Caitlin Moran: Shedworker

Memoirist, novelist and cultural commentator Caitlin Moran is also a shedworker (you can see her garden office in the background of the photo above). Here she is talking about it in The Guardian:

I finally “invested” in an office/shed at the bottom of the garden, which is where I now spend most of my day. Before, I used to work on the patio, because of the smoking. Man, I have sat out there in some grim weathers... After a long day of work, it’s great to give my arse a break by walking from the bottom of the garden to the front room, and then sitting on the sofa until 10pm.

And this week in The Times (paywall, sorry):

Downstairs in the sweet September morning, cup of tea in hand, open the back door, head to the writing shed, everything to live for, and WHAMMO. Spider in the face. A 12ft web around the head, tea everywhere and eight arachnid eyes peevishly staring into mine, going, “I’m sorry. Did you want to use that door? It’s just I thought I’d pop a face trap over it. Because it’s spider-in-the-face season.”

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Tuesday posts are sponsored by Garden Spaces, suppliers of contemporary garden buildings, offices, gyms and studios, many of which do not require planning

Early years school shedworking

As we frequently say on Shedworking, children need sheds too. Here's a lovely example from Rotunda Roundhouses, a 6.5m Rotunda with sedum roof that will be used at an early years school. Already christened 'Saplings', it took just seven days to get into place and Rotunda used social media to chart the build (we've put them in reverse order).

Another #Roundhouse complete! This one, "Saplings" is 6.5m diameter building with Anthracite grey windows & door and oak flooring. Lush! 😍 pic.twitter.com/NCmh2kuFA4

— Rotunda Roundhouses (@RotundaRH) September 15, 2017

Tuesday posts are sponsored by Garden Spaces, suppliers of contemporary garden buildings, offices, gyms and studios, many of which do not require planning

Shed of the year 2017: The Mushroom Shed

To the online shouts of 'But that's not a shed', this year's Shed of the Year has been announced after nearly 3,000 entries and 27,000 votes - Ben Swanborough’s kind of tree house The Mushroom Shed from Surrey was awarded the prize after his young daughter gave him £500 of her own money to make a hang-out space in the shape of a mushroom.

Uncle Wilco, founder of Shed of the Year said: “The bar was set really high this year, from entire train carriages to a miniature chapel and a replica cinema. With strong contenders winning all eight category awards it was a really tough decision for me and my fellow judges. Ben’s dedication to his daughter and the quirky design details he created really stood out above the rest and he thoroughly deserves the title!”

More details and photos at Shedblog. --------------------------------------------------------------------
Monday posts are sponsored by garden2office, the Swedish garden office specialists. Click here for more details.

Is it worth getting a garden office?

Each week in The Guardian newspaper's 'Money' section, a reader asks a question and other readers respond to it to help them out. This week's is 'Is it worth getting a garden shed?' and replies will be printed in next week's issue. The full question is:

I want to spend about £25,000 on a garden office, which I’ll use for freelance work and as a place for hobbies. My wife thinks it’s a silly price for a shed that will take a chunk of the garden; I think it will add value. Do those with a studio regret it or love it?

You can let the Guardian know your thoughts at money@theguardian.com

Image: Booths Garden Studios

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Monday posts are sponsored by garden2office, the Swedish garden office specialists. Click here for more details.

Diocese of Westminster's garden office

An interesting build by The Stable Company for the Diocese of Westminster which was keen to rebuild lecture rooms at its Allen Hall Seminary in Chelsea. The work required the demolition of the former 35-year prefabs on the site and the addition of new foundations - the whole project, including putting up the buildings, took six weeks. Here's what they say about it:

The building was required to deliver flexible teaching space that could meet the needs of varied group sizes. A single storey design was created to ensure no change of outlook for the other nearby buildings and the exterior was clad in vertical and horizontal cedar weather boards, which provided a stunning, natural appearance for the garden setting.

Other features include a sliding, folding, sound-proofed partition, so that the whole building can be opened up into one large space or  kept as separate lecture rooms.

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Guide to garden rooms (infographic)

Modern Garden Rooms has put together an interesting infographic about all aspects of garden offices and other shedlike atmospheres. You can see a much bigger/readable version here. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thursday posts are sponsored by Cabin Master: garden offices and studios to fit any size garden. Top quality contemporary or traditional buildings.

Roald Dahl Day: Moving the writing hut

It's Roald Dahl Day today, arguably the most famous modern shedworker, so we thought we'd take a look at how his hut was transferred from his garden at Gypsy House to the Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre in Great Missenden (if you can get along this afternoon, entrance is free).

The work was carried out by Outside Studios. Here's what they say about it:

We built a millimetre-perfect replica of the inner writing room and hinged a whole section of the structure; when the Museum is quiet, the hut can be closed for maximum, spine-tingling impact. The gallery couldn't hold the whole hut, but the 'magic' door and aquajet-cut lino patterns mark out the full area with quotes and stories... The hut’s contents were moved forensically, right down to the dirt on the floor and the tobacco-stained polystyrene wall insulation. Every photograph, paperclip and hip bone (yes, really) was carefully recorded, checked and conserved before the display was recreated in its new, museum-grade enclosure, covered with illustrated roses setting out Roald Dahl's writing process.

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Cabin Master Family Fun Day

Cabin Master is running a Family Fun Day this Sunday, September 17 at their show site in Nottingham (just off the A52 at the Toton Lane Tram Site) with plenty for children to do while prospective shedworkers have a look around their cabins and spas. Free things on site include a bouncy castle and slide, face painting, balloon models, and a treasure hunt, plus crazy ice-creams and the Palmer's Diner food van. Naturally there will be offers on the BBQ cabins, garden rooms and spas with plenty of Cabin Master expert staff on hand to answer any shedlike queries.

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Tuesday posts are sponsored by Garden Spaces, suppliers of contemporary garden buildings, offices, gyms and studios, many of which do not require planning

Garden office with home cinema

A 28 square metre garden office build from Rubicon Garden Rooms that will leave many readers very envious. During the day it is used for normal working purposes by shedworking owner financial planner Paul Williams, but whenever necessary he (and his wife Caroline and young son Tommy) can also take advantage of the 100 inch screen  on one wall. Here's what he says

“We had two choices – add an extension on to the house or build something separate in the garden and, given the difference in cost, this seemed like a sensible compromise. One wall is painted dark grey, which is the best for projecting on to, and I’ve got an HD projector, surround sound with six speakers and a big sub-woofer – it’s perfect really.”

And here's Paul talking about it all.

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