Beth Taylor

Bread tags
They restore my faith in humanity on a daily basis: they're equal parts beauty and functionality. In an attempt to pay homage to them, I've made jewellery, cards, CD covers, magnets and wedding invitations with them. My latest project was to see if I could gather together a calendar year's worth of the suckers, but sadly I've got six missing dates. Grrrr! If they ever stop making them at least I will have my collection to comfort me.

This American Life
My partner Jeff had been telling me how much I'd like the weekly radio show This American Life for years and a few months ago I finally discovered what he was on about. Their funny, touching, fascinating stories on varied themes make me feel in touch with the world in a way I'd never expected. My favourite stories include the tale of the truth-challenged man behind cryonics, Jerry Springer's surprising life before TV and the unbelievable goings-on in the Rubber Room of the New York City Board of Education building (purgatory for teachers who are suspected of having done wrong). You can download podcasts of their episodes free for the week after they broadcast.



Blurb
We just made a book from photos we took while we were travelling last year and now I'm seriously hooked! This site allows you to make 'profesh' looking books of photos, blog posts, recipes etc.



Drying washing on the line
Hanging out the washing is the closest I get to a meditative state. I find it's the best mind de-clutterer. We've just come back from living in Vancouver, Canada, where they don't even bother having outdoor washing lines because rain is such a permanent fixture. I can't get over how good it is to be able to dry washing on the line back here, even in the middle of winter!

Sydney
It's funny how I had reduced Sydney down to its stereotypes while we were away: the Harbour Bridge, shiny buildings, traffic congestion... Now that we're back I'm seeing the city with a fresh appreciation: ABC 702 AM radio, winter sunshine, Sydney Biennale, Underbelly Arts Festival, seeing people you know walking down the street, public transport that's not as bad as I remembered it, reformed licensing laws for live music and my favourite chow-down haunts: Sea Bay, Bodhi yum cha and Alfalfa House.

Beth Taylor is someone who could give you a real long answer if you innocently asked her at a party, "what do you do?"

She's an award-winning filmmaker who has made documentaries on everything from playground swings to the everyday impact of terrorism to missing out on motherhood. She is also a crucial instrument-juggling member of The Desks when they play live. She makes jewellery out of bread tags and makes wry, original and warming comments about ordinary things no one has ever noticed before. In front of her camera, she turns things that normally disappear into background wallpaper of everyday life and makes them stand out in a beautiful way (as you can see from her photos above).