About me

I am an experienced masonry and civils craftsman and foreman with a unique set of skills, experience and knowledge. 

I come from a traditional craft background having worked as an apprentice for a stonemason and as a journeyman for a brick mason. My Father was a traditional builder/carpenter as are his friends. And I grew up in a Victorian townhouse in Chester city centre that my family restored. I would regularly do things like National Trust volunteering, rebuilding dry stone walls or other craft skills. And every holiday had a visit to whatever historic ruins there were. So I'm not sure I had much choice...  

I chose to pursue a practical career instead of an academic one. I observed that the wages were increasing and predicted to increase without surcease which confirmed my decision. It seemed sensible to me to acquire a fundamental practical skillset as the automation of most other professions seems inevitable but bespoke construction will be safe for a very long time. I find it hard to believe that a robot will ever be preferred to restore a Listed Building by the people who own them. Thus allowing me to earn ever increasing amounts in a world with less and less work. 

My eventual goal is to become a true Master Builder through the acquisition of practical skills whilst physically capable, followed by an education when I start becoming too old to provide a fair service to my clients.  

Currently I can build anything from plans and advise with more accuracy than most professionals with base level graduate education in all aspects of masonry and most civils. I am under no illusion of my own ability but do regularly have to correct people like local surveyors with a BA for example. But certainly not a Chartered Surveyor who specialises in Conservation and Heritage work. Those people genuinely impress me and make me feel stupid in almost equal measure. 

I do a lot of research, see the description of my red mortar on my Mortarman page.  

My experience includes working at a large number of vernacular historic properties in the North West and North Wales in various masonry and civils roles. I also have extensive major civils experience. The former gives you knowledge and obscure craft skills and the latter provides a level of professionalism in regards to speed and an ability to follow plans far beyond that of a local craftsman or builder. And the area I cover is an absolute nightmare to learn because there are hundreds of geological anomalies. Different stone types at one end of a village to the other. Mortars made from a wide variety of whatever is nearest...slate, leaves and twigs in the one!

My personal preference and speciality is masonry fixing; the production and utilisation of all types of cementious products within all aspects of the construction, civil engineering and conservation. I would love to do conservation grade heavy civils so if anyone needs an aquaduct building to Roman specification, I'm your man.