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Habitat Tonic
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24.01.2022 A place for everything & everything in its place. Now I just need to keep it that way! Drawers salvaged from retro hotel wardrobes, bench top is a solid timber desk top from my previous house, ply is super E0 native hoop pine from @plywoodandpanel
23.01.2022 Organic & self sufficient veggie patch goals. Bountiful but simple. Inspiration image I took in one of the productive cottage gardens at @sovereignhill No need to panic buy when most of what your family needs is growing in your own backyard!
21.01.2022 Potting shed from salvaged materials. I saved these timber doors from one of my hotel projects in Qld. We have all seen these slatted wardrobe doors in retro hotels built in the 60s & 70s. Solid timber + Australian made but also out of fashion. Thankfully the builder saved 15 rooms worth of doors & drawers for me Hubby & I are using some of them as cladding for our potting shed - the shed which will become the engine room of our revegetation plans. Sure, they won't las...t forever in the sun & rain, even if I seal them. However they will turn a lovely grey colour & reuse is better than going in to landfill. Using the wardrobe drawers as wall shelving .... More pics to come folks!
20.01.2022 Another interesting article from the ABC. Who else is sensing that big social change is coming? Perhaps materialism & globalisation isn't all it's cracked up to be. As Simon & Garfunkel once said "the times they are a changing"
20.01.2022 4 Architects thinking out loud about the future of cities after Covid ....
19.01.2022 Native tongue orchid (Dockrillia linguiformis) growing naturally along numerous branches of an old tree on my block. In total there is about 5mts of branch covered with this Australian native & it all explodes into flower at the same time. Quite a sight!
17.01.2022 Can U be a minimalist & a collector at the same time? Before building my tiny house I purged my life of all the useless stuff I had collected or been given. It felt great! I only kept the useful items, key pieces of clothing & a small handful of sentimental stuff. Now I buy very little stuff & always try to buy second hand before new. I would consider my life to be fairly minimalistic but I am also a collector. Not a hoarder and not a collector of stuff like ornaments. But a ...collector of potentially useful stuff. Everything from timber & metal offcuts to screws, components & beads from op shop jewellery. I make & fix stuff, both at home & at work. I get that from my parents. In fact most of my tools, bits & bobs are from my dad. But I crave organisation, so I am building the workshop of my dreams in my 6 X 6 mt shed next to my 6 X 6 mt house . So here is the first wall of my workshop. Ply sheets leftover from my tiny house & shelves from ply offcuts of various sizes. I put my jars of beads up cause they look cool & mine & my sister's skis from when we were kids in Finland . Next I will make a central table for my timber lathe & drop saw See more
16.01.2022 Pretty in pink
16.01.2022 Introducing Mr Beaks. This little guy has had a rough start to life. We don't know much about his past but we agreed to take him as his previous owner was not able to deal with his disabilities. He is an Indian Ringneck about 2-4 years old. The vet said he probably broke both his legs as a chick but received no medical attention meaning his bones set incorrectly leaving him unable to walk properly. To make matters worse he has damaged both his wings & lost most of his... tail by flapping around inside his cage. Here is an image soon after we brought him home - a sorry sight indeed. So now he has begun his new life! Firstly, he has been wormed & tested for disease. Given pain relief until his wing tips healed. Gone is the cage - replaced with free roaming around the floor of our tiny house during the day & a big plastic tub with low perches & no sharp edges at night. Improved diet means he is putting weight back on. After 3 weeks he is getting his mojo back & spends his days chirping & singing while looking out the sliding door at the countryside. More images & video to come as he (& we) learn to live & grow with a disability . . . #indianringneck #indianringneckparrot #rescuebird
16.01.2022 What I love most about my day job is working on these retro hotels. This is the spiral staircase at a pub hotel in Nerang QLD. I am keeping the exposed brick & using track lighting on the new ceiling. . . .... #habitattonic #retroaesthetic #brickwall #retroarchitecture #design #spiralstaircase #hotelroom #midcenturydesign #queenslanddesign #brick #australianblogger #interior #australiandesign #midcentury #midcenturymodern #architecture #queenslandarchitecture #australianmade #interiordesigner See more
15.01.2022 Is an artificial green wall really a green wall? This is the entry to a newly built 5 star hotel in QLD. The three storey green wall complete with inset led lighting is a sight to behold, but closeup you soon realise the deception - plastic plants! So I ask you, does a fake plant green wall have the same positive impact on the end user as the real thing? There is the obvious issue - one emits phthalates & the other oxygen. But is the average person happy in this space knowing it is all an illusion? I know the hotel maintenance staff would prefer plastic over watering & caring for the real thing. It will be interesting to see this wall in years to come when the plastic fades & becomes brittle, & a layer of dust and cobwebs encase it!
