, whose latest collection, released under her second label Ryder, features flannelette reinvented to form surprising pieces and denim with Aztec detailing. Also in the Ryder collection are signature prints featuring colourful illustrations of dogs and crustaceans by her father, the celebrated artist Dougal Ramsay.

Arabella Ramsay checks out artwork at the John Lloyd gallery.

Arabella Ramsay checks out artwork at the John Lloyd gallery.

“Animals! I love animals too. And the outdoors,” says Arabella, whose flowing frock designs garner adoring followers. “Of course that comes from growing up in the country.”

The Ramsay family left Kyneton when Arabella was 16, heading for Bannockburn, further south. In recent years, however, Arabella and her husband, Chris Wilson, have rediscovered Kyneton and this winter the couple returned again for an immersive holiday weekend in the thriving bluestone town.

"The great things about Kyneton have been preserved – beautiful goldrush-era architecture, stunning bluestone buildings, big, wide streets – and there's been this real creativity injected and a fantastic food, art and hospitality scene emerge.”

This area of the Macedon Ranges has so much to offer.

Historic Piper Street (piperstreet.com.au) is one of Victoria's most picturesque and unique strips. “There really wasn't a lot there when I was a kid," Arabella says. "Now there are beautiful little cafes, amazing homewares shops and some fantastic, unique local art and design galleries and boutiques.”

Advertisement

High Street is another highlight. “Everyone now raves about Piper Street, but there are some really cool shops and cafes along High Street.”

Coming for a winter weekend stay, Arabella and Chris soaked up the relaxed, peaceful pace of Kyneton. “A lot of people head straight for Daylesford and the spa region, which is great, of course. But this area of the Macedon Ranges has so much to offer: fantastic wineries, beautiful bush drives, the Hanging Rock, of course, and this really special little country town of Kyneton (kyneton.org.au). And then there's tiny Trentham (trentham.org.au) nearby.”

WHERE TO STAY

A lover of architecture, Arabella was taken with the red-brick grandeur that is Mollisons (mollisons.net.au), a boutique hotel with nine bespoke rooms including two apartments and a garden - housed in the premises of an old bank. Mollisons' interior of calming whites, gleaming modern amenities, original wood floors, fireplaces and sumptuous soft furnishings were the perfect environment for Arabella and Chris to relax in. “We've got two little girls (Lottie, 9 months, and two-year-old Marlowe) and this was an extremely rare time away from them. So to have somewhere conducive to a really good sleep was fantastic,” says Arabella. Mollisons also has a boutique on the premises "full of the kinds of interesting antiques and little things the hotel is decorated with".

Aside from Mollisons, there is a myriad of house stays and B&Bs in Kyneton and the region, including the chic cottage accommodation Twigs on High (twigsonline.com.au) in Trentham, styled by interior designer Fiona Nowland.

EXPERIENCES

Arabella and Chris live by the sea, so they love to reconnect with the Macedon Ranges' landscapes. “The back roads are lined with hawthorn hedges which remind you of the English countryside,” says Arabella.

Kyneton's “old churches made of local bluestone with their churchyards full of big pine trees really characterise the town," she says. On Kyneton's Piper Street, Arabella and Chris bought an antique door frame feature from Kabinett (kabinett.com.au), a vintage homewares and collectables emporium that is a destination in itself for Melburnians in the know.

At Rundell & Rundell (rundellandrundell.com.au) in one of Piper Street's original gold rush buildings, Arabella chatted to Lisa Rundell about their individual experiences of growing up in the Macedon Ranges, and about the store's collection of exquisite handcrafted leather goods, garments, accessories and furniture in the store. Lisa's husband, Glen, is a master furniture maker and the couple run chair making courses. “Their collectors' eye is superb and Glen's chairs are amazing,” says Arabella. Rundell's funky little front room now houses a wine called The Chairmaker's Wife and featuring a stunning painting by local artist Catherine Abel.

Arabella then browsed at Nickelby's Antiques, artist John Lloyd's gallery (johnlloydonline.com) and at Lauriston Press (lauristonpress.com.au), a speciality art supplies and drawing studio.

In the nearby village of Trentham, a fantastic vintage boutique called Mr Ed caught Arabella's eye. “What a find!” she says. “Especially her front door sign, which is a big horse's head. I bought some amazing '50s frocks."

Nearby are great walking trails in the Wombat National Park and along the old railway line between Trentham and Lyonville.

FOOD AND WINE

Saturday lunch was enjoyed in front of an open fire at Kyneton's Royal George Hotel (royalgeorge.com.au).The wine list here "is astonishing, full of rare and wonderful local gems,” Arabella says. The region boasts some seriously good wine producers including the highly-lauded Hanging Rock Winery (hangingrock.com.au) and the tiny Paramoor Winery (paramoor.com.au).

Later, after a tipple at Aperitivo (apertivokyneton.net) on Piper Street, the couple dined at Annie Smithers' Bistrot (anniesmithers.com.au), which is now helmed by chef Tim Foster and his wife, Michelle. The French bistro menu sources ingredients from local producers where possible.

Arabella and Chris went to Trentham's RedBeard Historic Bakery (redbeardbakery.com.au) for breakfast one morning, where organic, traditional sourdough breads are baked in a woodfired, historic Scotch oven. “The behind-the-scenes tours are very cool,”she says

Lunch at du Fermier (dufermier.com.au), a French-style farmhouse kitchen created by chef Annie Smithers, was a great way to cap off a wonderful weekend. Annie's garden and kitchen reflect how Arabella and Chris like things: “Simple, good quality, friendly, warm, uncomplicated and completely enjoyable,” says Arabella of their meal. “Just how life should be.”

Spotted by Locals is brought to you in association with Tourism Victoria. See more content from around Victoria on Twitter via #spottedbylocals

Sign up for the Traveller Deals newsletter

Get exclusive travel deals delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up now.

Most viewed on Traveller

Loading