The Pirate's daughter
The Australian Women's Weekly|June 2022
Collette Dinnigan made her name creating beautiful clothes for the Paris runways. Now she has a new life creating beautiful things closer to home.
SAMANTHA TRENOWETH
The Pirate's daughter

"I wanted to have time together as a family. It the most important thing in my life."

Collette Dinigan

COLLETTE WEARS POLO RALPH LAUREN TOP FROM MYER. SUSIE TONKIN Q DIAMONDS BRACELET WORN THROUGHOUT.

Collette with her son, Hunter, who is the younger brother to her daughter, Estella.

HAIR AND MAKE-UP BY LINDA JEFFERYS @ THE ARTISTS GROUP. COLLETTE WEARS POLO RALPH LAUREN JEANS FROM MYER. MES DEMOISELLES DENIM SHIRT FROM THE SOUTH STORE.

Poplars line the winding road out of Bowral in the P Southern Highlands their leaves a burnished, early autumn yellow. The road climbs and twists and turns. Then, behind a drystone wall, a pair of woolly alpacas gambol in grass that's knee-high and emerald green. A silvery mist rises from the valley, shrouding a picture-perfect 1880s weatherboard farmhouse. This is the enchanting world of Collette Dinnigan AO, once the toast of Paris Fashion Week, now the creative heart of both an eclectic homewares business and a warm and welcoming home.

Gates swing open and up the farmyard drive bounds Bosco, a livewire, eight-month-old border collie, followed by affectionate, four-year-old beagle/spaniel Sooty, struggling on her little legs to keep up. Louis, 14, a Swedish golden retriever, guards the porch. His ears twitch at the crunch of gravel and his mistress rounds the corner, tussle-haired and dressed in workout wear and wellies. She leads the way to a kitchen warmed by an old, butter-yellow AGA stove. Fresh figs, lemons and cut flowers are arranged on benchtops in earthenware jars.

Collette's very particular, beguiling aesthetic is everywhere here, some of it no doubt learned on her life's passage but much also inherited from her parents, whose gypsy spirits were only equalled by their gift for creating a generous, nurturing home.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM THE AUSTRALIAN WOMEN'S WEEKLYView all
Hitting a nerve
The Australian Women's Weekly

Hitting a nerve

Regulating the vagus nerve with its links to depression, anxiety, arthritis and diabetes - could aid physical and mental wellbeing.

time-read
5 mins  |
July 2024
Take me to the river
The Australian Women's Weekly

Take me to the river

With a slew of new schedules and excursions to explore, the latest river cruises promise to give you experiences and sights you won’t see on the ocean.

time-read
4 mins  |
July 2024
The last act
The Australian Women's Weekly

The last act

When family patriarch Tom Edwards passes away, his children must come together to build his coffin in four days, otherwise they will lose their inheritance. Can they put their sibling rivalry aside?

time-read
8 mins  |
July 2024
MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN
The Australian Women's Weekly

MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN

When Alexei Navalny died in a brutal Arctic prison, Vladimir Putin thought he had triumphed over his most formidable opponent. Until three courageous women - Alexei's mother, wife and daughter - took up his fight for freedom.

time-read
8 mins  |
July 2024
The wines and lines mums
The Australian Women's Weekly

The wines and lines mums

Once only associated with glamorous A-listers, cocaine is now prevalent with the soccer-mum set - as likely to be imbibed at a school fundraiser as a nightclub. The Weekly looks inside this illegal, addictive, rising trend.

time-read
10 mins  |
July 2024
Jenny Liddle-Bob.Lucy McDonald.Sasha Green - Why don't you know their names?
The Australian Women's Weekly

Jenny Liddle-Bob.Lucy McDonald.Sasha Green - Why don't you know their names?

Indigenous women are being murdered at frightening rates, their deaths often left uninvestigated and widely unreported. Here The Weekly meets families who are battling grief and desperate for solutions.

time-read
10+ mins  |
July 2024
Growing happiness
The Australian Women's Weekly

Growing happiness

Through drought flood and heartbreak, Jenny Jennr's sunflowers bloom with hope, sunshine and joy

time-read
8 mins  |
July 2024
"Thank God we make each other laugh"
The Australian Women's Weekly

"Thank God we make each other laugh"

A shared sense of humour has seen Aussie comedy couple Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall conquer the world. But what does life look like when the cameras go down:

time-read
7 mins  |
July 2024
Winter baking with apples and pears
The Australian Women's Weekly

Winter baking with apples and pears

Celebrate the season of Australian apples and pears with these sweet bakes that will keep the midwinter blues away.

time-read
10+ mins  |
July 2024
Budget dinner winners
The Australian Women's Weekly

Budget dinner winners

Looking for some thrifty inspiration for weeknight dinners? Try our tasty line-up of low-cost recipes that are bound to please everyone at the table.

time-read
5 mins  |
July 2024