It started over coffee in a local cafe.
Phoebe and I sat down for what could have been a tidy conversation about FOKE. Instead, we talked about all things Holly. Life. Loss. Art. Colour. The strange turns that lead you somewhere you never expected to be.
It was the kind of conversation where you forget somebody is taking notes.
There were tears. But that’s okay. Life has
given me plenty of reasons to shed them.
Coffee first. Article second.
There was no polished founder speech and no attempt to make the story neater than it really was. We talked about grief, creativity and what happens when life changes your body, your plans and the way you see everything.
We also talked about FOKE: how drawing brought me back to myself, why colour matters so much, and why I want clothes to make room for real women living actual lives.
Phoebe listened for the person behind the clothes, and that changed the whole story.
What she made from that conversation
The article Phoebe wrote for BILLY Magazine was thoughtful, generous and incredibly honest. It held the joyful parts and the difficult parts together without trying to turn either into a neat little lesson.
Seeing it in print was a genuine pinch-me moment. BILLY is made here in the Macedon Ranges, so being seen by the creative community closest to home felt especially meaningful.
Then we made a tote
The story did not end with the article. BILLY and FOKE went on to collaborate on a tote bag, bringing BILLY’s love of local stories together with FOKE colour and artwork.
I love that the collaboration grew from a real conversation. Coffee became an article. The article became a relationship. Then somehow, delightfully, that relationship became something you could sling over your shoulder.
That feels very FOKE to me.
Meet BILLY
BILLY is a free, print-only magazine. To read the feature, find a copy at one of its stockists across the Macedon Ranges and Daylesford region.
FIND BILLY MAGAZINE + STOCKISTS →
SEE THE BILLY × FOKE TOTE COLLABORATION →
Thank you, Phoebe, for the coffee, the questions, the beautiful article and everything that followed.
Holly x
