Our Gloria - a passion project spanning the last three years, untold hours of hard work and more good times that we can count, has been transformed into an incredible off-the-grid, self-sustaining paradise that we’re proud to call our second home.

Now, Gloria sits on a thoughtfully landscaped piece of land, with a native garden on one side, and vegetable garden on the other, and rises up amongst the trees with a fully fledged fireplace for cosy evenings, best enjoyed after a hot meal cooked in the custom-built kitchen and a warm shower in the new bathroom block, all powered by the sun, no less.

The bathroom has been a game changer for our weekend experience; it’s got a composting toilet (no more lugging the shovel up and over the hill for a bit of privacy amongst the trees), an indoor shower with a full length window providing a picturesque view, and an outdoor shower for the balmy evenings - both with hot water powered by our solar panels.

Having running water in the kitchen has been a blessing too, as we enjoy meals in the cosy dining area made with the original bus seats. We’ve also got a webber and an outdoor fireplace when we feel like a bit of alfresco dining - perfect for when mates are staying for the weekend - and the festoon lighting just adds that extra ambience.

Throughout the build, our motivation never waned, spurred on by the good times that come with a group of best mates working together to achieve something pretty special. The bond got stronger between us and Manu and Neri, and we were chuffed with the elbow grease a lot of our other friends were prepared to put in, to help us finish the job so we could all enjoy it together.

Manu, who started the build pretty green to the trade, essentially did an unofficial and fast-tracked apprenticeship as my right hand man on the job - skills tripling at least!

And Natty Workwear, an idea originally spawned from conversations and brainstorms during our many two-and-a-half hour drives back to Melbourne from the Otways after a weekend chipping away, continued to grow and evolve as the creative juices flowed freely down the Great Ocean Road. It’s unreal what a weekend away from the grind of the city can do for your creative pursuits.

We’re stoked to share that we were also featured in RealEstate.com.au, and we’re soon to be included in a coffee table book alongside other amazing and unique builds around Australia and the world - more on that to come.

Looking ahead, we’re excited to take our boy down to Gloria so he can enjoy the fruits of our labour (and maybe even start sowing the seeds of passion and admiration for the trade - six months old is old enough isn't it?), and use it as an excuse to get down to Victoria as much as we can now that Natty HQ has moved up to Burleigh.

We hope Gloria can provide some sort of inspiration for other tradies mulling over the idea of starting their own passion project - we can assure you the satisfaction at the end of the build is worth every minute.