NZ Life & Leisure

When a Texan belle arrived in New Zealand for a three-month holiday, she didn’t plan on meeting a rugged West-Coaster. Thirteen years, two kids and a thriving jewellery business later, there’s nowhere else she’d rather be.

Serve up this decadent, fruity finger food at your next party.

What’s the best advice your mum ever gave you? We asked some people who have featured in our stories as well as writers for our site to share motherly words of wisdom.

This recipe uses 3 kilos of pork spare ribs - and you'll never have enough.

Getting to grips with the grassroots of growing, and of a community, Lloyd Rooney and Michael Fraser found contentment by leaving the glamour of London for the quiet backwaters of the Waikato.

When a French potter met a vineyard-owning investment banker from the opposite side of the world, they discovered their talents and tastes were sublimely matched.

We raise a glass, and a tasty morsel or two, to the winners of this year’s Outstanding NZ Food Producer Awards.

Richard and Helen Dorresteyn are committed cheesemakers, inadvertent buffalo farmers and deserving Supreme Winner of the Outstanding NZ Food Producer Awards for 2018.

Amy Schumer's new film  I Feel Pretty is a departure from the brash comedy style the star is famous for.

Cocktails look and taste great, but are tricky to do at home. Meet the NZ entrepreneurs making them easy. Plus 2 bonus cocktail recipes.

Looking down at iPhones and computers is damaging our spines. To relieve back pain, try out physio Steve August's quick-fixes.

In the monasteries and churches of lower Bavaria, spiritual and secular pleasures go hand in hand.

Whether competing in NZ's national canoe polo team  or working with sharks, this sporting talent is paddling her own path.

Traveling frequently between homes in the United States and two in both New Zealand and Sri Lanka, keeps this international couple from falling into the groove of predictable living.

For more than 100 years, a Rangitikei farm has been home to one family. Now the fourth generation is putting its own twist on tradition.

Mark our words, there’s nothing better than a squished possum. This cute, comical bookmark is just the fun craft project to remind you of that.

Our heroine casts a dashing figure as she marches across the Banks Peninsula. And like all good dramatic characters, her  past holds a compelling secret.

In celebration of International Women's Day, we share a few of our most popular stories about inspiring Kiwi women.

For a lavender enthusiast and landscape designer, crafting a wild and beautiful garden in one of the country’s most inhospitable environments was an expression of letting go.

A 45-year-old Aussie eye-catcher has added colour to its owner’s life.

As a champion of the health and happiness benefits of rich, rotting compost, nothing makes Ben Elms more content than the multitude of microscopic critters squirming in his compost.

Scaling the heights of success is becoming almost commonplace for a couple who became engaged on Mt Everest and steer a company that just scooped New Zealand’s most prestigious tourism award.

Ruth Pretty's name is synonymous with having a good time: meet the well-loved caterer who is bringing her special brand of deliciousness to your dinner table.

While she wasn’t immediately sold on the tiny house movement, 20-something Amanda Chapman has now jumped on board, boots and all, building her own.

Otago winemaker Duncan Forsyth agrees it's almost counter-intuitive a top pinot noir producer should start making vermouth.

Chef Josh Emett introduced Ruth Pretty to the beauty of this style of ceviche. Ruth uses tuna but kingfish, trevally, snapper or salmon would all be great substitutes.

Entries close Friday 2 March  for the Outstanding NZ Food Producer Awards.

With roots too deep to easily move, the Hart family found a temporary fix - two transportable cabins beside the estuary at Point Wells.

A gentle walk in the Japanese countryside is an intriguing introduction to the country’s spiritual and cultural heart.

Three generations of one family ride the tides of change on an East Coast beach saturated with history.

The latest instalment in a story that began 170 years ago sees a historic estate earning its keep in a very modern way.

Graphic designer Glenn Jones burst onto the T-shirt scene with a bang and has gone on to create a global business from the spare room of his Auckland villa.

Coming into a great deal of money isn’t a guarantee of an easy life. It takes tenacity and planning to live well, says someone who knows.