Unexpected Guests: Curdsnwhey.

It's cold and grey out here, so today we're taking a visit to Sydney, Australia where it's summertime, kids! We're dropping in on the fantastic home of Rummage blogger Nannette Louchart-Fletcher, also of curdsnwhey flickr fame.


You're going to feel all refreshed and inspired after this visit! Nan lives in a chaotic house of minuscule proportions with a lunatic Frenchman (her words!) and two wee girlies (four years & six months respectively). They live it large on the smallest of scales, and I am inspired by the sheer brilliance of their home. I also think we may be separated at birth, because Nan's replies sound oddly familiar. I think she and I could have a rocking good time hanging out with all her (and my favorites). Iggy Pop? Oh yeah, girl!


What kind of music inspires you?
I'm a hip-waggling, white-man's-overbite kinda' gal, so Motown, funk and reggae do it for me a lot of the time. I have a serious crush on Screamin' Jay Hawkins' version of I Put a Spell on You. If you like the song, you must see Jim Jarmusch's film, Stranger Than Paradise. Kooky in the very best way!

What's your favorite film?
Difficult, to name a few: Down by Law and Stranger Than Paradise from both from director Jim Jarmusch; Les Amants from Louis Malle; Mr.Smith Goes to Washington from Frank Capra; Mon Oncle from Jacques Tati and much of the work of directors Ken Loach and Mike Leigh.

What's the last great book you read?
Such a difficult question, I recently re-read Anna Karenin by Tolstoy which I adore. Other favourite authors include Siri Hustvedt, Ian McEwan, Peter Carey, AS Byatt, and Angela Carter.

What's your favorite food?
In descending order of importance: cheese, bread, French red wine and chocolate.

Who is your favorite artist?
Hands down it would be the work of children, particularly my own. I have the pleasure of teaching art to children and I love their fearless spontaneity and extravagant use of colour. I also love the works of Grace Cossington-Smith, Olive Cotton and the wonderful Papunya Tula art movement to name a few.

If you could photograph anyone in the world, who might that be?
I am a perfectly useless* photographer but if I had the chance I think I would like to interview and photograph old and revered people from different cultures around the world. I'd like to see what true wisdom looks like.

*Author's note: Nan is clearly not aware of her photography talents!

What is your favorite outing in your hometown of Sydney?
My favourite outing would include a trip to either Mitchell Road Auctions or Rafan & Kelaher Auction House to pick up a few bits & bobs. I would then pop over to Rozelle Markets for some live music and splendid white elephant stalls. Follow this with a gelato to calm the frazzled nerves of small children at Leichhardt institution, Bar Italia, and then a swim at one of Sydney's dazzling sea-pools.

Who would you like to sit down to tea with?
Vivienne Westwood, Ken Loach (social-realist film-maker), Iggy Pop, and Sofia Coppola.

Do you have a guilty pleasure?
The secret consumption of chocolate in the kitchen whilst my children munch virtuously on fruit in the loungeroom.

Where do you find inspiration?
Inspiration is everywhere but standouts would be my children, my sister and many of the wonderful & creative bloggers out there like yourself, Victoria**.

**No payment was offered up for this kind endorsement.

What is your most treasured belonging?
My children's art.

Who do you admire and why?
I admire my parents: commitment to family, integrity, compassion.

What do you despise?
The inability to see things from another person's perspective.

What's your favorite word?
Serendipity - one the great joys in life.

What's the best thing about Sydney?
The sea and the sunshine. The frangipani trees in flower and the sound of children playing in the sea.

Thanks so much for having us, Nan, I gotta go now and paint my kitchen a fresh coat of white paint and copy the heck outta your bright, cheery decor!


*All photos courtesy of curdsnwhey.