Getting Back II Basics with Erana Braddock

When Erana Braddock was pregnant with her first child she took up sewing. “I got a second hand brother machine and took lessons at the high school,” Erana told Back II Basics. “I do enjoy it, but I hate the fiddly patterns so now I use real simple homemade patterns and lots of tutorials online.” Erana found she not only enjoyed sewing but it saved her money – especially with a young family. “I save money in taking...

Wood fired comfort

The kitchen in Barry and Colleen Boston’s Ararimu home is warm and comforting. A long, scrubbed wooden table stretches the length of the room and has a view over an English style garden, lovely even in the spring mist. In the corner a Stanley wood fired cooker burns, its heat filling the kitchen with ease. “We put it in about 14 years ago,” Colleen says as she fills the teapot with water boiled on the...