Mat the Mason

Mat and Kevin restored our flailing 1830’s Coach House at historic Winton Maison. It was touch and go as to whether the ol’ coach house could be saved. They meticulously took down an entire side wall, supported by props and scaffolding and rebuilt it block by block with new foundations. Replaced old weathered sills, removed concrete pointing and re-pointed with lime the remaining Coach House. Broken flag stones were replaced and broken pieces re-used in a cellar in the main residence. In addition they built steps down to a re-purposed old sandstone reserve well and cut a door through the old well - which is now used as distillery with a Pagoda on top. Mat is a perfectionist - both know their craft inside and out. Both Mat and Kevin contributed to what the property is today and as long as modern world allows - this property will still be standing in another 200 years! They are part of the fabric that is Winton - part of the family and furniture and we cant thank them enough for their Consult, service and outcomes.

Matt has worked his magic on our Heritage listed sandstone church. Some time last century concrete had been slapped everywhere in a misguided attempt at repairing the crumbling original mortar. The concrete was ugly and causing damage to the convict hewn sandstone blocks. Matt provided us with expert advice for restoration, which supported our applications to Heritage Tasmania for a sensitive conversion of the church to private residence. Matt has cleaned and repointed the internal walls with natural toned traditional lime mortar and the results are beautiful. His specialist expertise and artistic sensibility have transformed the space. He has been easy and fun to work with. Matt has the traditional skills and knowledge from Europe that have become a rare commodity in Australia. We have no hesitation in recommending Matt the Mason - he is a master in his craft.

What do you do when you realise your 1901 rendered brick house is in fact an 1860’s sandstone Georgian cottage? You don’t stress, you just ring Mat the Mason. Mat and Kevin have repaired and repointed my house and did such a fantastic job people have actually stopped in their cars to admire the house. Most recently Mat has replaced the sandstone lintel over the fireplace. The new lintel looks amazing and exceeded our expectations which were high. Mat is always responsive, is very professional and what he doesn’t know about stonemasonry, sandstone and convict brick buildings, isn’t worth knowing. Whether it’s a building conservation project, renovation using traditional building techniques, or just righting the past sins perpetrated on your old home, I can thoroughly recommend Mat the Mason.

Matthew was first very easy to communicate and very ponctual. The work was to restore the stone wall of my house, paint was covering the stones and old concrete and cement had to be taken out as it was damaging the sandstone. I also had water going through the stone. Matt cleaned the stones from paint, took of all the old material between the stones and put back traditional mortar, replaced bricks with original convict ones and also replaced some stones to fit better. The result is impressive and i can appreciate the hard work and details Matt put in this project. Thank you very much. It was worth it the cost, traditional work cost but job very well done, my home is ready for the next century.