15.01.2022 An Aussie native bush tucker gem growing naturally on my block! With the grass now slashed & baled I can actually walk around all 55 acres. In doing so I came across this pretty little ground cover which was once under a thick cover of grass. I assumed it was just another weed I have to deal with but with help from a Facebook group I discovered it is an Eremophila Debilis or Winter Apple. Native to the area. Hooray!!! Some further searching revealed about 5 plants in total. I have now collected some ripe seed & cuttings for propagation. Will let you know how I go getting these little beauties started @ Kilcoy, Queensland
15.01.2022 Barrow load of organic pumpkins & pics of frog absorbing warmth from a pumpkin at dusk. These pumpkins grew from scraps we threw into a mound of soil left over from the house construction. This is the first load & more still to come although I think it is getting too cold for the rest to grow. I have distributed these amongst work colleagues & family. So easy to grow if you have the space. Next thing going in is sweet potato & strawberries
14.01.2022 Hubby & I had some fun with the weekend hire of a small excavator recently. Came complete with a trailer for easy towing for a few hundred dollars. Neither of us have ever used one but we got the hang of it in the end! Our land is dead flat so we dug a number of open drains & drainage ponds to keep water away from the tiny house. The ground is heavy clay so it's like concrete when dry & slippery glue when wet. The excavator was a necessity but it still struggled to break up the clay.
14.01.2022 Who else saw this stunning Grass tree sculpture on Fridays episode of Gardening Australia? What a beauty!
10.01.2022 Some promising research on flour made from native grasses
10.01.2022 Please help by signing
10.01.2022 Dusk in the #somersetregion Hours of serenity.
08.01.2022 Window sill propagation. Fiddle Leaf Fig (ficus lyrata) leaves cut with a bit of stem & placed in water. A native to West Africa, these figs are the favourite of interior designers right now. The leaf shape is reminiscent of a fiddle hence the name. I have 2 growing in pots at work but with everyone working from home they have come to my place for a holiday. So while they are in my care I will make a few new plants for myself! I have found them to be an easy plant to look after, just water once a week & position in a sunny spot. Note they can easily grow to ceiling height in a pot & in the ground they can be 15 - 30mts.
07.01.2022 Nature heals herself, if we let her. Across my acerage, life is returning. Some are a direct result of my input but many have sprung up on their own. My only input to these is to ensure they are not eaten by livestock or cut down by a slasher. Pictured here is another new gum tree bursting out of the grassy paddock with huge glossy leaves
07.01.2022 Open wardrobes almost complete. All natural materials - native hoop pine plywood, white washed pine & seagrass
06.01.2022 Success My Fiddle Leaf Fig cuttings have grown roots! Took about 4 weeks but then suddenly they sprouted. I replaced the water every few days & left them on a sunny east facing window. Will pot them & hopefully when the weather warms up they will take off. They make great indoor plants but I plan to eventually plant them in my garden.
05.01.2022 Not surprised to read that this virus has people seriously rethinking city & burbs living. As I discovered, you don't need to move out to the middle of nowhere to be out of the rat race. There are loads of small towns in driving distance to capital cities. You don't have to sacrifice all convenience, just allow for some more time driving. Sure, depending on your job & situation it is not for everyone. But it is actually a viable option for many who thought it wasn't. The improvement in lifestyle for me at least has been 100% worth it! Hours of serenity!
04.01.2022 TV unit I designed for a hotel client last year. Rooms were very narrow & they wanted 42 units delivered to Cairns in 4 weeks just before Xmas! My other issue was power points not centred with the sofa. Oh and budget was super tight! Challenge accepted! My solution was this thin custom TV unit which has a cable hole in the top & a cavity behind the back panel so the unit sits against the wall & conceals the cords & power points. Laminates are @laminexau Elegant Oak & Aries. L...egs from @warwickfabrics are actually for a sofa but they were available quickly. Best thing is my local cabinet maker was able to make 42 of these in less than 7 days. Australian made!
04.01.2022 Quote by Kevin McCloud from his show Man Made Home. This quote & indeed the whole show really struck a chord with me. It's not often I find something on TV which has me glued to the screen! As a first time owner builder moving from the 'safety' of suburbia to build an off grid tiny house, I find Kevin McCloud's shows provide the reassurance I need. Stepping outside your comfort zone is the best reality TV you can watch . After all, life really is about making & doing. .... . #kevinmccloud #manmadehome See more
02.01.2022 Would love to see this happen in all cities.
01.01.2022 Never eaten one but I am now growing a choko after being given a sprouting fruit. I have planted the fruiting vine in a pot for now & will plant into the ground after the last frost. I have heard some love the taste & others hate it but either way it seems to be easy to grow so I will give it a go!
