While we laboured hard on client's projects we were rapidly building our skills. We were also dreaming of themed projects of our own. One such project was an adventure golf. We seriously considered many properties in diverse locations, and drew up many plans. The first version was called Forest Island. That dream would have to wait for a decade to come to fruition. While we waited I kept drawing concepts and building models.
Dreaming big - waiting for the right time
As our projects grew ever larger and more complex we quickly realized we needed a bigger workspace. We wanted it to be home based and anything but ordinary. We lived a unique lifestyle and we wanted our home and shop to reflect this. They would be a showcase of what we did. Through the next ten years we actually bought five different properties and drew up many, many versions of our dream home and workshop complex. Each time the realities of client's projects, budgets and life in general changed these plans. It would be more than a decade before the work space became real and more than two decades before the dream home was built. Dreaming of the possibilities through the years was a fun exercise.
Learning as we went
The first years were all about building our skills and techniques. Mostly it was trial and error and there were plenty of mistakes. I vividly remember the excitement of this project as we tested new (to us) techniques in welding frames, attaching the lath and then doing our first truly sculpted concrete work. We troweled on the concrete, waited (too long) for it to set up and then scratched in the texture with custom, self made tools. Despite our inexperience it worked! Although he was still in high school Peter joined our team as he was able during this period.
