Making a dining table out of recycled timber

There is a lot to be said for using recycled materials, and in particular recycled timber.

Less waste, and more often than not the character and grain of the timber is exceptional.

Age does provide beauty.

For this classic style dining table we sourced blackbutt, red iron bark, grey iron bark and spotted gum, iconic Australian timbers that were once used as timber beams for a house of over 100 years. Now this timber will serve another wonderful purpose and will stand the test of time and will look even better with age.

The beauty of the grain …

Gorgeous Australian timbers feature in this classic style dining table.

The glorious colours of timber. A natural beauty

Custom made furniture for retirement living

Moving into a retirement living complex is a new beginning ; a chance to make some fun new changes.

Furniture that once served a great purpose for a larger family may not be so practical now, and sometimes the spacial features of the new abode do not marry well with the existing furniture.

These are a few of the reasons why our client came to us, seeking custom made furniture that would fit beautifully into their new home.

We designed and made the new dining furniture to blend seamlessly with existing furniture, to have the correct proportions so that it wouldnt overtake or be too large to manoeuvre around .

The richness of Jarrah was an ideal choice for the clean classic lines of this dining room furniture.

The wonderful deep patina of Jarrah makes a striking choice for apartment living/

Sleek and sophisticated

Custom making an obvious choice

The perfect size coffee table

The end result, very happy clients who are thrilled with their new way of life and their new furniture.

Summertime

Summertime is always the best of what might be …

IMAGE; DANIELE BYWATER

Restoring a Georgian Rocker

What a delight it was to be able to be a part of a wonderful birthday surprise between two sisters.

This quaint rocker belonged to two little girls and was used often to listen to bedtime stories

Fast forward 50 years or so and this little chair was in need of repairs and repolishing and what could be a better present than having it restored for a surprise birthday present ?

We repaired and restored this gorgeous piece including painting it white, and adding new rattan as well as a duck egg blue fabric to contrast with the freshness of the white .

A glorious result for this wonderful old rocker full of cherished memories and now it will go on for many more generations.

Just one of the reasons we love what we do !

Surfboard Calendar for 2019

In the blink of an eye, Christmas is over and we now set our sights on an aspect of Bywater Design that is truly dear to our heart ( truth be told all parts of Bywater Design were borne from our passion of creativity ) but we gain immense satisfaction from our Wooden Surfboard Making Workshops.

Meeting people from all over the country and from overseas (hello our Papua New Guinea students) is a real privilege .

We gleam so much satisfaction in seeing the utter joy our students derive from making something beautiful with their hands.

So in a couple of weeks, we will throw open the doors to the workshop once again to eager students who will have a busy , challenging fun and productive 4 days.

They will learn to glue, sand , shape , use hand tools and machinery they may have never seen before.

They will be challenged, physically, mentally and be a part of a team , helping out when needed and making great friends along the way.

October 2018 Surfboard Making workshop

Pure Joy, a sense of satisfaction.

Happiness can be found in creating something new

Fabulous effort guys !

“Live for moments you just can’t put into words…

You just cant wipe that smile …Deb with the 2nd Wooden Surfboard she has made with us.

Phil a very happy surfboard maker taking his board out for its inaugural surf.

We have finalised the dates for our 2019 Surfboard Calendar;

MARCH 7, 8, 9 AND 10

MAY, 2, 3, 4 AND 5

JUNE 27, 28, 29 AND 30

AUGUST 22, 23, 24 AND 25

SEPTEMBER 26, 27, 28 AND 29

NOVEMBER 14, 15, 16 AND 17

If you would like to put a massive smile on your face then come and join our amazing Surfboard Making

Workshop.

For all the good details please contact us and we will get back to you asap !

Restoring an Eames Chair

It was our delight to provide the restoration of these Eames Designed Herman Miller Chairs

Some quick Background Info;

These chairs in particular were designed by Charles and Ray Eames during the period 1950 to 1959

Year of production was 1955

Mid Century Style

Materials used

Metal and Wood

Eames chair prior to restoration and repairs

Eames chairs are not meant to look like this

The Processes we undertook to restore these chairs

Included

Carefully removing the old finish

Repairing and regueing where needed

Repolishing

And re chroming

The classic lines of these iconic chairs lends itself across the generations and is a much sought after furniture item.

Restored and ready to be a part of the the family home for many years to come

The Global Surfer and Making a Hollow Wooden Surfboard

We were thrilled to be able to give a global traveller and avid Surfer 'E' the opportunity to make his own hollow wooden surfboard. During the week, E who in his words, has no woodworking experience apart from sharpening a pencil, learnt basic woodworking skills such as sharpening  a hand plane, shaping, sanding of his board and fin placement.  We then went on to fully glass the board.

But don't just take our word for it ... Have a look at our very first YouTube