Author: We Know Melbourne

17 Minute Tram Stories

Did you know the average length of a tram ride in Melbourne is 17 minutes? Well, the folks at Yarra Trams knew this fact and decided to do something about it in conjunction with the Melbourne Writers Festival. The result is 17 minute Tram Stories, a series of new writing pieces, from writers that will be attending the Melbourne Writers Festival,which each take about 17 minutes to read. There’s a new story every week from July 24th to August 30th. The first week’s story by Michaela Maguire concerned the nature of time and our perceived lack of it in today’s modern society. It even referenced one of We Know Melbourne’s favourite science experiments; the 1927 “Pitch Test” by Professor Thomas Parnell. Professor Parnell spent nearly 50 years waiting to observe the falling of one of the elusive droplets from a beaker of pitch. The drops only fell about once every 15 years and somehow, despite his vigilance, Professor Parnell managed to miss the falling of every drop during his life. The experiment is still ongoing …

Melbourne Spring Fashion Week

Published by We Know Melbourne

Spring is coming which means Melbourne Spring Fashion Week, one of the most anticipated events of the year, is almost here. Presented by City of Melbourne, MSFW will showcase why Melbourne is known as one of the fashion capitals of the word. Highlights include: Adult sized ball pit – Ground Level Emporium Reimagine your child hood ball pit, step into it and create your very own fashion moment to keep to yourself or to share on social media. Shop the City – Melbourne CBD, 28 – 30 August Kicking off with Vogue Fashion’s Night Out on the Friday, this weekend long shopping experience will offer exclusive sales and discounts in key retail precincts. Designer Runways – Melbourne Town Hall 1-4 September Held over four evenings this series of one-off designer runways will showcase Australia’s best fashion designers and highlight key colours and styles with their spring and summer collections. Emerging Designer Market – 30 August Discover our city’s talented new fashion designers as you browse through their latest range of clothing, jewellery and accessories. Creative Bloggers Workshop …

A Grand Evening with Robyn Annear

Published by We Know Melbourne

On a typical, cool wet Melbourne winter evening in August, 42 literary buffs attended an exclusive, three course dinner at the Grand Hotel for a night of wine, fabulous food and an enthralling, intimate chat with author Robyn Annear. Partnering with The Wheeler Centre, this event was one of three to be hosted by the M Gallery Collection Hotel’s in Melbourne, the first, being held at The Lindrum in May, and the last to be held at The Como in September. The night kicked off in grand style, all guests greeted with their choice of champagne or the hotel’s signature drink – a John Batman Apple Martini, chosen for the hotel’s historical location significance, as it was originally the site of Melbourne’s founding father’s fruit orchard. The conversation flowed amongst guests as did the wine and before long, everyone had polished off their generous entrée, mains, and the main event kicked off. Interviewed beautifully by Wheeler Centre representative, Helen Withycombe, Robyn Annear was charming, entertaining and a perfectly eccentric. Guests found themselves listening to a …

Shaken not stirred at Please Don’t Tell

Published by We Know Melbourne

When we heard that the boys from New York’s most famous speakeasy were coming to Melbourne, we couldn’t help but get excited, and so did the rest of Melbourne it seemed. Tickets sold out (or should we say booked out – entry was free) within minutes and we were lucky enough to secure tickets for the first session. Now, we’ve visited a whole lot of speakeasies on previous trips to the US, and we had heard about Please Don’t Tell, but low and behold we never got there. Call it what you will, but we think this was definitely a sign, that we had to go! In case you don’t know what a speakeasy is (one of our friends who came along actually had to google it first), old mate, Wikipedia defines it as: “an establishment that illegally sells alcoholic beverages. Such establishments came into prominence in the United States during theProhibition era (1920–1930).” Although these days, it would be more used to describe bars with a retro style, think something out of the 1950s that …

A Crafty Idea

Published by We Know Melbourne

Mingle with other craft-patch kids at Thread Den’s Annual Craft Party. As part of the Craft Cubed Festival, this 3 hour session will teach you the basics of knitting, screen printing and crochet. Bring a small plate of tasty nibbles, or baked goods to share between craft stations. When: Friday August 14th, 6pm – 9pm. Where: Collingwood Cost: $35 Find out more here

Get Stuffed

Published by We Know Melbourne

Taxidermy, the art and science of mounting an animal’s skin, (feathers, furs and all), has been practised since the 18th century, and the Melbourne Museum invites you to learn all about it at Get Stuffed. At this adults-only event you’ll get up and close with various creatures as the Melbourne Museum’s taxidermists prepare various specimens right before your very own eyes. Along with live demos, there’ll also be drinks, talks, and a dash of digital media. We promise you, you’ll never look at a stuffed animal the same way again. When: August 20, 6-9:30pm Where: Melbourne Museum Cost $14-$18 Visit the website here.

The Shirt & Skirt Market

Published by We Know Melbourne

With the cooler months already here, rug up and come and browse some of the best independent emerging designer clothing and lifestyle accessories all in one beautiful space at the Abbotsford Convent. The next amazing market will be on Sunday 16 August. The Shirt & Skirt Market is one of Melbourne’s original design markets and for over eight years, it has fostered new ideas and new design talent from across Victoria. The market will showcase over 40+ independent designers with beautiful designer clothes, unique accessories and one-off items. When: Sunday 16 August, 10am – 4pm Where: Abbotsford Convent, St Helliers Street, Abbotsford Cost: Free Visit the website here.

The Right to Know

Published by We Know Melbourne

The Red Cross has been helping people for so long now that sometimes it is easy to take them for granted. That’s why it’s timely that there’s a new exhibition at the Immigration Museum celebrating 100 years of the Red Cross International Tracing Service. The service helps re unite families separated by wars, conflicts and natural disasters. Megan Goodman, the Program Directors says that the service has heard “heartbreaking stories of people who have fled war and conflict, of children forced from their parents at gunpoint and of husbands disappearing on their way to work. Using Red Cross’ network in 189 countries we can get messages to places where formal postal services don’t operate, where telephones don’t work and where others cannot go.” The fascinating stories of some of the families that the service has helped are on display at The Right to Know. 100 Years of the Red Cross Tracing Service Reuniting Families at the Immigration Museum When: 1st July until 25th October. Cost: Included with museum entry. Visit the website here.

Masterpieces From The Hermitage

Published by We Know Melbourne

The National Gallery of Victoria presents it’s latest Winter Masterpieces collection – Hermitage, The Legacy of Catherine. Showcasing one of the world’s greatest art collection and featuring works by artists like Rembrandt, Rubens, Velazquez, Van Dyck. The show will include the finest group of Dutch and Flemish art. Where: NGV Melbourne When: 31 July – 8 November 2015 Visit the website here.

Trailer Park at the Village

Published by We Know Melbourne

Melbourne and food trucks go together like peanut butter and jelly. One can’t exist without the other. That’s why we can’t wait to hit Trailer Park this August at the Village Melbourne grounds. This year’s theme is Food of Origin and every Saturday and Sunday this August, the best food trucks will be serving up their take on the theme, starting with North America, then South and Central America, Europe and Asia. This year there will also be as a pop up bar in the Arbor (undercover area) and full bar service from the Bistro. We Know Melbourne tip: Get the soft shell crab burger from the Hammer and Tong Food Truck. When: Every Saturday and Sunday throughout August. Where: The Village 557 St Kilda Road Melbourne (Entry on Moubray Street) When: Every Saturday and Sunday throughout August. Cost: Free entry! Just remember to bring money for all the snacking. Find out more here.