Post #372946 by Paipo on Thu, Apr 10, 2008 3:30 PM

Mate, I'd love to see you down here on "the Coast" -I'll order in some prawns and case of VB (cheaper here than in OZ!) and you'll feel right at home. That goes for the rest of you too...I did have a couple of TCers mention they might visit NZ sometime, but nothing has come of it yet. I am most certainly biased, but it's pretty common knowledge that this is one of the most spectacular stretches of coastline and landscape in NZ, and I'd be happy to show it off to visiting ohana. There is even a bit of tiki lurking amongst the fern fronds if you know where to look...

Regarding "The Shed" - My setup is pretty low-tech and non-industrial compared to most. I actually have machines made up and sitting around that haven't even been used! My main bench and machine are 3rd hand equipment, and the unit was one of the first-generation workstations used at "Rock School". Wobbly as hell and I think most carvers would just laugh at it - but it works for me, and I'm resistant to change. The good handpiece is the key to a lot of my pieces.
I made a conscious decision a couple of years back that I wanted to carve in something more akin to a room in a house than a dirty old shed - I did my first few years with bare metal walls, concrete floors etc and it's just not conducive to creating for me. Plus in winter it's downright unpleasant. Putting down carpet was the best thing I ever did! Once our daughter was born I had to move most of my tiki stuff out anyway, so it seemed perfect to just start filling my workshop with it. I feel a rearrangement is on the cards soon though...I am planning to add a couple of new strings to my bow this year and will need room to play. Not sure how I'll squeeze it in yet?