Blog
Updated 29 March 2021
fête magazine is the brain child of Annabelle Kerslake and Jane Cameron. A seasonal publication hailing from Adelaide, fête gets to know the people they feature; sharing what they put in their homes and what they put in their bellies; tapping in to the intrinsic link between design and lifestyle. fête includes the kind of stories that aren't just inspiring, but attainable too - Annabelle shares some stories as well as a sneak peek into recent issues.
Annabelle, what is your background, and how did you come to start fête magazine?
I have always been an entrepreneur at heart – when I was 19 I opened a florist shop with little more than a gut instinct that I might just be able to pull it off! It didn't take long before I realised I had a love of the 'big picture' projects and my little flower shop soon evolved into an event styling company. It was during this time that I was introduced to my now dear friend and fête co-founder, Jane Cameron, an extraordinarily talented designer (who may be just a little OCD by her own admission). Jane and I collaborated on many creative projects together, all of which in one way or another lead to us to fête! There is no denying that we have a once in a lifetime partnership – I am all about the big picture and Jane has the eye for detail. We are polar opposites, but somehow always on the same page. We were both at a point where we were craving a simple approach to life – work, family, home - surrounded by over-styling and a culture that puts so much pressure on people to always be wanting for more. From the outset we planned to produce a magazine that we would love to read ourselves, with a simple, modern aesthetic and achievable, authentic ideas. We were in the fortunate position that between the two of us we had all the skills needed to start up the project – including design, photography, styling, writing, advertising and marketing. This gave us complete freedom and creative control – it is literally our dream project. We started with little more than two laptops and a camera, all from our home offices. After a year as a successful online magazine, we took the leap into print and haven't looked back.
fête, Summer 2013
The magazine's visual style is very distinctive – fresh, light and airy are words that come to mind. How important to you is this consistency?
Consistency is everything! My partnership with Jane has taught me a great deal over the years, the importance of strong brand identity was perhaps the greatest lesson. Being so hands on with all aspects of the production helps us to maintain consistency – we both have a really strong idea of what we are trying to achieve and luckily we are both on the same page. There's not as much chance of things being lost in translation as may be the case with larger publications. Often we will be working on a shot and without a word we both know what needs to be changed! We keep the whole process pretty black and white when we are working on shoots and layouts – if something isn't working or doesn't feel right, it doesn't make the cut. We learnt that lesson very early on. fête is an extension of our own personal style, so every image is carefully curated. The fête design ethos considers negative space, a modern, simple aesthetic and loads of natural light, and as a result we have established a style that sits really well with us both and our readers.
fête, Summer 2013
A key focus for fête is celebrations of all kinds. What ideas about creating events do you hope your readers will take away from your stories?
Personally, I feel very passionate about empowering our readers to share and entertain again. I grew up in an era where every weekend my parents would either be hosting a dinner party or going to one, kids and all. My parents cherish their friends and loved to enjoy themselves and now at 70 they still do! Somewhere along the way we have all lost our confidence to entertain, so hung up on having everything perfect and manicured before we could dream of gathering friends in our homes – it's almost like we have forgotten how to relax! We want our readers to be happy in the space they have right now. Often a lick of paint, a new light fitting or a furniture reshuffle can make all the difference. Once you feel happy in your home you can't help but want to share it.
fête, Summer 2013
Our aim is to offer authentic, simple and beautiful ideas that make entertaining and celebrating something to enjoy. We are all so busy, it's amazing how quickly weekends will pass by and we put entertaining in the too-hard basket. If we can simplify things and break it down, hopefully we can inspire our readers everywhere to stop what they're doing and reconnect with people. We share our favourite recipes that we like to cook in our own homes, our favourite styling tips and even playlists for every occasion, in the hope that we can demonstrate that simple and stress free is the only way to celebrate! Whether it's a wedding or a breakfast in bed for two, it's all about taking some time out to make people feel special and loved. I have found that as fête has evolved since its inception that we are much more than a magazine about gathering and celebrating – it all comes down to reinvigorating relationships with people – your partner, children, friends and family.
fête, Spring 2013
Your print version feels like a book, rather than something disposable. What made you make the leap from digital to print?
