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A few years ago, textile designer Beverley Armstrong attended a rally on World Environment Day. By day's end she had gained a little knowledge and a lot of outrage. Beverley had learned about the destruction of the world's forests, its negative impact on the environment, and she resolved to do something to help save them.
So she came home, sourced an image of a tree, reworked the image and put it on one of the blankets in her range at Luna Gallery, the knitted textile specialists in Richmond. She pledged to donate
The tree on the blanket is a beauty; its trunk is sturdy and its many branches are bare. It's a spare, powerful image, and one that has appealed to many people since the blanket was released all those years ago.
"I wanted to do something, not just talk about it. I put the tree on the bassinet and cot blankets first. My children's range, Luna Niños, is not really ‘kiddie’ – it's simple, quite mature – so the image fitted in well. And then I put it on a bigger adult blanket, a long jacket and a baby's bonnet. And it's been really popular, still is. We love trees here," says Beverley.
Now, Beverley is once again mixing business with environmental activism. Wanting to protest the dredging of Victoria's Port Phillip Bay, she has decided to put a Weedy Seadragon [Phyllopteryx taeniolatus], a relative of the sea horse, on some of her products. She hopes this will raise the profile of the fiercely-named yet timid animal whose habitat, she believes, could be threatened by efforts to widen and deepen the bay. Again, she will donate 10% of sales profits of the seadragon products to an environmental charity, yet to be chosen.
"I am incensed they are dredging the bay, all those poor sea creatures must be suffering. So, once again, I will put 10% of profits into an organisation that helps to protect their habitat," says Beverley.
"I used to dive, and I loved watching these creatures. They are gorgeous colours, so gentle and delicate, and a bit weird. The Weedy Seadragon is Victoria's state marine emblem. It's protected. I've worked out I will create a jacquard design of two creatures together in amongst some reeds. A seadragon baby blanket should be in stores in 2009."
The only other image that Beverley creates on her knitted textiles – apart from generic stripes, spots, circles, diamonds and dancing folk people on items in her children's range – is the moon [which is not endangered, as far as we know], a symbol the fashion industry veteran feels connected to, hence the name of her business. |
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"I do love planets. I am a Cancerian [sunny disposition, gentle, homebody], and I go to an astrologer once a year. It's helped me to understand myself and realise I am, perhaps, a little bit different, a bit left-of-centre, and that it's ok to be like that. My ruling planet is the moon, that's where the name Luna Gallery came from," says Beverley.
Made in Melbourne, the extensive and beautiful Luna range continues to expand, meanwhile. It all started eight years ago with what Beverley calls a 'couch cardy', and now includes about 100 mainly wool and cotton items, as well as a few mohair pieces. The range includes blankets, throws, clothing for children and adults [from booties and wrist-warmers to hip-huggers and everything in between] and home accessories.
Two ranges are released annually – each a mix of the old and the new in terms of design and colour. "The range grows bigger because old styles are still popular, and then I introduce new things. Some things are five years old and they keep running. The poncho, the shrug, the chunky cable knit sweater and the original couch cardy are still going. I don't want to be a slave to fashion, I want to produce comfortable knitwear that looks good and feels good when you put it on. I want my designs to last for years, to be special, to nurture the body and the skin," says Beverley.
"We spend a lot of time on our colours. Colour is as important as the design. We add new colours but we keep the staples. In the blankets, we always have charcoal, red and earth. In the children's range we always have tomato, mouse and pale pink, and in the adult garments we always have birch and charcoals. I love charcoals and greys and you can't go past my chilli, it's a beautiful red.
"I am inspired by the colours of nature," she says, adding her most recent range was all dolphin grey, pearl and caviar after a sailing trip around the Whitsunday’s last year. Beverley says her next range will see a return to warmer colours after driving past the Fitzroy Gardens and seeing the autumnal colours.
The future for Luna Gallery involves experiments and expansion. Having tried machine knitting with pure bamboo – "it's a bit fibrey" – Beverley is now working with cashmere and silk, although says "you cannot go past cotton and wool" for beauty and practicality. All Luna Gallery's pieces can be machine-washed and tumble-dried.
As for expanding the business, Beverley talks about producing a range of knitted yoga wear, and stepping up the export side of things, while at the same time staying committed to the boutique retailers in Australia, New Zealand and other countries that she supplies... and the majestic trees and dainty sea dragons she saves.
"I try to live my life within certain ethical standards," she says.
By Carolyn Ford |
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10% of profits from sales of the blanket to the 
