Good things take time.

It was never going to be easy to find the kind of building that would allow us to create the atmosphere we wanted for our next showroom space.   However, time and a little bit of luck were on our side, as a place we had visited many times over the years (an old glass blowing factory) was now available in the heart of the Byron Arts & Industry Estate.   To the untrained eye, it may have looked like a wreck, but after years of working with salvage and old buildings, we knew we could do something wonderful with it.

The gift we gave ourselves was no deadline. The art of slow renovation is to enjoy the process, so in 2018, we began.  🙂
Months were spent replacing the roof, stripping back the space to the bare bones and filling skip after skip with rubbish.
We worked physically hard, but were high on life and the creation process; the early stages of most projects are truly the fun part.  

Moving the business proved to be a bigger challenge than we ever imagined ~ but having the sun, sand, + sea at our door was heavenly after long days on the tools... Finally, the day came when we were able to specify our own pieces... Key architectural elements that would change this rundown old saw-tooth factory into a space with atmosphere and character. 

Poor installation can ruin beautiful doors. We've consulted on many projects to advise best practice so that the integrity of the architectural materials is retained. When building and buying salvage, here are a few things to consider. *Condition & size:  are the foundations to using second-hand pieces:  don't buy something that needs altering or cutting down.  Pieces are often cheap due to weird sizes and poor condition. 
*Installation: framing and timber choice are paramount in making these pieces look like they belong to the building. 
*Finishing: when it comes to blending the old and the new, sanding, painting and finishing skills are essential. For the best results, get in touch with a professional restorer or decorator used to painting and blending.    
Seeing the front door & arch window installed was a real woo-hoo moment! 

Building around original salvage does take extra time and thought, but this practice is good for the planet and the build will feel and look like no other. There is a real sense of satisfaction in re-purposing beautiful architectural elements. 
We knew from the outset that the arched window was going to be the light source for our photographic studio; so the placement had to be just right. 

 "Seeing this window we sourced in France,
built into our space delights us every single day..."

I'm not a fan of besser block walls, who is? We chose to cover them with sheet ply and in other places with plaster. Who Plastering worked their magic, layering trowel after trowel ... I then went to work with the serious job of painting. 
When our vision finally seemed to be coming together we took a breather.  High ceilings, glorious space and the light streaming through the windows. Even the quirky Hebel breakouts & the run-down sheds at the back started to look a l ittle charming (through squinted eyes).

For months we traversed scaffolding: sanding, wire brushing and painting every ceiling rafter and what a difference 20 odd litres of white paint made.  Tim grinded back the concrete floors:  refinished and restored many of the original industrial elements including the metal fans, keeping the simple fabric of the building in tact.

Twelve months later we finally finished the workshop space ... the street art door we repurposed with the words:  Take the dive, Regret nothing pretty much wraps up the mood around.  (🙏 Nitsua)

The interior spaces work and feel just as we imagined, the old and the new have melded seamlessly into one.  Our intention was to go slow, and it worked for us and for the build. It's true that all the good things do take time.
*Read about our creative journey to make a mosaic floor  

Our vision was to create a space that retained the eclectic fabric and feeling of the old-glass blowing factory whilst adding on another layer. We think we have achieved this and more, today it's a multi-disciplinary space, part showroom, part photographic studio and part gallery.