Oh my god, oh my god, check out the link, your story is so much like their story! They only had like ~£200,000 to spend and he did a lot of the work himself, the wood flooring was from an old school gym, while some of the grating was from some old rail yards in the area.

Its a really old episode, back when grand designs didn't just mean some architects wet dream if they had all the money in the world to spend. Its a simpler building than what they often have on that show now.

Edit: Also, is your place on an island? Or is it just easier to get around by ferry? I've never been to Queensland, so I don't know what its like. Seems very different to the rest of Australia, in many ways.