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9:30 am

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS | Rohan

Our fourth guest gift guide comes from another of our great friends - and a guy! why not - Rohan, one half of one of our favourite creative duos, Badlands studio. Rohan is famous for his incredible style so we knew he would have a fantastic wish list, and this assortment of Pierre Hardy sneakers, oil-slick watches and art deco lighters does him - and us - proud. Read through for Rohan's christmas picks! 

one. Pierre Hardy sneakers - one and two


I love sneakers. They're basically all I wear, but I need some new ones. Pierre Hardy sneakers look amazing and these two are a bit different. Velvet & Leopard aren't my usual go-to finishes but maybe this year's the year.


two. A watch



I've not worn a watch for a decade or so but I'm wanting to get back into it. This Junghans x Max Bill black-faced chronograph is beautiful, and I want to go to there.


three. A bag


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I've been banging on about this Monocle x Porter bag for years but have never got round to actually purchasing the thing. Somehow I feel that if i get it i'll be compelled to become a jet-set traveller who's never in one place for more than a week, only carries one change of clothes, yet always manages to look amazing. I blame this on the fashion stories in Monocle.


four. Typography books - one and two



I love Type as much as Denholm Reynholm loves the word 'Team'. These books are filled with the stuff. And that's just great.



five. An ST Dupont gold lighter


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I very nearly bought one of these at the start of the year, but then didn't. True story. I don't smoke but there's just something about a gold Dupont lighter that I love. Especially the 'ping' noise they make when you open them.


six. M/M Paris poster


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This is the letter S from M/M Paris' Alphabet series with Inez & Vinoodh. It's a massive screenprinted poster. I feel it would look amazing in the minimal loft apartment I don't have.




Look at it. It's ridiculous.
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9:30 am

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS | LiaBelle

Third in our gift guide series for this season is public relations dynamo Lia-Belle, a great friend of ours who is the director of agency Our Kingdom. We love her mixture of the realistic (Jo Malone cologne and a panama hat) alongside evenings with Grimes and the perfect vintage sofa. Read through for Lia-Belle's christmas picks!


 For as long as I can remember I have always wanted a sumptuous velvet lounge. I love how they emote feelings of luxury and can be placed amongst more contemporary or even retro pieces yet always remain the focal point of a room. This piece in particular resonates as it’s my favourite colour. If I ever get married I want my wedding dress to be duck egg or powder blue. 

two. Panama hat 



Classic, easy to pack, ages gracefully. With a slim brim and black grosgrain ribbon. 



 I love anything roses and I’m fresh out of perfume. It’s soft and sweet with a light spiciness. I partner with Kiehls white musk for my own take on a slightly-old fashioned scent. Sometimes I like to spritz my bed before I go to sleep too. Note: If it’s a hot day instead of wearing perfume I’ll lather on some Jurlique rose oil. It wears well on your skin and doesn’t dissipate during the day. 

four. This hair

That is all. 




Ryan is making this style for me but in a brilliant sapphire blue and without the pearls. I always wear red lipstick and I have fair skin so I think it will look quite striking. 

six. Prada wallet 


My current Prada pochette I have been using as a wallet/clutch and it’s definitely seen better days. I’m so picky with wallets though I haven’t come across one I have really liked…until now. It’s simple, not too obvious with the branding, the leather is patent saffiano so it won’t scratch too easily, dark lining so it won’t show coin marks. And it can fit my phone. Winner. 




Because I find this very impressive. I would love to watch her hand gestures during a conversation and just to see how she is in person. I have never really felt a connection to a musician/band before but Grimes haunts me in the best way possible. 

eight. Anders Krisár Flesh Clouds


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To be honest I don’t own a single piece of legit art, but if I was to invest it would be in an Anders Krisár piece from his Flesh Clouds series. Each piece in the series renders an amorphous haze of a figure. In this piece you can it above the bed. The figure is actually Krisár naked and in motion, captured in an extended exposure time.

