selbyfest 2014, community at its best

Congratulations to organisers of the 2014 Selbyfest, a great celebration of all that is community in the hills. Centered around Selby Community House and the Minak Reserve, one of the shire's top 10% of high biodiversity reserves.

That's the Kettle TeaHouse behind me (in the dome),
a lush space full of soft furnishings, yummy cakes and
of course tea, a wonderful addition to Selbyfest.

The day was jam packed with plenty of activities, showcasing the broad range of talented hills folk. There was an extraordinary range of community stalls, highlighting the many activities going on locally, whether it be arts, landcare, fashion, wild animals, there was something for everyone at Selbyfest.



Selby Primary provided great entertainment, their rendition
of Eye of the Tiger was terrific,



Local brigade, Selby CFA, were well represented, providing traffic management and car parking coordination and of course the sausage sizzle, they report a good day out with 400 snags sold on the day. There was plenty of food to choose from and it was great to see many local food businesses selling their wares at Selbyfest.

Captain Koala made an appearance - thanks
Selby CFA!

Great to see local community radio station 3MDR there, with a live broadcast going all day as well as an exhibitor stall to fly the 3MDR flag.

Hugs for Kids (in Belgrave) kicked off the fashion parade,
Bec doing some rousting of her models. Hugs for Kids
prides itself and unique, handmade and locally made products.

The fashion parade is one of the Selbyfest highlights and I was delighted to be able to MC this year's parade once again. I was also very pleased to give special recognition to Tracey Van Vloten, Selby Community House Program Coordinator, she's been the driving force behind the organisation of Selbyfest and in accepting her gift she said "it takes a village".

The Limerence models strut their stuff, Limerence
is located in Belgrave and stock all Australian made
fashion and art. It's great to see this local business
participate in Selbyfest. The shoes were supplied by
new local business in Upwey, Shoe Boutique.

Selbyfest is a great example of community, my thanks to all the volunteers who make it happen, they do it freely and are very committed to the local community. Yarra Ranges Council is proud to be able to support Selbyfest through our Community Festivals grant program.

In an impromptu catwalk, Tracey struts her stuff and
her gift for her outstanding efforts coordinating
Selbyfest.

The Voicemob performance was captivating,
bringing together a number of hills choirs, this is the
4th official flashmob performance of Voicemob, a project
aimed at encouraging flashmob signing, singing and dancing.

 

selbyfest goes wild

Hearty congratulations to the organisers of Selbyfest, it was wonderful to see so many locals come out to support what’s become a regular part of the hills festival calendar.

This year’s Selbyfest had everything we love about the festival and more. Tracey and Jeanene from Selby Community House played a central role in the coordination of the event and they did a great job.

Jeanene from Selby Community House played a key
role in the organisation of Selbyfest.

This year’s theme was Go Wild and the Minak Reserve was a fitting venue as one of the Shire’s highest biodiversity and conservation reserves. It was terrific to see local environmentalists run 30 minute walk and talks through the reserve as part of the event offerings available at Selbyfest.

The Youth Stage in the ampitheatre provided young bands with an opportunity to perform and Selbyfest tapped into the youth demographic with some great entertainment on offer throughout the day.

bev were one of the bands performing on the youth stage.

The house was a great venue for the vast array of singer songwriters we are blessed to have in the Hills.  Whilst the All Saints Church Selby Men’s Shed members provided great entertainment for the kids with a build and ride billy cart activity.

Food vendors were overrun and it was great to see the event supported by local businesses from Belgrave and Kallista along with Selby stalwarts, the Selby CFA, running the always popular sausage sizzle.

The oval provided performance space too for local artists, a funspace for the kids and a great location for the vast array of stallholders. 

The Fashion Parade has become a Selbyfest highlight, this year was no exception. It was wonderful to be able to MC the parade, I had great fun and I hope I did justice to the models and the local fashion emporiums showcasing their wares.

It is great to be part of a community that embraces participation and connection. It was wonderful to see the cooperation of many different groups throughout the hills, to make Selbyfest such a success. Once again I congratulate Selbyfest organisers, you did a great job.

