When it's time to move

To begin our journey, we travel back in time to 2005 - around when we bought our existing home. Before you start wondering what on earth this has to do with building a new home, hear us out... being in the right mindset, knowing why, is just as important as the build itself. Everyone will arrive at that point via a different route - this is just the path we took. But you should know your own reason why. It's important. Trust us.
We had always wanted to live where we are, from the first time we had a picnic here and got attacked by kookaburras with suicidal tendancies. Over the course of about 10 years, after buying, renovating and selling a couple of other houses, we had sufficient capital.
And this is where the first inklings that we might need to build at some point started to germinate. Yes, even as we were looking to buy an existing house.
You see, apart from the two of us, we had only felines as travelling companions. You would think that accommodating such a small family unit would be relatively easy. But we also both required studio spaces... Viktoria for her easel and sculpting table, and the Android for his plethora of electronic things that go "bleep". 
Eventually, however, we found a beautiful home... on just over a 1/4 acre, with views across the valley to the ocean.
Sound perfect? Well, yes, it is.
And, yes, we know how lucky we are.
We also know that we worked really hard to get here.
But after admiring those views from the 70+ square metres of deck that makes part of the 3 storey, 4 bedroom, 2 bathroom pole-house we call home, we have come to the realisation that, while we still love it, it's really a teensy bit on the "too large" side.

And soon other things became apparent...
The two bedrooms we converted to studios are on the top floor, near the master bedroom. This involves not only lugging equipment and supplies up numerous flights of stairs, but has led to domestic disharmony when the creative muse strikes one of us, yet the other is waiting for the Sandman.
Did we mention the stairs? There's a lot of stairs... lots and lots of stairs. Great for tightening the buttocks, not so great if you just want a quick cup of tea and the kitchen is 2.5 flights of stairs from your studio.
So where would we find a home, with one bedroom, a combined kitchen / dining / living space, and His&Hers studios?
We realised it was time to move...