Page 28 - Woman's Weekly - New Zealand (January 2020)

weeklyPEOPLE
THEY’RE YOUR STORIES
W me, was born.
“ here did my name
Purple come from?
Very once upon
a time, I was going through a
phase in the late 1980s where
everything I owned was purple.
Plus, me, my flatmate, her best
friend, a girl on a course I was
doing and a girl at my part-
time job all had the same given
name so it was just easy to be
Purple. It’s unique and it stuck. adventures. It’s now a spare
I grew up in L&P town −
Paeroa. The bottom of the
Coromandel Peninsula is my
glamorous description! It was
a quintessential childhood, I
suppose. We had a rural out-
look, so we’d spend a lot of
time outside on our bikes,
or at the beach.
When I first left school I
studied retail merchandising
and advertising at Waikato
Polytech. I guess it was some-
thing a bit arty. But then I ran
away to join the gypsies, the
travelling artisan community
who do fairs and festivals
around the country.
I travelled with them doing
a bit of apple picking and
other seasonal work before I
moved back
to Paeroa to
help Mum
when my sister, in 2011 and
Purple’s creations
are works of art
from the heart.
who’s 21 years younger than
It seemed everyone in Paeroa
was having babies – and I didn’t
want to be a solo mum! – so
to escape I went to polytech
in Nelson and did visual arts.
I still have a little caravan
that I built and used to tow
around with all manner of
underpowered vehicles on
room/shed in the backyard.
I like to have a garden, and
because I’ve upcycled and
recycled for years − I’m a bit
of a hoarder − I’ve always lived
in a house. I’ve also had trucks
for most of my life, which has
meant I’ve been able to take
whatever I like home.
Artists don’t make much so
I’ve had other jobs – barista,
bar wench – to supplement the
income from my craft. Before
I moved to my place now in
Oamaru I worked in the post
office/forecourt at Cheviot. I
had to do road user and vehicle
regos on the computer and I
would get all wound up over it
− I don’t do computers. I’m not
a complete Luddite, but they
just irk me.
I moved
to Oamaru
I still do that, but only relief
got a job driving the school bus. and we deserted the shop
work. I had been here before,
for a friend’s funeral, and just fell
in love with the place.
I saw posters for the second
Steampunk Festival, so a friend
and I came down for that. After
that, I couldn’t sell my house
fast enough! Oamaru’s a little
old-fashioned, quirky town that
suits me down to the ground.
How would I describe
Steampunk style? If you break
the word down, steam relates
to the Victorian aesthetic,
styling and materials of the
day, then when you punk it,
it’s any attitude you like. It’s
inspired by the writings of
Jules Verne, his Captain Nemo
and all of his highly ornate,
detailed inventions.
Before Steampunk, I was
more rustic. Steampunk is a
bit more glam − or maybe
apocalyptic, if you like − but
I’d describe myself as a crafty
artisan. I make all sorts – lead-
lights, leather wrap belts, hats,
cards. I love leather and metal.
My partner Pete is a metal
man; he’s an engineer by trade.
He snuck up on me at a shop.
I was talking to a friend who
was in the shop with him. She
had a little K Bedford bus
to have a look at it. We were
girls and I nearly stepped on
blathering away like a pair of
him when I stepped back to
take a photo!
We live in the old Holmes Hill
farm manager’s cottage. It’s
Oamaru stone, built in the 1860s.
We call it our castle. Pete’s got
a Model T and I’ve got a little K
Bedford house truck with a little
‘snorage’ on the back.
I use it as a daily runner, but
when I do markets and festivals
and things I can open up the
side, set up my stall, and also
sleep in it overnight if I need.
It’s called the Realm Runner
and it’s the most photographed
truck on the street!
I’ve also got a little home-
built, two-stroke moped, which
I bought off a friend. It was a
bit of a loose unit so not really
working when I got it, but we’ve
modified it now. It won the
‘Rat bike’ award at the Long
Drop Rally in Duntroon.
Do I always wear these clothes
or do I own some trackpants? PHOTOS: SEAN WALLER
I do, but I only wear them when I
go to the gym. I’m getting older
now. You have to start looking
after yourself!” #
As told to
Julie Jacobson