Avian Architecture

I have been collecting birds' nests for about 8 years now and I have 8 in total. Guess it must be the chick in me hahaha. It first started with a magpie nest found on the ground, at the base of a tree, and neither egg nor bird were anywhere to be seen. So I took it. And then I found more and then my family found more and gifted their finds to me.



A nest is an awesome piece of engineering - sturdy enough to support the live and dead loads of birds + eggs, as well as stiff enough to resist wind loads, inclement weather, and keep the young eggs warm.

I have nests of varying sizes and shapes and I'm drawn to fabrics that reflect the patterns and texture of the nests, browns and coffees and bark colours.

The Wet Area

Dah da!! Here it is. My ensuite bathroom all clean and fresh from its make-over. Well, complete strip out, demolish and re-build if you must know. But what's a few thousand dollars between friends anyhow....

Grandma's Lounge

We know this lounge is old and scungy, thanks to Andy using it as a claw sharpner, but it was Grandma's, it has a story, and re-covering it will save space in landfill, conserve its embodied energy, and prevent us from consuming yet another cheaply produced piece of furniture from China. Only one problem, Trevor thinks its drab, dated and uncomfortable.

I've now looked at many options and spent heaps of time trawling the internet for new sofas and visited many of the local department stores and sofa retailers. A pure cost benefit analysis would indicate that recovering is a good option if longevity and quality are at the top of the slection criteria, whereas on a pure price basis, buying a new Australian made sofa from local store Plush may be a better idea if we want to change the look of our living room.

So far, I've got three quotes from local upholstery houses with the prices coming in at betweem $3000-3500AUD, including fabric. I have my heart set on an organic linen in a raffia colour which will be contrasted with a patterned linen for the back and sides. Scatter cushions in textural stone, delft blue and duck-egg blue will complement the oceanic look I'm trying to create in my home.

Still a ways to go to convince Trevor that this is the best option on the basis of energy conservation and recycles a historic piece of furniture.