Finding purpose in the workshop

ANTHONY CHRISTIE bounds out of bed each morning with the energy of someone who has found the work they are meant to do.

The Torquay creative is the owner of Georgie Wood, a custom furniture and cabinetry business based at the Ashmore Arts precinct, where he handcrafts one-of-a-kind timber pieces designed to last.

For Christie, whose background is in graphic design, the business has grown from a long-held love of making things with his hands. It was COVID-19 that offered the turning point that transformed what had been a passion project into a full-time career.

“There was a period during COVID where our hours were dropped back, so I basically had one day a week in my workshop,” Christie said.

 

 

“That one day a week was a Friday, and I realised that I’d bounce out of bed on a Friday morning. I just loved it.

“I was making stuff for friends and family, and I would have a project on the go all the time. I’d run out to the workshop on my Fridays and just get lost.”

The realisation sparked the desire to pursue the craft more seriously, but before launching into business, Christie opted to first build the technical foundation he felt it deserved.

“You don’t need to be a qualified tradesperson to make furniture … but what I decided to do is go back to school … and get myself qualified as a tradesman, as a cabinetmaker,” he said.

 

 

“I wanted to have that meat on the bone; I wanted to have experience and knowledge and qualification.”

Georgie Wood, which Christie runs with his partner Kirsty, has now been in operation for about 18 months.

“Now I get to bounce out of bed every morning instead of just one day a week,” Christie said.

The business is small by design. Christie crafts every piece himself, with a focus on one-off freestanding pieces of furniture such as dining tables, record cabinets and floating shelves.

 

 

 

He labours carefully over each item, enjoying the process as it unfolds. He finds joy in the pace, in slowly sanding each piece of timber until it is smooth to touch.

“Nothing happens quickly in the Georgie Wood workshop,” Christie joked.

“You’re often told to hurry up and push things through. But I just can’t work that way. I take my time and do it right the first time.

“People are paying you to make something, so there’s an obligation to do it as good as you can.

 

 

“Everything has little mistakes in it. It’s handmade, so there’s always little defects and little fix-ups that you do along the way, but I think that’s part of the beauty of something being handmade. It’s not pushed out of a factory; it’s made in a small workshop.”

And he loves working with timber. Tasmanian blackwood and locally sourced, recycled messmate are among his preferred materials, materials he champions for their character, tone and sustainability.

“There’s beauty in timber … there’s a warmth to it,” Christie said.

“You might be using recycled timber and it’s all worn and grey, and then you strip it back and there’s this beautiful grain underneath.”

 

 

It was The Beatles that provided the inspiration for the business’s name, with Christie drawing what he describes as an “extremely obscure” reference from well-known ballad Let It Be.

It’s a quirky approach he hopes carries through to the unique pieces he designs.

“We don’t want things to be stock standard or cookie cutter,” Christie explains. “We like everything to be unique.”

It means he’s always on the lookout for “kooky” projects to get into – and he welcomes a challenge.

“I was talking to a mate – he’s also out at Ashmore – he’s a boat builder, and we both laugh about how much time we spend staring at our projects, because sometimes you’re looking at it and you’re just working out how you are going to do something,” Christie said.

 

 

“They’re the good ones; something that’s really challenging, and you stare at it and just go, ‘I don’t actually know how I’m going to make that work’.

“Then when it does, it’s super satisfying.”

With a busy schedule of projects ahead, Christie said he’s excited to see Georgie Wood enter its next phase.

“I love what I do so much,” he said. “Get out to work every day and, enjoy what you do – I don’t think it needs to be any more complicated than that.”

For more information, visit georgiewood.com.au