Mary Featherston: Design, disruption and advocacy

How the sari became fashion’s ultimate chameleon

It’s a single strip of cloth that has shaped centuries of style and identity.Worn for thousands of years across India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal, the sari is one of the world’s most enduring—and adaptable—garments. From sacred ceremonies to high fashion runways, it has continually reinvented itself while carrying deep cultural meaning. But how has one garment continued to feel fresh, relevant and strikingly modern over so much time?

How an interior designer really sees your home

What do designers notice the moment they walk through your front door? Interior designer Adelaide Bragg and photographer and author Robyn Lea reveal how they read a room—translating light, objects and atmosphere into deeply personal stories. We explore their collaboration on City, Coast and Country and what it takes to style and capture uniquely Australian homes with meaning, not just bea

How was the fork an instrument of evil?

It sits quietly on the table, beside the knife and spoon, rarely asking for attention. But the fork hasn’t always looked — or behaved — the way it does today. From scandalous novelty to everyday necessity, this small object has played a powerful role in shaping how we eat, how we gather, and how manners became habit.

Public toilets: The design, history and politics of who gets to go

‘The sewer is the conscience of the city’, or so the French writer Victor Hugo once claimed. It’s a confronting idea, but a revealing one: the way a society deals with waste can tell us a lot about its values, priorities and politics. And yet our toilet habits are something we’re usually taught to ignore, avoid or feel embarrassed about. We look at one everyday object that sits right at the intersection of design, morality and public life: the public toilet. Used by everyone, discussed by few, and designed very differently across cultures and centuries, it turns out the humble loo has a lot to say about who we are.

Extraordinary Everyday: The dressing gown

Today, the dressing gown is as likely to appear over pyjamas during a dash to the bins as it is at a lazy breakfast table — but it wasn’t always this casual. Once, this was a garment that signalled leisure, status and a certain velvet‑chair‑owning elegance. In this episode, we wrap ourselves up and trace the surprisingly stylish design history of the dressing gown, from indulgent luxury to everyday comfort.