FURNITURE, JEWELLERY & HOMEWARES

The Purple Swamphen

Mel Telfer & Mick Sherriff

The concept for the ‘Hen began in April 2014 when two friends, Helen and Mel, decided that the island needed a space for local arts & crafts to be promoted and retailed to other lovers of handmade treasures.

Since then, The Purple Swamphen has become known as the premier destination for quality handmade gifts and homewares. A majority of the items are produced on Flinders Island by local artists and craftspeople, with some treasures sourced from Tasmania and beyond.

In recent years Mel has collaborated with her husband Mick to create handmade stools. The frames are welded from offcuts of reobar from Mick’s concreting business, and Mel uses Flinders Island wallaby leather for the upholstery. The leather is a by-product of wallaby meat harvesting, and shows all the scars & imperfections of a life well lived.