WHEN mother-of-two Melanie Muddle decided to trade in her Sydney corporate career and work from home, her first intuition was to pursue a career that involved food and creativity.
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After scoping out the local market she decided to launch her own line of chopping boards, called HoutenPlank, based at Redhead.
Houten is Dutch for "wooden board", with Muddle paying homage to her grandparents who arrived in Australia in 1952.
Handcrafted from Tasmania oak and finished with non-toxic acrylic paint, Muddle's planks are designed to showcase food with their simple design and bold block colours.
"Food and cooking are such a natural part of who I am," Muddle said.
"My family has always encouraged me to be creative and I had done some woodwork before, so I decided to focus on making planks."
Although the idea for a plank store was in the pipeline for 12 months, it did not come to fruition until a few months ago.
She's launched her website (houtenplank.com.au), which sells both planks and PLANKbutter (an oil dressing for the planks), and also includes a blog of healthy recipes.
In addition to her website, Muddle has been selling her wares at local markets including the Olive Tree Markets and the Hunt and Gather markets.
■ The Olive Tree Markets are on at The Junction Public School this Saturday, October 4, from 9am to 3pm. Visit theolivetreemarket.com.au.