We had always planned to produce a print issue from the outset. It was originally going to be released as an annual once we had established the online readership. When it came time for the annual it just felt right to move on from digital permanently and create fête in print. At the time there were a lot of digital magazines popping up and we knew we had the skills and experience in print, so we thought, "let's just go for it!" We haven't regretted that decision for a second, it just feels right in print. Now we have plans to increase our quarterly schedule to six issues a year with the addition of a Christmas special issue this November and a kid's issue next April!
Both Jane and I really enjoy telling anecdotes and stories within the magazine and being in print complements our editorial style. We want our readers to be able to curl up on the couch and have some time with a good friend. We often see our Instagram readers sharing their plans to read fête – it's so nice to see that overwhelmingly people save it until they have a window of time to really enjoy it, often with a glass of wine or a coffee. I feel really privileged that busy people choose to treat each issue with such love and respect, often collecting and saving each issue as something to be treasured. In such a disposable age it means the world to us.
fête, Autumn 2014
What's your favourite image/story in your current edition, and why?
It would have to be our pop-up restaurant story, which we hosted in Daylesford, Victoria. It was such an adventure as we headed off on a road trip with our husbands and my sister, Becc, in tow! We hosted a group of readers from far and wide – none of whom had previously met – for a beautiful dinner on a cold and wet Daylesford night. We have started to host a series of these pop-up dinners around the country, where we offer the experience free-of-charge to our readers and prepare, serve and share a meal with them, with a little help from Jane's husband John, who just happens to be a talented chef! I love that all our guests step out of their comfort zones, as do we, to meet new people and be open to new experiences. During the night you see that people really open up and have so much to offer and share when you make the time for them. I love that in the pages of this story you can feel the warmth that was in the room – it was very special and I can't wait to do it again. As for my favourite image? It would have to be the shot of the rainbow trout, which was caught that morning by a local producer and served later that evening to our guests. So simple and so beautiful – just the way we like it!
fête, Autumn 2014
Update: congratulations to Sara M, Yvette W, Sheryl L, Tania R and Renee B, who each won a 12 month subscription to fête. This promotion has now closed.
Love what you see? Follow fête on Pinterest or visit their website for details on how to subscribe.
Introducing fête magazine
fête magazine is the brain child of Annabelle Kerslake and Jane Cameron. A seasonal publication hailing from Adelaide, fête gets to know the people they feature; sharing what they put in their homes and what they put in their bellies; tapping in to the intrinsic link between design and lifestyle. fête includes the kind of stories that aren't just inspiring, but attainable too - Annabelle shares some stories as well as a sneak peek into recent issues.
Annabelle, what is your background, and how did you come to start fête magazine?
I have always been an entrepreneur at heart – when I was 19 I opened a florist shop with little more than a gut instinct that I might just be able to pull it off! It didn't take long before I realised I had a love of the 'big picture' projects and my little flower shop soon evolved into an event styling company. It was during this time that I was introduced to my now dear friend and fête co-founder, Jane Cameron, an extraordinarily talented designer (who may be just a little OCD by her own admission). Jane and I collaborated on many creative projects together, all of which in one way or another lead to us to fête! There is no denying that we have a once in a lifetime partnership – I am all about the big picture and Jane has the eye for detail. We are polar opposites, but somehow always on the same page. We were both at a point where we were craving a simple approach to life – work, family, home - surrounded by over-styling and a culture that puts so much pressure on people to always be wanting for more. From the outset we planned to produce a magazine that we would love to read ourselves, with a simple, modern aesthetic and achievable, authentic ideas. We were in the fortunate position that between the two of us we had all the skills needed to start up the project – including design, photography, styling, writing, advertising and marketing. This gave us complete freedom and creative control – it is literally our dream project. We started with little more than two laptops and a camera, all from our home offices. After a year as a successful online magazine, we took the leap into print and haven't looked back.
fête, Summer 2013
The magazine's visual style is very distinctive – fresh, light and airy are words that come to mind. How important to you is this consistency?
