Where to begin?

So, being new to blogging I'm not entirely sure where to begin or what to write about. I suppose I should start off with some information about why I'm spending the next 12 months researching, designing and making unique furniture items.

after many years working as a commercial designer I'm turning my hand to producing pieces for me instead of something for someone else. sounds a little selfish I know but to have a creative outlet into works I can call my own is highly appealing. my dream would be to make furniture all day every day and who knows after the journey of the next twelve months that might become a reality.

for some time now I've been making the odd piece of furniture here and the odd piece there. for example dining room tables, coffee tables, bed, cabinets etc. working with wood brings a certain amount of pleasure and relaxation from what is otherwise a rather busy life. I just live and love to create things, more specifically things from wood. the feel, the smell, the look of different woods has a somewhat raw yet homely and warm tone. hand cut soft woods like pine smell vastly different to routered red wood and hand planed oak. wood is such a versatile medium requiring care and precision in its treatment. it demands respect and quite rightly so it deserves it.

my aim is to apply both old and new ideology and methodology in the development of different pieces. In addition to this and being green at heart it is also important that the materials I use are environmentally responsible in all aspects of the supply chain. Although this might not always be possible in the early days as I still have a lot of research to undertake (see disclaimer on retrospective first piece posting that will be upcoming in the next few days). Should I end up making a business out of this it will be of the highest importance to obtain GECA and GreenTag certification. One of the first orders of business is to look at the feasibility of creating an off-the-grid solar power center. To be able to run the workshop purely on solar power would be best case scenario, however in the interim the best I can do is to purchase green energy from my power retailer.

the first item to be produced will be our bed - king size and made from reclaimed and recycled materials. I can feel a trip to the Big Red Shed coming on.

as an aside to this journey my wife and I are also working on a patent product for the medical industry. no doubt elements of that research and process will feature here from time to time.