Saturday 20 March 2010

Trip to The Big Red Shed

So, this morning we were feeling a little better but still not 100% but decided to head out to The Big Red Shed anyway. I'm glad we went though as we had an absolute blast looking at all of the awesome timber on offer. Everything from a recycled decorative trim to old doors to slab stock, almost ANYTHING you can think of can be sourced here.

Initially we were met by a lady who seemed to run the place or at least she was in charge for the day and was kind enough to point us in the right direction of the sizes we were looking for. Being the person that I am I had lineal measurements of all the stock pieces we needed, it was just a matter of finding the right piece with the right colouring and texture to achieve the rustic look we are after.

A bit of looking around the sheds and kind of oohing and ahhing at the range a nice chap by the name of Paul came and offered his assistance. Paul is an absolute champion!!! Why? Basically we spent about two and a bit hours talking to him about the result we wanted and he offered so much advice on what woods to choose. So, rack by rack we went through the stock looking for the straightest pieces we could find. Paul was so awesome in that he cut everything to size for us and gave us extra pieces for free and then gave us a discount at the end. I've got to do a little bit of searching but I'm pretty sure a hardwood king size bed (one off design) in a shop would run into the thousands of dollars. At this point it looks like I'll be able to get away with a few nickels and dimes and no busted power tools (hey Steve, hahaha).

The headboard panelling will be made up using old hardwood flooring panels that we will hit with a steel brush and then with the grinder to roughen it up a little. The rest of the headboard will be made using 90x90 post material (more on this in a minute). The main bed framing has come from a hardwood that we don't know the name of, yet. Finally, the legs will be made out of the same 90x90 post material that the headboard is using. We still need to go get the slats and hardware to put it all together and on the advice of Paul we'll be making a trip to Bunnings in the near future. Their pine is FSC certified which is a step closer for me to using materials that are environmentally ethical throughout the entire supply chain. Like I've said in previous posts, this will be a long process of researching until I find a supplier(s) that meets all of the criteria I need. I especially like The Big Red Shed as I can source great woods and I'm recycling at the same time.

Anywho, the 90x90 posts are a little rare find that we only just managed to stumble upon. We were eyeing off some 100x100 dressed stock and noticed some really old looking 90x90 laying there. I asked Paul how much per linear meter while my wife asked "what kind of wood is that? where's it from?" - my wife always asks the best question and the ones I'd ordinarily forget to ask. Being the legend that Paul is he informed us that this material was from the old Southport Spit Sand Pumping Jetty. How awesome is that? A little piece of QLD history will become a permanent fixture in our home. At some point the Jetty underwent upgrades and the old railings were taken away and replaced. As a result we have a portion of these lovely little beauties in our home.

During the week after work I'll take a trip to Bunnings to get the rest of the hardware (which I'd hoped to use recycled but can't locate decent stock) and the slatting. I'll also begin preparing the wood by hitting it with the steel brush and then with the grinder.

Expect to see some progress posts on this one over the next month. For now though, here's some pics of our morning out at The Big Red Shed. ps. did I mention how awesome Paul was?

My wife strolling around the sheds on the phone
The view from one of the sheds. Pictures don't do it justice.
 
Yes it is big and red.
Our purchases. If you can help identify the species of wood that would be awesome. please leave a comment.
This is the 90x90 stock from the old Southport Spit Sand Pumping Jetty.

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