What inspires you?
I’m inspired by good design (quality craftsmanship, clean lines, and efficient use of materials). For me it really is about the materials – I like it when the piece becomes what it is because the material is special. For example, with timber, I think a really beautiful grain needs to be seen – it’s a shame to hide that. Sometimes the piece of timber finds its own form.

Tell us about the genesis of Burnpile, how did it all begin?
My partner Krista would point to something in a magazine or in a shop and I would answer, “I could make that.” I always wanted to do more because I enjoyed the creative process and sense of accomplishment I felt when it was finished. Luckily I had the opportunity to source (save, scavenge) beautiful timbers to recycle, which fit it with my approach to design (which is, essentially, to reduce waste and find value in something that would otherwise be waste. I guess it provides an alternative to the material’s fate). Then getting encouragement from friends who turned into customers helped me think that it’s something that I could do full time.

Were you the master of woodwork in high school?
We had to take woodwork in high school, but honestly, my proudest moment was getting busted making ninja stars in metalwork, which wasn’t so great because my dad was the school principal. It worked out alright because with him we had weekend access to the school’s woodworking shop, so anything we (my dad and I) wanted to build, we could. I remember we made a loom and oak end-grain cutting boards for my mom for Christmas. For my eighth birthday, my present was getting to make a kayak with my dad—I loved it and it got a lot of use on the lake. About five years later it was given to our neighbour without my knowledge. I was pretty pissed about that, but to be fair, I had outgrown it.

Were you creative as a child?
According to my mother, yes. Probably equal parts destructive as well. I tore a lot of things (turntables, bicycles, my dad’s power tools) apart just to see how they worked. I wasn’t always very good at getting them back together again, but I did get a good understanding how things work. My mom was (and still is) very creative. She was always doing some sort of craft – macramé, weaving, knitting, painting, drawing, calligraphy – so she was always encouraging me to create. In answering these questions I’ve realised that my parents (who both live in Canada) had a lot to do with Burnpile as well.

Do you remember the first piece of furniture you ever made?
The very first stuff I made was furniture for my tree house – another father-son project. It had to be small enough to fit through the hatch door and light enough for a ten-year-old to carry up a fifteen-foot ladder. Those were the criteria. It was made out of leftover construction scraps and whatever I could forage (and wasn’t already nailed down). The first piece of furniture as an adult was a not-so-great, quite uncomfortable, three-seater couch with a sling seat. It was made out of necessity in light of a paltry furniture budget.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
It’s more just advice I’ve given myself: be patient. Being patient keeps you from making mistakes. It also lets the piece evolve at its own pace.

What is it about timber specifically that you love?
Timber is dynamic. There are so many types of timber with different types of properties. Every bit of timber is individual, which I like because that means every piece of furniture is unique and I can look back at that piece and recognise a specific grain or knot. Plus, it’s a renewable medium that’s been around since we could make fire.

Do you have a stockpile of scraps at home that are just waiting for the right project?
Yes! They were some of the first pieces I rescued. It looks like a pile but I know exactly what’s there—I’m just waiting for the right project. At one stage I was going to use some of it to make a new dining table top for our home and then I decided to make an entirely new table. They are now slated for a coffee table with a recycled steel base.

Can you tell us about your favourite piece you’ve made?
The coffee table that I just finished a few months ago is one of my favourites. I love it because it sort of decided what it needed to be on its own. I was tripping over the timber for months—I knew it had a purpose but I didn’t know what it was—I was just waiting for the material and the idea to cross paths. Finally I had an ‘of course’ moment and it became a pretty cool coffee table that has tallowwood (which is beautiful to work with and has a gorgeous grain) and also incorporates workshop scraps from different projects. It’s through mistakes that the resin inlay came about and that really makes that table—an experiment that went right.

There’s also a bench that was made entirely from an old rooftop air conditioning platform – the pitch of the roof determined the taper angle of the bench legs. It was another pile I was tripping over for months before the penny dropped.

Have there been any design fails?
Definitely. That first couch was probably a fail because it was just really uncomfortable. If you have to sit on it, it should be comfortable. Other than that, not so much fails, but lots of lessons and reminders to be patient.

What’s the coolest bit of timber you’ve found and where did it come from?
It’s the timber from the ‘tread bench.’ It was previously stair treads leading up to an old outdoor balcony near the workshop. It’s cool because I know that it is a beautiful piece of Ironbark under the weathered surface, but because of the design and what it is (which is a weathered bench), it needs to stay the way it is and stay hidden.

If you could give people one piece of advice when buying furniture, what would it be?
Again, patience. Let the ideas evolve. Share the ideas. Don’t ask a maker to create something exactly like something else. Collaborate with your maker and understand what they make. For example, a trestle table I recently custom built started out as a request for a ‘rustic’ piece and, through ongoing collaboration with the client, became more Scandinavian. It then becomes a positive experience for both.

How do you like to start your weekend?
There aren’t really weekends when I’m often unsure of what day it is, but I will say that it often involves a combination of kids, dogs and coffee – and shaking the sawdust out of my boots.

Do you have any words of wisdom for people who are contemplating the idea of turning their hobby into their career?
You guessed it: patience. Everything will probably take twice as long as expected. When you’re doing something that you love and enjoy, you don’t want to compromise what you consider to be a good end product (even when it might easier). Ultimately, you have to be happy with the end product – if you’re not happy, it will haunt you forever.

Only a Gold Coast local would know that … Currumbin is the best dog beach.

FAVOURITE WEEKEND SPOT TO:
Perk up … Flannery’s Refuel Depot.
Relax … At home in the hammock.
Dine … Miami Marketta Street Food.
Indulge … The soon to open Easy Street Diner (previously Nola at Blackboard).
Be inspired … Burnpile laboratory (the workshop).