Interesting Australian-Made Souvenirs
The French Word ‘Souvenir’ means remembrance or memory and now refers to an object that is bought as a memento of happy travels and encounters; a thing that will remind you of a holiday or place you visited or commemorates a special event. It conjures up tea-towels, spoons, coasters, mugs (anyone have a Will and Kate mug?) and the snow dome which almost needs a chapter to itself, appearing first in France in 1878 and evolving into the Hong Kong mass produced snow domes for tourist kiosks everywhere. My favourite is the Uluru snow dome, careless to its inherent contradictions and kitsch to the max.
Classy Australiana
While the spoons, mugs, coasters and tea-towels can be happily admired for their brazen, touristy style, they almost certainly won’t be made in the country you are visiting but then anyone buying a Sydney Harbour Bridge tea-towel won’t be thinking about, or care where it was made – it’s the image of our beloved ‘coathanger’ that’s important here. However when it comes to buying a memento that you want to give or send to someone, you will want it to be an authentic, Australian made item. This gift will represent you, your country, your city and you want to be proud of its quality and workmanship. Instead of the tea-towel how about a laser cut Sydney landscape or instead of the snow dome the Outback landscape? These landscapes are cute, whimsical, made-in-Australia souvenirs that are well designed, and good for all age-groups. Our No-Worries key-ring made from Australian timber beads is a classic souvenir – beautifully hand-crafted, tactile and pretty with a quirky Aussie name. Australian Woodwork has lots and lots of great souvenir ideas that you can buy online and be proud to give and they are guaranteed Australian Made. You can start with gifts for as little as $11 and go right up to the exclusive and fascinating Ancient Redgum range or our beautiful mix of Australian hand-carved birds – classy Australiana.
A Taste of the Country
Is roughly what the Japanese word ‘meibutsu’ means and it is an interesting and appropriate idea to apply to our range of hand-crafted woodwork in native timbers. The idea that natural materials such as stone and wood embody the feel of a place is a principle we understand at Australian Woodwork. Something fashioned from an old Redgum fence-post or a gnarled Eucalypt Burl contains the essence of the country. Look closely at any of our items made from Burl timber and you will see the landscapes of the red interior in the patterns of the woodgrain, hold a Huon Pine rolling pin to your nose and pick up the sappy perfume of the Tasmanian South West forests. Any of our Banksia nut products will conjure up bushwalks, May Gibbs’ big bad Banksia men – they scream Australia. All our products will ensure you take with you a ‘taste’ of the country and the gifts you give will be a piece of Australia.
Click here to view our range of Australian-Made Souvenirs >>