We’ve got some super new art on the fence - created by our Access All Abilities artists who attend on Friday afternoons.

Over the last financial year the program has been supported by the Community Bank in Queens Parade at Clifton Hill. Thanks!

Clare runs a fabulous session weekly that explores different mediums and follows the interests and skills of those attending. Last term they explored weaving and collage. This term they are looking at printmaking.

This week we replaced one of our compost bins - to keep our compost hub chugging along.

We bought a new Aerobin from Bunnings - but accidentally only picked up part 1 of 2 packages required for the bin when we dropped in before the holidays. Corrado realised parts were missing as he started putting it together … luckily the LOVELY Bunnings folk saved the day … two staff came by to drop the extra box to us within an hour of our call - how nice!

We love our little compost hub that enables neighbours to drop off scraps throughout the week. Along with our own kitchen scraps and the green garden waste from our raised beds, every few months we fill a bin.

Clare turns them on Friday for a few minutes. We keep a bag of straw/organic matter next to the bins and ask all contributors to add a handful as they go (so we’re balancing the ‘brown’ carbon and the ‘green’ nitrogen). Once the bin is full and well mixed we leave it for a month (and start filling the other bin).

And then … in the blink of an eye it seems, we have such great compost! It’s amazing how quickly it all happens with the right processes in place.

If you’d like to learn more about composting at home you can come along on Fridays and chat to Clare. She’s a wealth of knowledge. And if you live nearby and don’t have access to a compost bin you are welcome to contribute to ours!

We have a spot (and maybe two) left in our new intermediate Women in the Shed program … so if you are interested just click here … AND if it is sold out call us (because I think someone who has booked a spot might not be able to come after all - so there might be an extra spot available). Kalimna will sort it all out on Tuesday. Our number is 9499 7227.

Note the course will start next week, that is the first week of August, not this week as advertised, and will run for 6 weeks on Thursday afternoons. It costs &240.

We still have places available in our upcoming Repair workshops if you are keen to book in …

Sewing Machine Maintenance on Saturday 29th July from 10am

Lamp Repair Workshop on Saturday 5th August from 10am.

Overlocker Maintenance on Saturday 12th August from 10am.

These workshops are subsidised by Sustainability Victoria so you can learn how to repair and maintain things yourself - rather than throwing them away.

As we approach the end of term 2 we’re all looking forward to a break so that we can return refreshed and ready to roll for the second half of the year.

So, firstly this is a reminder that we’ll finish up this Friday 23 June and take a two week break - then see you all on Monday 10 July bright eyed and bushy tailed and ready for term 3.

In this last week we’ll be working on the program for next semester.

We’ve had lots of people come and talk to us about new ideas which is just fabulous! We’ve had discussions about health, wellbeing and fitness classes, maternal/child health support, art classes, community art projects and more. So we’ll spend the week following these ideas up and seeing which ones we can get going.

And we’re also talking with our local artists from Alphington Open Studios about the dates for this year, and talking with the Music from the Wetlands committee about how we can best help out for that fabulous event (how EXCITING - it will be on again in late November, always such a wonderful day!).

We’re also super thrilled that our colleagues over in Richmond got a grant from Sustainability Victoria all about building a ‘repair’ culture. And they have invited us to be part of their workshop series. So we might have a bike repair workshop here, maybe Gordon back for Sewing Machine and Overlocker maintenance/repairs, and a session on how to repair a lamp … Sounds great hey (I’d love to know how to use a kit to rewire my lovely old standard lamp safely … ). Richmond are just in the process of working out what happens at which site!

We also have two students from The Academy of Mary Immaculate here this week, which will be just lovely. I am sure they will be very helpful in getting organised for the end of term. And also a great resource to tap into for programming ideas. Look out for them and make them feel welcome!

And finally I have included a photo from last week of the green tomato relish that our lovely preserves group made. The tomatoes came from Kalimna’s mum and dad who have a big garden - she brought in so many tomatoes that our cooks needed two sessions to get through them all. With donated glass jars and fabric and donated ingredients, our preserves group activities are not just about being productive and helping us fundraise whilst chatting and making community connections, but also about low food miles and recycling! It’s super isn’t it!