AN AVOCA RETREAT
Take advantage of time together by hiring a beach-view apartment minus the summer crowds. George Brand Holiday Accommodation is the go-to for popular Avoca Beach. If year-round swimming doesn’t appeal then winter promises long beach strolls and whale watching. Shop the coastal-inspired homewares, fashion and relaxed luxe lifestyle offerings at Weekends Store. Expect Australian-made and ethically sourced products featuring raw, earthy colour palettes and textures. Keep snug in cooler weather by heading to Like Minds, a zero-waste cafe, to drink seriously good coffee. Catch a flick or live music at cosy Avoca Beach Theatre. Then re-group for drinks and nibbles on your private entertaining terrace overlooking the bay.
weekendsstore.com
holidays.georgebrand.com.au
HIGH TEA AT HOME OR BY THE SEA
The most effective rallying cry to get the gals together is the promise of fresh scones and hot tea (or coffee, or bubbles). We think Tea by the Sea sounds deliciously appealing and The Box on the Water at Ettalong is the place to be on Wednesdays and Sundays for a traditional high tea with a touch of modern. But if an overdue catch-up requires more time, then high tea at home (yours or the holiday rental) without you having to do the hard work is a good idea too. Wamberal local, Angela Bainbridge, started High Tea 2 Your Door in 2017, taking hassle-free deliciousness all over the Central Coast. She provides the fine bone china, tiered cake stands and white linen tablecloths. You provide the guests and venue. Choose from six to 10 high tea items per person and, says Angela, ‘I like to cook from scratch. Apart from bread, everything is made by these little hands.’ Highly recommended: the decadent dark chocolate brownie.
theboxonthewater.com
hightea2yourdoor.com
PICK SUNSHINY SUNFLOWERS
Bring home bright yellow bundles of joy from pick-your-own mornings at The Bloom Barn at Peats Ridge. Sunflowers are available for picking throughout the year, even in winter when a burst of vibrancy is most needed. Since opening the farm to the public on selected dates three years ago, owner and flower farmer, Ivan Rusev, says the PYO days are increasingly popular. ‘Sunflowers are such a happy flower and many people’s favourite.’ He is expecting to open up more weekends for the public (check dates online). Pickers are encouraged to make a morning of it. If the take-home cheer of sunflowers isn’t tempting enough, then marshmallows roasting over the farm’s fire pit could be the clincher.
thebloombarn.com.au
STYLE UP
Some people love shopping, but others shudder at the thought. Stylist Kelly-Anne Kent knows this can come from not knowing what clothes suit your body, or from feeling overwhelmed. ‘They can’t find anything and want help and a personalised experience,’ says Kelly-Anne. That’s where KelK Styling comes in, offering private Sip + Style afternoons at the Jilliby studio. Friends enjoy a cold drink and share platters of cheese and bickies while Kel guides their personal style, with no obligation to buy. Inevitably, anyone who is at first hesitant gains confidence from Kel’s expertise and their friends’ encouragement. ‘By the end,’ says Kel, ‘no one cares about the changeroom and it gets a little crazy but it’s really fun.’ And you may even head home with clothes you’ll actually wear.
kelkstyling.com.au
THE BEAUTY OF PEARLS (AND OYSTERS)
Perhaps you’ve seen the Hawkesbury’s oyster farms from the road or the train. Peer closer and you’ll realise there are more to oysters than au naturale or kilpatrick. Because real beauty is what’s on the inside when it comes to Akoya oysters. Specifically, pearls. At Broken Bay Pearl Farm, the east coast’s only pearl farm, get an affordable and insightful taste of luxury by choosing from the Secrets of Pearling tour, an oyster farm cruise, or a pearl grading experience. Of course, there is also oyster tasting or you can add on a Salt Pig Deli grazing platter to enjoy by the water.
brokenbaypearlfarm.com.au
CLIMB ON
If life has you climbing the walls, you may as well spark feel-good endorphins with friends while you’re doing it. For that, you’ll need an indoor climbing gym like Pulse Climbing in West Gosford. It’s a bouldering gym, meaning that instead of climbing really high with a rope, you’ll be mucking about at lower levels with a crash pad (if only life offered those). There’s something for every level of fitness and expertise. Beginners, especially, could do with a group of trusted mates who’ll encourage you to reach new heights. Literally.
pulseclimbing.com.au
ON YOUR BIKE
Drink in the best of Brisbane Water by bike. For the friend who always protests (likely because their previous ride was so long ago it involved Spokey Dokeys stuck in the pokes of your bicycle wheels to make a noise), let the Gosford to Woy Woy scenic cycleway do the convincing. It’s a mostly flat 19.2 km there-and-back ride along Brisbane Water’s foreshore. Halfway along the ride at the Koolewong marina is Kefi, making it the ideal place to stop for a coffee or lunch, share the best Greek food on the Coast and watch boats go by. Or talk up lunch the other side of the Spike Milligan Bridge, stopping at the award-winning seafood eatery, WoyWoyFishermen’sWharf.
Forego the restaurant to grab takeaway grilled Atlantic salmon and salad, or a half lobster mornay, to refuel for the return ride. Depending on fitness, it could be an hour’s ride in total plus as long as you like for lunch. On your bike.
WORDS TARA WELLS