The Belgrave Branch of the Bendigo Bank also contributed
to Selbyfest. I am proud to be able to support the event
through the Yarra Ranges Festival Grant program and my
community ward fund.

Local artist Glenn Scolyer, took to painting this van as
part of Selbyfest activities for the day.

Cr Samantha Dunn and Peter Cook, it was great to
see Peter there representing the Dandenong Ranges
Renewable Energy Association and have a yarn about
all things renewable energy. Click here for more
info on DRREA.

Selby Community House did a roaring trade in chai and
curry plates.

 

Voski von Muller models at the Fashion Parade, a great
local shop with every fashion need, you can find them on
facebook.

 

The Wrapt Ya models gave a great performance, you can
find Wrapt Ya at local markets and festivals.



Hugs for Kids in Belgrave were a new addition to the
Fashion Parade, great kids fashion and
super cute too - you can check them out online here.

 

 

 

selbyfest a superfest

Congratulations to organisers of this year's Selbyfest. What a great celebration of all things Selby and the hills.
























Leanne Hall and her organising committee did a great job, there was something at Selbyfest for everyone. It was a showcase of local talent, food, art and craft, entertainment, fashion - it was wonderful. I'm proud to be able to support such a great community festival.

Selby Community House volunteers were out in force offering raffle tickets, short courses or a cup of chai. Selbyfest got some great support from local businesses including Hair Down There and Bill's The Butcher in Belgrave.


























The Dreaming Space was a great place for younger festival goers to see some magic, visit storytime and be enchanted with the day's entertainment.



















Selbyfest offered local groups the chance to fly the flag. Pictured here is the ever dedicated members of Southern Dandenongs Landcare Group, encouraging people to improve their local environment.

Part of the day's activities included the World's Greatest Shave fundraiser for the Leukaemia Foundation. Felicity Hostettler's commitment to the cause enormous, her curly locks shaved off to raise money for this important fundraiser.

Children and adults alike were entertained by the rocket launch, a terrific event that had everyone talking.

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Selbyfest had no shortage of local entertainers, Lily and King were one of the crowdpleasers. It's great to see their career take off and hear them on radio stations like 3RRR and of course our very own community radio station 3MDR (97.1).

The fashion parade was a great hit, it's great to see local fashion being modelled by locals!

The bellydancers were another display of the diverse talent in the hills. They kept the audience mesmerised through their performance.

Local muso's The Jed Rowe Band were in fine form. Real crowd pleasers, everyone was up and dancing, including one of the bellydancers.

The Fashion from the Forest parade featured six local fashion designers/retailers, who did a great job. Buy local, support local is an important message as part of Selbyfest. If you want to read more about Fashion from the Forest click here.

Bendigo Bank is a major sponsor of Selbyfest along with the Shire of Yarra Ranges. I'm very proud to be able to support such a wonderful community festival through a Yarra Ranges Council Community and Festivals grant. I'm already looking forward to next year's Selbyfest!

selbyfest 2012, fashion from the forest

Selbyfest is a wonderful community event, in it's second year, the community came out in droves to explore, discover, have fun in our local community. There was truly something for everyone.
















One of the highlights of Selbyfest is the Fashion from the Forest fashion parade. Featuring clothing retailers from the local area, the event was a big hit with festival goers.

It's terrific to see local fashion on the catwalk, the MC encouraging locals to shop locally.


We have some great retailers in the hills, with an interesting and diverse range of styles and designs.










On the day the following fashion retailers were featured on the catwalk:
Finders Keepers - 365 Main Street, Emerald, find them on facebook here
Wilga - 83 Monbulk Road, Kallista, find them on facebook here
Voski - 35 Main Street, Upwey, more info here
WraptYa - at all good local markets, more info here
The People Tree - Olinda
Limerence - 2/1642 Burwood Highway, Belgrave, more info here






It was also great to see familiar faces strutting their stuff on the catwalk too.

Fashion from the Forest, a wonderful part of Selbyfest, their ultimate message is about keeping it local. I encourage you to support our local clothing retailers.