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A Waitakere ranger finds joy protecting vulnerable park

The park ranger reflects on the past, present and future protection of Auckland’s Waitākere Regional Park.

Sister Mary Horn's third calling

From the moment she was baptised Mary Dominica, Mary Horn was on a path to a convent. Her call to be an artist came much later — at nearly 60.

How a wonky kennel inspired a cute-as-a-button hut

Dogged determination helps restore the DIY mana of a west Auckland pastry chef, and creates the ultimate city retreat.

Artist paints native birds in the style of Goldie and Lindauer

A Wellington-based painter’s pop-surrealist works are finding favour among art buyers captivated by the subversive cuteness of her creatures.

New Zealand actor's hybrid career

Kiwi actor Nicola Kawana feels her life is nicely balanced between roles on the stage, in film, and her work as a gardener.

From a cluttered workshop to a modern crib

A workshop, once bursting at the joists with a lifetime of useful things, is reworked into an exceptional holiday home.

Eleanor Ozich's recipes for the simple life

Could making your own larder staples, cleaning products and beauty creams really be a simpler, healthier way of life?

Finding their tūrangawaewae in the Abel Tasman

Making sense of the past has allowed a Kaiteriteri couple to shape the future — titiro whakamuri, kōkiri whakamua. Now they are paddling forwards and taking others with them.

When Helly met Sally: love through the lens

Sally Maguire’s dog knew a thing or two when it introduced its owner to the love of her life, Helmut Hirler. They walk us through their beautiful home and art gallery, 'Artmosphere' .

Meet the guardians of bird-lover's paradise Kapiti Island

The vast majority of Kāpiti Island is a nature reserve. But 20 hectares of the iconic island is privately owned by a whānau dedicated to preserving their whakapapa — including the land and everything upon it — and sharing it with the world.

Meet NZ's biggest Toyota fan

Possibly the most authentic Corolla in the country rocks the socks off its 28-year-old owner.

Life as a Paris Opera première ballerina

Hannah O’Neill is thriving in the fifth year of a lifetime contract with one of the world’s premier ballet companies.

How to host a country wedding

If you’re a romantic at heart, turning your land into a wedding venue might be an opportunity to earn some extra cash.

Discovering the lost spring of Taputapuatea

Most people avoid getting into hot water, but the creator of a Coromandel resort spent two decades, and many millions of dollars, drilling for it.

Derelict milk station transformed

A 1926 Grade II Historic Place-listed concrete milk station is seeing a new life as a spectacular Otaki wedding venue.

On holiday at Project Kiwi's home base

One man’s vision for protecting an unspoiled Coromandel Peninsula is shared by family and friends who count themselves lucky to holiday there.

Volunteer divers keep Wellington's waterfront plastic-free

Meet the scuba diver on a mission to clean up Wellington’s ocean floor.

All hands on deck for Kiwi yacht-support business

When Sam met Jess on a ski field in Turkey, neither guessed they’d end up running a yacht-support business together in Vanuatu.

This couple call a wildlife sanctuary on Great Barrier home

The only human residents of a thriving Great Barrier Island wildlife sanctuary are fiercely protective of their native neighbours.

Christchurch's ring master: Meet hilarious hula-hooper Toni Smith

Hilarious hula-hooper Toni Smith brings her international street performance routines home for Bread and Circus, the World Buskers’ Festival in Christchurch from January 10 to February 3.

Pottery hens with a cult following

Yvonne Sutherland has been firing and painting hens for more than three decades and collectors around the world obviously adore them as much as she does.

The Southland wedding venue with a difference

It takes a village to create a thriving business for one Southland couple. Or in this case, several very small villages, a railway, and a real church.

Golden Bay's Clean Earth Soap

While her knowledge of soap-making was limited, she had already studied essential oils through a correspondence course which proved useful for what has turned out to be Clean Earth Soap.

Take a peek inside Wellington's iconic boat sheds

For more than 100 years Wellington’s Clyde Quay boat sheds have been happy places for people who love tinkering with boats.

How to build with SIPs

A small house in an olive grove is the smart home of Brooke and Maggie Noonan's dreams.

NZ-made clothes designed in a high-country sheep station

Hayley Rhind moved onto a new farm with her husband and two young children. Then she had a brilliant idea for a clothing business.

Native plant nursery founder wins big at NZI Rural Women Business Awards

A group of innovative thinkers has been given top honours at the prestigious NZI Rural Women Business Awards.

Wellington craft soft drink start-up mixing up the beverage market

Former bartender James Waugh went underground to develop a range of Prohibition-inspired soft drinks that are mixing it with the best.

How a grandpa's invention grew into a multi-national business

When Bill ‘Grandpa’ Kirkham came up with a good idea for a chicken feeder, he had no idea it would turn into a family-run multi-national business.

Nelson gardener brewing strong tea business

A herbal tea hobby has brewed into a strong cup of business for a Nelson gardener.

Finding a solution to period poverty in NZ

Six months' volunteering abroad inspired a 24-year-old Wellingtonian to look for a sustainable and economical solution to a worldwide problem - and to implement it on her university campus.

Watch: Brooke & Maggie Noonan find true north in Mangonui

Brooke and Maggie Noonan left jobs at Auckland Zoo to build an off-grid, eco-friendly house in the Far North.

Lance and Bridgette O'Sullivan's wedding plans

New Zealand’s Lord of the Reins, Lance O’Sullivan, and his wife Bridgette have found new passions beyond the heady days of Bollinger and BMWs.

Sisters making intentionally unsexy underwear

A pair of Wairarapa sisters are two decades in to making comfy underwear designed for the wearer, not the viewer.

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