Narranders High School 2021 HSC Industrial Technology and Design and Technology students Amelia Gillespie and Lauren Wickes have won accolades for their work in the Student Category Maker of the Year awards presented by Carbatec.

Lauren and Amelia studied at Narrandera High with teachers Scott Rowlings and Alex Dean and have been nominated for the awards, with winners to be announced later in the year.

The category is open to students enrolled in full or part-time secondary or tertiary study in 2021-22.

Narrandera High School Principal Marni Milne said students and their teachers Alex Dean and Scott Rowlings worked extremely hard, often after hours, to design and produce quality pieces.

Inspired by her grandfather

Talking about her project Lauren Wickes said her grandfather, who passed away in 2011, milled timber for a living along the Murrumbidgee River. Deepwater Station in Matong was where his mill was located 23 years ago.

“It is from this property that he fell and milled the timber that I used in this project,” she said.

“As I became interested in woodwork and chose to continue to study it in Year 11, my mum told me I could use the leftover timber from the dining table and the China cabinet that my parents had made as their wedding gifts to build my major HSC project if I wanted to.

“I couldn’t resist and had to use it. My grandfather also milled the Lemon Scented Gum that was growing in the yard of the first house that my parents bought when they got married.

“After machining the timber from its rough sawn state to work out exactly how much was usable, I decided to build a buffet to complement the existing furniture that my parents had.

“Combining modern joinery methods as well as traditional techniques was important to me, as it allowed me to showcase my skills and extend my knowledge.

“Cutting dovetails for the drawers by hand and using a router jig enabled me to experience what my teacher refers to as the ‘zen of hand tool work’ contrasted with the precision of power tools and jigs.

“I hadn’t used epoxy resin before and it presented many challenges, but the contrast between the black resin and the timber is one that I’m very happy with.

“The four doors were cut to size and then inlaid with the Lemon Scented Gum, with inspiration coming from photos on Pinterest. Soft-close European hinges were used throughout and I chose not to use any handles to keep the lines clean and uncluttered.

“As an added gift to my very patient mum, I stencilled my grandfather’s signature into the rails behind the left door as a continuing reminder of the heritage of the timber.”

Passion for design and timber

Amelia Gillespie also won accolades for her wooden buffet.

Amelia said she always had a big passion for design and construction and in her final year of secondary schooling decided to undertake an Industrial Technology subject – timber. She created a hallway buffet displaying a variety of timber joinery methods, precision and attention to detail.

“My involvement with this subject originated from my passion of design and love of timber,” she said.

“I chose to display the timbers of silky oak grown in Queensland with small features and delicate inlays of western red cedar. Queensland silky oak was an easy timber to work with, from constructing dovetails, to using modern joinery such as biscuits and dominos.

“The drawers in my buffet are made of 100 per cent silky oak timber including the drawer bottoms. I also created aspects of black metal to create a cross design along the back of the buffet, as well as the matte black drawer handles.

“With the use of red cedar and silky oak, as well as the black metal, I created a contrast with each other when the finish was applied. The chosen finish was a boiled linseed oil, with the use of 1200 grit sandpaper for a polish. This added to the simplicity of the overall design.”

Winners of the awards are expected to be announced in September.

This article appeared in the Narrandera Argus, 17 March 2022.