Meet Chef Simone Watts, aka the designer of the beautiful 'Chef Shirt Simone'
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Simone is the invincible chef striving to find the most sustainable and delectable produce to serve to her guests. Simone has just stepped away from working as Head Chef at the Daintree Eco Lodge in Queensland, and moves onto new ventures down south in Victoria this month. We had a quick chat with Simone last week to find out what makes her tick. We laughed when we heard what motivated her to becoming a chef, I'm sure you will too.
Hello Simone and where are you today? I'm home which is nestled in between the rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef - It’s strangely overcast here for August in the Tropics, but that doesn’t seem to stop the birds we share our home with from conducting a serious orchestra outside.
What are you up to for the rest of the day and why? Preparing my menu for tonight, which began with a morning of foraging and harvesting from our home garden, followed by some brainstorming and research, then finally the physical preparation. Food is a universal language, so being a chef allows me to communicate my personal food philosophies through a creative medium.
What prompted you to be a chef? I met a chef when I was young who told me the most amazing stories of his adventures as a chef...travel, food, wine, sex and hard passionate work - I was sold!
If you weren’t a chef, what else would you like to be doing? I think I’d like to be a market gardener - it’s something I love doing but never have enough time for.
What’s your best sustainability tip? Meat doesn’t have to be the hero of every dish. Reducing our meat intake is the most simple and effective way to reduce our carbon footprint.
What’s a great culinary book you would recommend ? Dan Barber’s ‘Third Plate’ - An inspirationally informative look on how agriculture has changed over the last century and how we as an industry can help to reverse the damage.
Do you listen to Podcasts and which one would you recommend? ‘Down to earth’ is a series of positive discussions from people who are developing practical, innovative agricultural techniques.
What’s your music preference - Calm or Heavy Metal? I’m a sucker for 50’s and 60’s rock & roll, so I guess that’s somewhere in the middle! The Beach boys, Elvis, Little Richard, Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry.
What legacy would you like to leave? I would hope that those I have come in contact with have a closer connection to agriculture and the environment, in turn allowing them to make their own educated mindful decisions around what they eat and buy each day.
What do you wish was never invented? Palm oil on an industrial scale.
Of all the environmental issues which do you think is the easiest to solve at the moment? I’m not sure there are any environmental issues that are ‘easy’ to solve these days, but I think the two areas where individuals can make the easiest and most effective change to our planet are: eating less meat and having fewer children.
We love that you have requested that a portion of the proceeds from the sale of Shirt Simone be donated to CNCF (Carbon Neurtral Charitable Fund ) www.cncf.org could you tell us why? There are a lot of carbon offset organisations around who sequester carbon through mass (often non-native) mono-crops, however I admire the fact that CNCF take degraded, unused farmland and restore the natural habitat by planting a mix of trees and shrubs that are indigenous to the area.
And lastly why do you choose to wear Cream Collection Chef attire? I spend almost my entire week in my chef whites so wanted to ensure they were made using ethically sourced materials. A co-worker told me about Cream so I ordered one chef jacket to begin with just to try them out , then a few days later ordered 4 more and a stack of aprons! I can’t imagine wearing anything else now!
We love your work Simone, and thank you for your contribution and conscious attitude towards everything you encounter.
Store owner replied:
Wow! What awesome pics Josh, you look great as usual :) Thanks for your ongoing support.
Whether working the grill, pass or larder. You are always going to look good in the shirt. Comfortable & cool (if you are standing over a coal grill for 12hrs you are gonna sweat no matter what you wear). Always feel proud rolling into a shift in one of these.
Store owner replied:
Wow! You look great Olly, and Thank you for your beautiful review. It's much appreciated and we are sure this will assist other chefs who work in hot environments and want to look and feel cool. Thank you again.
The apron is well made of a lovely quality material, was well packaged and delivered promptly. Very happy with the purchase!
