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The Marina-Strone collection is inspired by a recipe passed from mother to daughter; an homage to the rituals and relationships that shape us.

Marina, a Work Work Alumni, shared a treasured family recipe from her late Italian mother, which became "Marina-Strone," a Two Good dish carrying generations of love and tradition.

This year, we've partnered with Alémais to transform this recipe into a textile collection of wearable art and everyday essentials that captures the warmth and comfort of shared meals and meaningful connections - with the campaign funding thousands of donations to women's refuges across Australia.

Designed in collaboration with Alémais co-founder and creative director Lesleigh Jermanus, the collection includes the Marina-Strone Market Tote, the Marina-Strone Everyday Tee, and the Marina-Strone Heirloom Throw (the fourth instalment of Two Good’s Buy 1, Give 1 blanket campaign).

“Alémais has always celebrated storytelling through textiles,” said Lesleigh Jermanus. “Working with Two Good on this collection allowed us to honour a deeply personal story and translate it into something tangible that carries warmth, connection and purpose.

“This is design as an expression of care.”

Our Marina-Strone Collection is supported by food writer and broadcaster Melissa Leong, who joins the campaign as ambassador, reflecting the shared belief that food is a universal language of care, identity and connection.

“For me, serving with care and purpose means love. It’s the ultimate act of hospitality - which means generosity. It’s about taking care of people that you might not even know - which is exactly what this collection celebrates,” says Melissa Leong.

“Women supporting women means everything to me. As women, we have had to carry so much for so long; so many women have gone through such dark times.

“Speaking up for one another - showing up for one another - is something we should all do a little more often.”

It's such a simple premise, but I don't think we do it enough.”

Through the collection, once sold out, a total of 500 Marina-Strone Heirloom Throws and 1,300 Two Good meals will be donated to women’s refuges, with 50 percent of profits reinvested into empowering and employing women living in crisis.

“This collaboration is about celebrating the stories women carry with them,” said Rob Caslick, founder and CEO of Two Good Co. “When women graduate from our Work Work program, they leave with skills, confidence and stories that deserve to be honoured. Marina’s recipe represents love, resilience and nourishment, and this collection allows that story to be shared far beyond the kitchen.”

MARINA'S STORY

“I dedicated the Marinastrone recipe to my mum...Anna Maria Pustetto, from Ravascletto. See, I always thought my father was the better cook; I remember them both in the kitchen, cooking away and arguing (because they were Italian).

I loved his cooking...but I loved her minestrone more.

It was a recipe they made in Italy, in the country province of Ravascletto. A war-time recipe; a meal to make during hard times, when things were scarce. They would do whatever they could with the veggies on hand, whack in some elbow pasta to bulk it up and keep everyone fed.

I learned how to cook it alongside my mum. We didn't always get along , but I remember asking her how to make it; how she walked me through each step. When to add water, which veggies to blend up and which to leave whole. I remember eating so much of it when she used to make it; I’d have 2 or 3 bowls and be so full and happy.

“It was that nourishing sort of meal…that countrified comfort food, you know?”

Sometimes, I wonder if we should have called it 'Maria-Strone', after her…but I think I’ve recreated it enough to call it my own. I could never find the full recipe of hers, so I had to finish it from memory when I made it for Two Good. She’s not alive anymore, but I don’t think she would have minded. I was pretty proud of it being in Two Good's cookbooks; when I let my daughter know, she was really proud of me.

The day Two Good handed out the dates for us to cook our own recipes for the team, I saw that my date was my mother’s birthday; I decided I had to cook her minestrone. On her birthday this year, I dreamt of her, and the very next day Jo rang me to tell me that Lendlease had just ordered a bunch of Marina-strones for their Good Feels packs.

I couldn’t think of a better meal to cook for Two Good than my mother’s minestrone; the way it makes you feel a bit happier in your heart. Or at the very least, your tummy. Because that’s Two Good, right there; they’re the best people I’ve ever worked with. The best people I’ve ever known, really. I love them so much.

So, I hope Marina-Strone makes you feel loved and nourished…like it always did for me.”