Having the ability to turn your passion or hobby into a space you can constantly surround yourself in is the pinnacle when it comes to man cave themes and Andrew Thomas has done just that. Justin Felix explains.
One of the greatest things about collecting is the chance encounters with people you never would have met otherwise. Perhaps it’s the common ground and instant talking point that others can’t quite seem to grasp, or maybe it’s the pure delight on the face of someone who’s just found treasure in another man’s trash. Whatever it is, it’s a wonderful thing and something I’ve discovered since collecting has become a bit of a personal hobby.
I first met Andrew Thomas at the beginning of 2015 after I’d won an auction on eBay. I’d been looking for another typewriter to add to my growing collection and managed to snare an Adler Tippa (circa 1960) in tip-top condition. Being that typewriters are rather heavy, I opted to pick the typewriter up, rather than have it posted and risk its integrity.
Andrew greeted me at the door and we immediately started chatting about some of the items he had lined up along his front porch. He’d just been to a garage sale and found a bunch of LPs that he was preparing to sell online. Then there were the two antique bench seats lining his driveway. This guy was a genuine picker. I told him about ManSpace and he told me to come around the back. If I’d had my camera with me, this article would have appeared in an earlier issue but after a number of failed attempts to get back down his way sooner, it’s gracing the pages of this summer issue, which is perhaps more fitting considering the theme of his man cave.
Andrew’s space away from the home is an oversized shed that’s been split into two sections: workshop on one side, man cave on the other. And it’s turned up something special.
“The guy who we bought this house from was a builder and surfer and I think that’s why he sold it to me to be honest. Once we started chatting about surfing and some of the people we knew, I think he was happy to be passing it onto someone who shared a common interest,” Andrew explains.
“The shed was just a shell when we moved in. The last owner had installed the toilet and shower in the back of what is now the man cave but apart from that it was just four walls and a roof really.
“The shower and toilet have stayed but around a year ago I decided to turn the shed into two separate spaces. The workshop side is big enough to park a car inside while also housing all of the boards I surf with regularly, and a workshop with a bench toward the back.”
The other half of the shed is a celebration of surfing with a real Hawaiian-like feel to it. Several surfboards line the wall that demarcates the shed from the man cave, a retro fridge sits in the opposite corner while a TV and record collection takes up the wall on the wall opposite the bathroom. Added to that is one of Andrew’s hand-built boards sitting pretty on the ceiling above the long home-made bench that sits proudly in the middle of the room.
“My background is in electronic communications but I’ve always liked building things and using my hands so I get stuck into the workshop as often as possible. A friend gave me this beautiful piece of timber for the table top which was painted pink, so I sanded it back and attached some legs to it. I wanted it to be the centrepiece, where people could either sit at or stand up at and have a drink around.
“The stools that surround it were actually purchased from Fred Schepisi, the director of The Russia House and other Hollywood movies. He lives up in Red Hill and had a garage sale. I couldn’t believe it. He told me that a lot of famous bums had sat on these stools and I reckon Johnny Depp’s would be one as I know he’s visited Fred on the Peninsula.”
Andrew’s main idea for the space stemmed from a want for a room where he could sit and watch the footy in; a space where he could hang out with mates or listen to some tunes.
“I’ve also built a woodfired pizza oven in the backyard so a typical summer night sees 20 or 30 people over with this room packed out and music blaring. Surf videos play on rotation in the cave while pizzas and drinks come in and out.
“There’s enough room in the backyard for people to pitch tents in too so at least friends can have a good time without having to worry about driving home.”
It’s not all about the boys either. Women are welcomed into the man cave too.
“I originally had a sign up saying Man’s Room and my wife Anne took it in her wisdom to cross out the M so that it read “An’s Room”. She got a bit of cred for that. I do obviously allow women in here. We’ve got big groups of friends and the women are usually the ones who want to party and dance.”
While it makes for a top location for parties, it’s also a place for Andrew to unwind in at the end of a working week and really soak up what surfing has brought to his life – a passion he adopted in his teens.
“My first interest in boards came via skateboarding as a kid. I suppose it’s a natural progression for a lot of guys who start out skateboarding, to get into surfing. But then I joined the navy and was posted in Darwin so I didn’t do it for 10 years or so.
“Eventually I got posted back to Cerberus in Melbourne and got bitten by the bug again. Then I went off to Fiji for three years and totally fell in love with the sport. I had a world class break at my doorstep. I got really into the scene over there and got involved in the running of indigenous competitions that involved some of nearby islands. When I came back to Melbourne I worked part-time with a friend as a surf coach on the Mornington Peninsula, where I now live.”
Andrew has surfed Fiji, Tonga and Bali and now finds himself living in an area surrounded by water and swell. And for a guy who views the ocean as his playground, it doesn’t get much better than that.
“I kite surf as well. It gives you something to do when the wind is blowing onshore rather than offshore which is more suited to surfing. It gives me an option to be on the water all the time which means I’m rarely home. That makes the wife happy,” he laughs. “I wish I did, but I don’t have room in here for a kite.”
The boards adorning the back wall have mostly been picked up at garage sales at bargain prices while a couple were bought from a friend. They don’t particularly hold any sentimental value but were bought for their character instead.
“I’ve surfed a couple of the boards in here but they’ve all been retired to the wall now. You could still surf all of these, apart from the one on the bathroom door… that one’s pretty trashed. I picked it up for $5 somewhere I think.
“The boards I use regularly are in the space next door. There are long boards and short boards as well as some stand up paddle boards which I also get into on calm days,” Andrew says.
Before I leave to start my weekend, Andrew drags out six typewriters and sprawls them across the bench. My eyes light up, similar to his when I met him all those months ago and told him about this magazine.
“I’ll take the Adler and the Brother thanks mate, oh, and I’ll take that wooden yacht from your eBay page off your hands too…”
Some people were just meant to meet. Serendipity I think they call it.