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1:54 pm

THIS IS MY CITY | Bianca's Brisbane

Brisbane is Australia's sunshine city, a place of bronzed girls and summer sun. And one of our favourite bloggers who hails from Brisbane is Bianca from Sargasso Sea, winner of last year's Pedestrian blogger award and a member of Vogue's prestigious Spy Style blogging network. We got her to send through her insider's guide to Brisbane and we love her tales of the local creative scene, it makes us want to book a ticket asap! This is Brisbane, by Bianca.

All photos by Bianca Blades

 A weekend escape to the Sunshine Coast

one. Best thing about Brisbane? The proximity to tropical beaches and islands is always nice but the best part of Brisbane is the local creative scene - seeing bands, visiting art shows and meeting designers. 

two. Worst thing about Brisbane? I won't get political so I'll stick to a shallow answer - we always miss out on good sample sales. I guess designers don't really want to ship their dead stock up to Queensland when they can have a quick sell in Sydney or Melbourne. 

  Bianca relaxing at the Mt Coot-tha botanic gardens

three. Favourite secret spot? Sunday afternoon yoga and meditation class in West End, before a walk through the community garden and down to my favourite spot by the river. I also love escaping to the Mt Coot-tha botanic gardens and planetarium whenever I'm feeling stressed with study, the Japanese gardens always have a great sense of calm. 

four. Favourite everyone-knows-it-but-it's-still-good spot? Cedar Creek Falls at Mount Tambourine. It's a bit of a winding drive, but the shady swimming spot and rope swing make up for it. 

 Watching over Cedar Creek Falls

five. What is your newest discovery in Brisbane? Rogue Rennard in Paddington for coffee, sweet pastries and a mean toasted cheese sandwich. What about somewhere you've been going forever but can't quite give up? The antique shops at Paddington and Woolloongabba. I like buying antique presents for loved ones and I've managed to find some amazing treasures in really good condition. 

six. Where is the best place for.... morning coffee/pick-me-up? Healthy and delicious breakfast snacks at Sourced Grocer. meal with friends? Marinara restaurant for hilarious waiters, wine, cheese and authentic Italian food. romantic rendez-vous? Porkbelly and spatchcock at Crosstown Eating House. late night drink? Flaming kava cocktails, tiki bar tunes and hawaiian leis at Alfred and Constance. even later-night boogie? Jazz, soul or disco at Black Bear Lodge

 Precious jewellery on display at Gail Sorronda's flagship store

seven. Where are Brisbane's style spots? Where is the best shopping? Blonde Venus is our most charming fashion destination, run by local fashion luminary Thea Basiliou since 1990. She genuinely cares about designers and runs her business with such integrity. Gail Sorronda just opened her flagship store nearby in James Street, where Ksubi also has a fun art collaboration with the Institute of Modern Art called k.O.M.A (Kontemporary or Modern Art). Apart from shopping at the Valley, I like looking for vintage jewels and fabric at my suburb in Paddington. 

eight. What is something you can get/read/experience/eat that you can only do in Brisbane? The Stitchery Collective is a really special artist-run initiative that presents fashion as a social tool. Housed in a historic building in Fortitude Valley, the collective holds open studio workshops each month to preserve handmade skills and provoke discussion on ethics and sustainability. 

 The Stitchery Collective

nine. You can tell a lot about a city from their airport. Describe Brisbane's. Like most places in Brisbane, the airport is nestled in bushland where the river meets the port. The best part of coming home is driving back into the city through the leafy river suburbs. 

ten. How would your describe Brisbane to someone who has never been there before? A warm and relaxed city where you can work by the river and escape to the beach at every opportunity. 

  
The cultural centre at Southbank where you can see plays, work in the library and visit the art gallery


Benah's This Is My City guides:

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9:30 am

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS | Hannah-Rose

I always seem to be making lists around this time, that's the trouble with having both Christmas and a birthday in December. But at least I always start to think about gifting early, and this year I have a mixture of wants and needs, things for myself, things for my life, and things for my mind. I like to have a bit of a mix. (This is also something of a dream list, because I've been taught well by my mum that the best kind of presents are the ones you really don't expect, not even a little bit, not at all. We learned this the year my brother and I both got sheep for christmas. Yes. Sheep. Physical ones, but not at our house, on our friends farm. We didn't really get it at the time, but later in the year the sheep's wool was sold and we got a nice little paycheck, which was fun. Completely random, but fun. That's my mum.)





