It’s been two years since my mate Tatsuya Sasaki and I set up Fujimoto Traditional Carpentry.
For FTC, 2018 was a year of making new friends and taking bold leaps into the unknown. 2018 also saw FTC achieve many milestones with the completion of the following projects:
- Yokosuka Kominka renovation
- Our first residential inhouse design and build of a contemporary residential property using traditional constructions methods (no vnails!)
- The Hayama garage, also inhouse design and build (again, no nails – there can’t be many garages with Kanawa scarf joints!)
- The Kominka renovation for Hayama Cafetero
- The Morito beach house and many more carpentry jobs, then there are two major projects that are aiming to wrap up in the new year, the Sukiya-style renovation of a 100 year old town house in Tokyo and the new-build in Kamakura.
Construction projects aside, we were lucky enough to host interns from France and Germany and receive visits from Danish furniture makers and Australia’s number one Japanese tool supplier. We also had two very talented Australian carpenters come and work with us for a few weeks!
All of this was made possible by having Greg Simpson join the team as our international business development manager. With Greg on board we have been able to increase international understanding of the design philosophy of Japanese architecture and forge bonds with people from all over the world who share a common love for timber architecture.
It has been humbling for me to see how much Japanese woodworking resonates with people outside of Japan and I look forward to the ongoing sharing of skills and knowledge with fellow woodworkers, builders and architects throughout the world.
Finally I want say a big thank you to everyone who supported us this year. This includes not only our wonderful clients but also our families and friends, without whom none of our achievements would have been possible. I’d also like to say thank you to the clients how have seen fit to retain our services in the new year. Thanks to you it looks like FTC is guaranteed to keep going until at least 2020! On behalf the team at FTC I would like to wish you all a Happy New Year!
