Denmark carpentry student Meriel Farr claims best second-year apprentice title at WA Master Builders awards

Denmark carpentry apprentice Meriel Farr nailed three apprenticeship awards from Master Builders WA at a ceremony in Perth on June 20. Ms Farr, known as Mezz, was named most outstanding second year apprentice and was a finalist in two other categories, WA apprentice of the year and most outstanding female apprentice. She works with her partner Marty Sneeuwjagt who owns 90 Degrees Residential, a building company which specialises in constructing small homes with an emphasis on sustainability. Ms Farr is undertaking a Certificate III in carpentry at South Regional TAFE having previously been a kite surfing instructor in the Cocos Islands. There is one other mature woman in her TAFE day-release class. She had always enjoyed woodwork at school and started helping Mr Sneeuwjagt when she met him working on a project in New Zealand. “He got me into it,” she said. “I enjoy being outdoors and being active and when I started working with him full time, I wanted to do a course and get a certificate. “I was particularly interested in tiny homes and building sustainably; passive homes, construction methods, and how to make them thermally efficient to save on long-term costs,” she said. Ms Farr loves working with natural hardwoods which, she says, bring a place to life and give it character. Working with her partner has given her a wide range of experience and the pair are aiming to build their own home. “I’m learning lots of new skills because I’m in the building process from start to finish,” she said. “People think it must be easy having my partner as my boss, but it actually means I just work a lot harder. “I think employers like older apprentices because they have gathered some life skills along the way. “I do miss kite surfing, and we still want to travel, but in the meantime it’s good to knuckle down and have some routine and stability.”