Store owner replied:
Hi Jullo, we are sorry to hear that you are disappointed, but there are numerous images of the "Mystery pack colour combinations" and as it is a Mystery pack with a saving of $32, is no specific colour that you can order. There are numerous images of the various colour combinations for this product, so it is a "mystery pack" as to what colour you will receive. Please feel free to reach out to us directly to see how we can turn your disappointment into a win, as we are here to assist at any time. Hope this helps.
I love the product, comfy and cool to wear. Special the apron really love it with the design.
Store owner replied:
Hi Phillip, thanks for taking the time to leave your comment - glad that you appreciate the quality of the apron which is made here in Australia. You're absolutely correct, this is lightweight denim as we mention on the website. Although it feels lightweight, these aprons last for many years and are absolutely loved by our chefs and I hope that they'll become a firm favourite of yours too. I'm here to assist with any questions you may have.
Store owner replied:
That's great to know that the aprons are comfortable to wear, thanks Nika, your comment is very much appreciated.
I was excited to order and received my 100% organic cotton chef Jackets and Aprons but was disappointed to find that there is a 2% spandex (Lycra) which takes away from the organic that you promote so strongly. Is there a reason for this and why isn’t it on your website under fabric content.
As far as I know the addition of spandex to your products takes it away from the circular economy as it is a synthetic material and makes the whole garment no recyclable.
I have been a chef for over 30 years and don’t think I have ever come across a chefs Jacket with spandex in it (polyester yes) A good fit should make putting a stretch material unnecessary.
Store owner replied:
Hi Sion, Thank you for your review. You are 100% correct, and I personally take full responsibility for this. We have added the fabric content this morning on all products. I can assure you we don't intend to mislead anyone - it was an oversight when changing the product descriptions recently. The 98% cotton is certified organic cotton. The 2% addition of spandex is woven in as when we worked with chefs to develop the collection, they wanted an element of stretch in the garments to allow the garments to be more tailored but move with the wearer to make them super comfortable. I will also email you directly to assist further.
Love it so light weight and breezy good for working in a fast paced kitchen wile still looking sharp cheer
Store owner replied:
Yay! That's great to hear that you're loving the softness of the fabric. Thanks for letting us know and may you enjoy wearing them for many shifts. xxx
This is probably theee best fitting and comfy jacket I’ve ever owned! I’m going to order a few more in the new year!
Thanks again guys for being so easy about the return due to them not fitting properly!
Thanks
Store owner replied:
You chose well Amanda! So glad he loves the fit and comfort of it. Thanks for letting us know.
Very flattering shirt. My only comment would be that the small is quite small. I’m a straight size 8 and I feel this is more like a size 6.5-7. But I’m still very happy with it.
Store owner replied:
Glad you like the flattering fit of this chef shirt Kaye. Thanks for letting us know about the sizing, we will consider this if we repeat this style in the future.
I have been a professionally trained cook for the past 40 years, so I have come through the traditional whites in a brigade system.
So far one of the best aprons / gear you can see some thought has been put into the design
Very nice
Les
Store owner replied:
Thank YOU Mr Leslie. Sorry you had to wait 40 years to wear "one of the best" but glad you found Cream Collection eventually. Enjoy every moment wearing the gear.
Was a present for my son. He is very happy with it.
Store owner replied:
Thanks Bea for your 5 star review, glad you love the comfort of the chef shirt. Enjoy!
I purchased the white Jo apron. Great quality apron, however the design was slightly different from the other photos of the same apron in different colours. I would prefer the pen pocket to be straight at the top (rather than slanted) and from an aesthetic standpoint I wasn’t fan of the round ring on the neck strap (but that’s probably me being picky)
Store owner replied:
Hi Andrew, Thanks for your 4 star review. I'll contact you about the images as the image of the white apron is as per the image on our website. The reason the pocket opening is slanted is that it is designed for ergonomic reasons, but we understand that every wearer has their personal preferences. Hope you are enjoying the comfort and fit of the apron. Thanks again.
Store owner replied:
Thank you Philipp! What a lovely review you have given, we appreciate it and glad that you are happy with the "insane quality" Thank you again.
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