This is one of those perfect luxuries - the things that are so unnecessary yet totally necessary - and I would love to have this under the tree on Christmas day. I'm heading overseas for a big European winter right after Christmas and a travel-size leather perfume dispenser seems like the kind of thing that grown-up me deserves. I would love to fill it with the daisy-fresh La Tulipe fragrance, but at $90 for the dispenser alone I'll probably be pushing it.




Benah Creative Director Brenda actually turned me onto this one, she's a big Slim Aarons fan, and his amazing book Poolside sits in pride of place on the bookshelf in Benah studio. I love La Dolce Vita for that pure Italian glamour, the atmosphere of convertible cars, and big Lake Como villas and Negronis in the afternoon. I've always loved Italy and its molto molto molto life philosophy but have never really travelled there properly. It's the first place on my European winter list, and this book will ensure that I don't miss out on any of its summery allure, either. Amazing.




I remember having a polaroid camera when I was a kid, and playing mock-photoshoots with friends, dressing up in bedsheets and my mum's vintage scarves. I'm not sure what happened to that camera but I'd like one now, especially after seeing those perfectly grainy, perfectly, well, instant (more than any other kind of photo I think a polaroid really captures a moment rather than a scene, don't you?) results. The dream would be to have this camera on my holiday so I could get some snaps to take home and share - on the balcony of my Parisian apartment, singing along to Sound of Music songs really loudly in Salzburg. (Can you tell that all I can think about at the moment is my holiday?!?!)




When I was at school the History Boys was my favourite play. I had a group of close friends and we felt like the kids in that play to some extent because of the classes were taking and the teachers that we had and the lives we thought that we would live out. I wish that I had seen it at the Opera House in 2007 but I remember that I was sitting my HSC and I wasn't allowed out of the house, but now is the chance to change all of that. I always love gifts that are experience as well as presents, and this fits all of that perfectly. 




This one is really for my mum, who loves to get me presents that are useful and for the home. Well, I'm not sure how this started, really, it's got something to do with that scene in Gosford Park when Maggie Smith is having breakfast in bed in all her finery and complaining about "bought marmalade, dear me I call that very feeble" and also that post on the decorum with orange juice and pancakes and the perfect wooden tray. Another one of those luxuries that are both superfluous and necessary, big enough to fill with breakfast treats and a pot of flowers and a nice little napkin, but something you could also use for drinks, or as a magazine stand, or for laying out all of your nail polishes... It's not like I ever even have breakfast in bed - at all! - but maybe if I had a breakfast tray then I might? This would be the kind of gift that really does keep on giving. 


I have a tiny little stocking that fits inside my normal Christmas one that says "For my tiny but very expensive present" and I think that this would be perfect in there. I have another string bracelet by Van Rycke, which I got for my birthday last year and I have never taken it off. I think that one in red, with that inspiring slogan that signifies so many things would be perfect. 



I recently got hooked on pouches thanks to the Benah Large Zip wallet, it fits everything in it and it's perfect for keeping everything in its place in big bags, as well as the alternative to carrying everything with you on short trips or morning runs to get muesli. Buuuuuuuuuut the move has awakened in me a need for another pouch, smaller and more compact, to keep money and cards and coins. Like the present inside the pass the parcel! My big pouch is burgundy so I was thinking a different colour, maybe black, or even pistachio (!!!) for my mini pouch. Everything in contrast.
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3:28 pm

our edit of the sale!

