…are what we specialize in! I think that’s going to be our new motto. Learning to do something well requires about 95% failure for 5% success. Good thing I’m so dang good at effing-up! There’s no better way to find out what works best than to find all the ways that don’t work. Let’s all just be glad I do pub furnishings and not brain surgery. Along with building up our workshop and equipment, the past year has been spent on making and testing prototype after prototype.
When I go to a gallery exhibition, I love to see the artist’s earlier works or practice sketches. It reminds me of the amount of work and practice that goes in before you make something you’re happy with. It also reminds me that,unless you’re some kind of super human freak, most artists generally don’t start out creating great works, they create a lot of crap before it starts to get any good.
We’re only about 2 weeks behind schedule so far, which is actually about 2 weeks less behind schedule than I thought we’d be at this point. So we’re actually ahead of schedule. Work on the taps is going swimmingly. I’ve got 16 tap designs that we’ll be launching at the end of the month. We’ve been testing finishes and getting the process down, faster and faster. Derek will be doing some big upgrades to the CNC in the next couple of months.
It may have appeared as though Derek and I dropped off the face of the earth sometime this past year. Rest assured, we have just been wholly preoccupied with what is now referred to in hushed tones as “The Great Renovation of 2016” or “The Renovation to End All Renovations”. It has been all-consuming and exhausting, driven by obsession bordering on madness, and has left time for little else. And now…dare I say…we’re done?
When I was a wee lass, perhaps 5 or 6 years old, my family took us for a camping trip in the English country side. The English weather lived up to its good name. It rained the entire time and the field was muddy. Before long, my wonderful father suggested the brilliant idea of taking me to a nearby pub. I realize now that it was probably at the request of my Mother, to get me out of her hair so that she could get the tent set up.
Thank-you Ian Ridgway for our fab new deck! We LOVE it!!
Other than sanding and finishing deck boards, we have been working on loads of new projects.
The latest is our awesome beach beer box! Last summer we realized we needed a box to carry our beer to the beach (Yes, yes I know, poor me!) so this year we made one.
We also made several for a few friends.
We’ve been working on a few projects for the house lately. A shelf for the front hall (below) and a few shelves for the bathroom which I will post soon. I’ve been experimenting a bit with Livos oils for finishing and playing with my new Fein MultiMaster tool. Getting great results! Have I mentioned I love having a CNC? Derek built our CNC a few years ago and now that our shop is built it’s been running a lot!
Finally getting some shop time in this weekend after spending every spare moment of the past couple of weeks prepping the garden for the growing season. Projects seem to be piling up faster than we can finish them. It’s been a busy winter with work and reno’s but spring brings longer, warmer days and more time spent on fun workshop projects.
Progress on the Workshop window and door lintels is happening slowly.
Several years ago Derek and I started vacationing on the beautiful Sunshine Coast and fell in love with Roberts Creek. Last year in March we finally made the move and rented a cabin by the beach for a few months while we waited for the right home to come on the market. We found our house in summer and moved in September 1st. The past few months have been non-stop renos, yard work and getting the workshop built but we’re finally settled!