Consistency is everything! My partnership with Jane has taught me a great deal over the years, the importance of strong brand identity was perhaps the greatest lesson. Being so hands on with all aspects of the production helps us to maintain consistency – we both have a really strong idea of what we are trying to achieve and luckily we are both on the same page. There's not as much chance of things being lost in translation as may be the case with larger publications. Often we will be working on a shot and without a word we both know what needs to be changed! We keep the whole process pretty black and white when we are working on shoots and layouts – if something isn't working or doesn't feel right, it doesn't make the cut. We learnt that lesson very early on. fête is an extension of our own personal style, so every image is carefully curated. The fête design ethos considers negative space, a modern, simple aesthetic and loads of natural light, and as a result we have established a style that sits really well with us both and our readers.
fête, Summer 2013
A key focus for fête is celebrations of all kinds. What ideas about creating events do you hope your readers will take away from your stories?
Personally, I feel very passionate about empowering our readers to share and entertain again. I grew up in an era where every weekend my parents would either be hosting a dinner party or going to one, kids and all. My parents cherish their friends and loved to enjoy themselves and now at 70 they still do! Somewhere along the way we have all lost our confidence to entertain, so hung up on having everything perfect and manicured before we could dream of gathering friends in our homes – it's almost like we have forgotten how to relax! We want our readers to be happy in the space they have right now. Often a lick of paint, a new light fitting or a furniture reshuffle can make all the difference. Once you feel happy in your home you can't help but want to share it.
fête, Summer 2013
Our aim is to offer authentic, simple and beautiful ideas that make entertaining and celebrating something to enjoy. We are all so busy, it's amazing how quickly weekends will pass by and we put entertaining in the too-hard basket. If we can simplify things and break it down, hopefully we can inspire our readers everywhere to stop what they're doing and reconnect with people. We share our favourite recipes that we like to cook in our own homes, our favourite styling tips and even playlists for every occasion, in the hope that we can demonstrate that simple and stress free is the only way to celebrate! Whether it's a wedding or a breakfast in bed for two, it's all about taking some time out to make people feel special and loved. I have found that as fête has evolved since its inception that we are much more than a magazine about gathering and celebrating – it all comes down to reinvigorating relationships with people – your partner, children, friends and family.
fête, Spring 2013
Your print version feels like a book, rather than something disposable. What made you make the leap from digital to print?
We had always planned to produce a print issue from the outset. It was originally going to be released as an annual once we had established the online readership. When it came time for the annual it just felt right to move on from digital permanently and create fête in print. At the time there were a lot of digital magazines popping up and we knew we had the skills and experience in print, so we thought, "let's just go for it!" We haven't regretted that decision for a second, it just feels right in print. Now we have plans to increase our quarterly schedule to six issues a year with the addition of a Christmas special issue this November and a kid's issue next April!
Both Jane and I really enjoy telling anecdotes and stories within the magazine and being in print complements our editorial style. We want our readers to be able to curl up on the couch and have some time with a good friend. We often see our Instagram readers sharing their plans to read fête – it's so nice to see that overwhelmingly people save it until they have a window of time to really enjoy it, often with a glass of wine or a coffee. I feel really privileged that busy people choose to treat each issue with such love and respect, often collecting and saving each issue as something to be treasured. In such a disposable age it means the world to us.
fête, Autumn 2014
What's your favourite image/story in your current edition, and why?
It would have to be our pop-up restaurant story, which we hosted in Daylesford, Victoria. It was such an adventure as we headed off on a road trip with our husbands and my sister, Becc, in tow! We hosted a group of readers from far and wide – none of whom had previously met – for a beautiful dinner on a cold and wet Daylesford night. We have started to host a series of these pop-up dinners around the country, where we offer the experience free-of-charge to our readers and prepare, serve and share a meal with them, with a little help from Jane's husband John, who just happens to be a talented chef! I love that all our guests step out of their comfort zones, as do we, to meet new people and be open to new experiences. During the night you see that people really open up and have so much to offer and share when you make the time for them. I love that in the pages of this story you can feel the warmth that was in the room – it was very special and I can't wait to do it again. As for my favourite image? It would have to be the shot of the rainbow trout, which was caught that morning by a local producer and served later that evening to our guests. So simple and so beautiful – just the way we like it!
fête, Autumn 2014
Update: congratulations to Sara M, Yvette W, Sheryl L, Tania R and Renee B, who each won a 12 month subscription to fête. This promotion has now closed.
Love what you see? Follow fête on Pinterest or visit their website for details on how to subscribe.
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