Just a few of the bargains you could snap up at our sample sale this Thursday, Friday and Saturday. If you live interstate and want to purchase now email info@thebenah.com for more information, and we hope to see you at the sale this week!

the PINK edit


Ryder sandals in Ivory sz 40 $80 // Lola clutch in blush $100 // Belt in holographic $50 (only ML left) // Fringed scarf $20 // Kodi bag in blush $180 // Coin purse in holographic $20 (SOLD OUT)

the RED edit


All Classic canvas beach bags $30 // All kodi cuffs $20 (limited SM sizes) //  Alex canvas ipad travel wallet in red and tan leather // Kodi mini chain (slightly imperfect) $100 (SOLD OUT) // Red suede belt $25 // Lola canvas clutch $65

the BLUE edit


100% silk scarf $30 // Medium Zip Wallet in silver $50 (other colours available) // Ryder sandals in Navy sz 39 $80 // Kodi chain navy with gunmetal $180 (SOLD OUT) // Alex Ipad wallet in blue canvas with navy (SOLD OUT)

the GREEN edit

 Kodi cuffs all $20 med/lrg // Pale Ryder Envy Scarf $30 // Med Coin Purse $50 // Fringe Scarf $30, Large leather bag $150
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4:56 pm

THIS IS MY CITY | Giselle's Miami

Giselle is the creative director of one of our favourite stockists, the beautifully curated online store My Chameleon and a fan of American hotspot Miami. We admit we had our doubts when she professed her love for this city - isn't this the same city of which Michael Westen proclaimed "when you're burned you've got nothing"??? - but we were won over by her city guide and her excitement when she returned. And it's great timing, as Miami's art basel fair starts this week, bringing the art and culture world's best and brightest to the city. We can't get enough of America at the moment, and Miami just might be on our travel wishlist for next year. And if we do we'd love to do it in a uniform hand-picked from My Chameleon's enviable design mix, Benah is in great company there alongside Christopher Esber, TOME and Cacharel. This is Miami - by Giselle.


 Art Deco buildings in Miami


one. Best thing about Miami? The art deco buildings against the hazy sky and the perfect temperature of Miami beach. 

two. Worst thing about Miami? I try not to find the worst things about cities it is best to take them for what they are and enjoy their diversity. In Miami you can choose what experience you would like to have. 

three. Favourite secret spot? Virginia Keys beach and Delray Beach in South Florida 

 Virginia Keys beach, Miami


four. Favourite everyone-knows-it-but-it's-still-good spot? News Café, downtown - shaded by large trees and nestled back from the street curb. Milkshakes, burgers and big breakfasts - what you need after a night out with friends. 

five. What is your newest discovery in Miami? Rosa Mexicana on Lincoln Rd - the only place I know where you can get guacamole made fresh at your table. 

six. Where is the best place for.... morning coffee? meal with friends? romantic rendez-vous? late night drink? even later-night boogie? Morning coffee and housemade granola at Icebox, Dinner with friends at Cecconi’s at Soho Beach House, Romantic dinner at Ola for Cuban or Casa Tua, Hakkasan for good Chinese and to The Electric Pickle club for late night drinks and some dancing. 

 Cecconi's at Soho Beach House


seven. Where are Miami's style spots? Where is the best shopping? My favourite boutique is The Alchemist on Lincohn Rd they carry labels like Alaia and Dries Von Noten and Rick Owens. Bal Harbour Shopping centre for Balenciaga, La Perla and Stella McCartney and while there make sure you have lunch at Carpaccio - it's an Italian restaurant. The Design District for Celine and Maison Martin Margiela and plenty of art galleries along the way. 

eight. What is something you can get/read/experience/eat that you can only do in Miami? Art Basel Miami - held every year in December it’s a time for gallerists from around the world to showoff artists’ work, there are also lots of private parties and the vibe in Miami is uplifting. 

nine. You can tell a lot about a city from their airport. Describe Miami's. The only thing I can remember is the abundance of Anastasia’s Pure Coconut bars. Flavoured coconut covered in dark chocolate, need I say more. 

ten. How would you describe your city to someone who has never been before? Hot, Laid back and fun. 


Miami atmosphere


Benah's This Is My City guides:
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