I Come From a Land Down Under!

Wednesday, May 28, 2008-Friday, May 30, 2008



Well... I was finally able to get some pictures of my office when I was settled in a bit more. My first week pretty much consisted of organizing the office, doing so many sample boards and getting all of the materials approved and coordinated with the client. I also worked a little bit with CADD, the computer program that I use to produce drawings (or drawrings, as they pronounce it here in Australia).

Some more about Greg...he really is a great designer. He is very demanding, always wanting me to do a hundred things at once, but I guess this pushes me to learn how an interior design firm is run. The firm is very busy right now, so at first I felt like I was getting all the crap work, but I really have been able to do all the things I wanted to do. Work can get tiring because I leave by 8:00 to get to work by 9:00, then put in a 9 hour day, and then its another hour home. So by the time I get home I am super tired. And it doesn’t help that in Australia it is completely dark by 5:00. Something that has been very hard to get used to. But remember it is the first of their winter.

(This is my desk!)

One other thing that has been surprisingly hard is getting used to the accents. Kind of silly that this is an issue, when we both are speaking English, but when I answer the phone I have the hardest time understanding what the person on the other side is saying. It can make for a very interesting phone call when I am needing the person to spell out every word of their message. Especially when it is designers and suppliers that I should know (that being if I had studied in Australia, but seeing as I didn’t I do have a valid excuse).

(This is the view of the office area. That stack of magazines is all the recent magazines that Greg has been published in that haven't been archived yet. He gets published quite a bit in Australia.)

Other than that the nights were spent really just getting used to our routine. Cooking dinner, emailing our friends and family, and trying to wear down some of the jet lag. Not the most exciting first week in the land down under, but we figured we had plenty of time to experience it that we could afford to take it slow.

(This is a custom rug that has the Greg Natale Design logo in it, pretty sweet)!

One of the funny things while I have been here is that it is winter, but winter here is literally like a utah fall. Usually temperature wise it is always pleasant, but it just gets rainy sometimes. (at least this is in my opinion). I must have an extra layer of insulation because I come home everyday and Wendy is freezing cold, and I feel like the temperature is perfect. One day it was really extreme and Wendy had on layers of clothing, socks and shoes (because the socks didn't keep the warmth in enough) including her winter coat and a blanket, and was still shivering. This was Wendy and me at the same time. She really was so miserable. (Notice me with short sleeves and no socks) :)