I love knowing the story of pieces of timber, where the tree grew and why it was felled, and this tree has a story. In the 1980’s there was a tourist attraction in Coffs Harbour called Story Land Gardens. A shoe house, fairy’s and elves…. And a LARGE TREE! Story Lands Gardens closed, and the land has been developed into a housing estate, and the tree was felled. A new chapter for this amazing tree.

Please view the local TV networks (NBN) coverage of Story Lands Garden, and the trees milling, and the finished table, here.

Pip and Tom came up and looked at the slab, we talked and worked through the design of the table, then came the hard work of making the idea a reality. The slab was flattened and sanded on Ed’s Lucas mill. I had lots of help from my work colleague Sarah Andersen with the clear resin, the physical handling of the slab and of course the never-ending sanding. The process of turning the slab was a scary and difficult process, my forklift, slings, and slow deliberate movements. Sarah gesturing me to go a bit higher, now forward a bit, change the point of balance, slowly lower, and a whole morning disappears.

I purchased 125mm x 125mm Tallowwood posts from a friends mill for the legs. A centre stretcher of Blackbutt gave the table strength and bracing to carry the enormous weight of the slab, and also added an organic design element to the piece. Rosewood inlay of leaves and branches continued the organic theme.

I love the process of working with clients to create special pieces for specific spaces. Using my network of timber millers to find just the right piece of timber for the right situation, and my skills as a craft person to bring these elements together.