At Home with Laura Dalrymple
When you step inside the home of Laura Dalrymple, co-founder of Feather and Bone, Sydney’s most respected whole-animal butchery, a sense of ease settles instantly.
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Photography by Alan Benson
Her inner-west home is an eclectic study in character: vibrant Australian art, considered mid-century furniture, and the unmistakable aroma of a Christmas ham quietly finishing in the oven.
Today feels particularly special as Shelley Simpson, who went to school with Laura and has known her for decades, steps into the kitchen to interview her old friend. There is an easy warmth between them as Laura talks through the knowledge she has honed over the 18 years she was at the helm of Sydney's premier organic butchery Feather and Bone.
Founded in 2006, Feather and Bone has long been our trusted source for festive and everyday meats, driven by Laura’s marketing nous and unwavering commitment to thoughtful farming, full transparency, and genuinely regenerative practices.
Together, they walk us through her approach to the perfect Christmas ham, especially when baked and brought straight to the table in Mud Australia. We’ve designed our pieces especially for these moments — generous, functional and crafted to support the relaxed rituals of festive cooking.
When choosing a ham, I get a bone-in piece and when all the ham is eaten, I chuck the bone in the freezer and make ham and pea soup in winter. My family isn’t large so we usually get a small ham but then we end up grumbling when the ham runs out too quickly after Christmas Day. If you can’t get a Feather and Bone ham or one made from a pasture-raised, heritage breed pig, then the next best thing is a ham made from a free-range pig.
In Sydney, you can live outside for almost half the year and I have a lovely big deck and garden so the doors are always open wide and everyone’s grazing on the deck. The only Christmas tradition I have is to embrace absolute informality and excellent food and wine. If you’re working too hard to enjoy it then the balance is out!
Featured in Laura's home
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When it comes to decorating my house, I’ll go for high kitsch and high art with equal enthusiasm which results in some odd combinations and a ‘Cabinet of Curiosities’ aesthetic where every object tells a story about a time and place in my life.
