The Collector’s Cabin garden office

An intriguing use of this Malvern Garden Buildings garden studio in a very attractive setting. It houses the owner's wide range of sporting, lunar, and geographic memorabilia, thanks to a clever hinge system inspired by Sir John Soane’s Museum in Lincoln’s Inn Fields in London (read more about it here and watch a video of how it works).

Here's what Malvern say about the build:

"In order to make way for Alan’s garden building, several Leylandii trees had to be removed but the roots were entrenched so the building was installed on top of a raised platform. The advantage of this is that Alan and his wife regularly enjoy eating their lunch on the steps while watching the birdlife. A birdhouse suspended from a nearby tree peeks out from behind foliage – of course, sporting themed – and resembles a miniature cricket pavilion!"

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Garden office maintenance work

With poorer weather approaching it's time to have a think about maintenance work on your garden office and generally sprucing it up. There's an interesting post by digital comminications specialist and interior designer student Natalia Alexandrou at her blog here about the work she carried out in collaboration with Ronseal - fixing decking, painting exterior woodwork - and she has also made an interesting video about her garden office in general, as you can see below. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Semi-underground garden office design

We're always on the lookout for two kind of garden office designs in particular here on Shedworking, garden offices that rotate or are built underground. Here is one for the latter file from London-based Shape Architecture. Here's how they describe it:

The entrance to the office pavilion would be north-facing. Sketches of the idea developed a space with a high ceiling height supplemented with a lowered subterranean entrance. At the front would be a series of large windows that look back up the garden; ventilated at the top; which would allow lots of natural light in as well as views across the garden. There would also be a feature staircase to a glass panelled mezzanine level which could be used for meetings and offers another perspective and experience. This mezzanine level would be supported on one corner with a slanted column.

It also features a green sedum roof, long skylight, and a cantilevered desk at the ground floor on the same level as the garden which would be marvellous. Looking forward to seeing how this one works out beyond the drawing board. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Garden office reading nook

This lovely little reading nook-cum-office was made for a client in Market Harborough, Leicestershire, by Modern Garden Rooms. The owner wanted a space where he could both work and relax with plenty of natural light and storage for a decent number of books. Features of the 3m x2m build include French doors and an additional window on the back wall, as well as decking to the fron to overlooking the garden pond.

Fiona Barton: shedworker

Bestselling crime thriller writer and former journalist Fiona Barton (The Widow, The Child, The Suspect) is also a shedworker. In an interview with her literary agent Madeleine Milburn she admits that she used to write in bed although she explains that has now changed:

"But back ache has made me abandon the frou-frou nightie and lapdog for a new shiny shed in the garden. I go straight to my desk – sometimes dressed, sometimes in jimjams and kneel on one of those weird stool things that are supposed to do things for my spine and get on with it. We’ve moved home from France and now, instead of cockerels and cows, I can hear the sea. Another sort of bliss."

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How to design your garden office garden: part 2

The occasional series of interesting posts on Norwegian Log by garden office designers continues with the thoughts of Gloucestershire-based Sue Parry who runs Gardens Designed by Sue (you can read the first in the series here). She has interesting thoughts on terraces and views, but we were particularly intrigued by what she has to say about paths. Here's a snippet:

Paths are really important in a garden. They should feel generous and easy to use, rather than mean and cramped. So, to make the journey through the garden to the cabin easier and more inviting all year round, I’d make sure we made the path wider and solid-looking. We also want to avoid accidentally walking any water or mud into the cabin in the cooler months!

Well worth a look.

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Scottish Men’s Shed of the Year announced

There are shed of the year winners wherever you look at the moment. As well as the Shed of the Year announced last week, Aberchirder & District Men’s Shed has won the inaugural Scottish Men's Shed of the Year award (pictured left to right are James Paterson, secretary of Aberchirder & District Men’s Shed; Derek Keiller, SMSA chairman; and Mike O’Brien, chairman of Aberchirder & District Men’s Shed).

The Aberchirder branch was set up in 2016 by a group of seven friends and the shed was built the following year thanks to a land grant by Aberdeenshire Council - it features five cabins with toilets, kitchen, computer and social areas and was officially opened earlier this spring by the Lord Lieutenant of Banffshire Clare Russell.

A spokesman for the shed said: "The Shedders have worked with local schools, charities, businesses and residents to provide planters, fencing, garden seats, hanging baskets, firewood and chicken coups in addition to being the envy of the community with its homegrown fruit and veg." Aultbea Men’s Shed and Cromarty Firth Men’s Shed tied for the runner-up places and each receive a £250 cash prize and gift vouchers from Axminster Tools.

The event was held at the Carse of Gowrie Men’s Shed in Dundee and the trophy was designed by Derek Keiller, made using mahogany from a 100-year-old billiards table.

Jason Schroeder, executive officer at the SMSA and co-founder of the first Men’s Shed in Scotland in Aberdeenshire  in 2013, said: “Today’s event celebrates the success and growth of the Men’s Sheds Movement in Scotland.  By showcasing the award nominees and their life-changing impact it is hoped that more men will access Men’s Sheds to connect with their communities, to improve their health and wellbeing, and that new Men’s Sheds will continue to be developed across Scotland.” ---------------------------------------

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Free entry to Dylan Thomas's writing shed this weekend

The Cadw Open Doors programme is up and running this year and one of the most iconic garden offices in the world is available to view for free. The Dylan Thomas Boathouse and Writing Shed, the poet's last home and shedworking atmosphere, is throwing open its doors and throwing in an interactive sound sculpture installation by artist in residence, Laura Garrett for good measure. Doors are open 10am to 5pm today and tomorrow at the location in Laugharne Carmarthenshire SA33 4SD. -----------------------------------

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Shed of the Year 2019: Bux End

Congratulations to Chris Hield from Buxton who has won this year's Shed of the Year competition sponsored by Cuprinol with Bux End, a shed inspired by The Hobbit. More than 16,000 votes for 3,000 entrants in seven categories were cast this year, the 13th time it has run.

“I’m delighted – and in shock!" he told competition organiser Uncle Wilco. "We are massive Lord of the Rings fans so when we decided to build our own shed we knew it had to be a hobbit hole. It had to fit in with the wildlife and nature that we have cultivated in the rest of our garden so the grass roof was a big feature. Whenever we got any seeds for wild flowers we have just thrown them over the top of the shed and they have thrived."

In addition to the prestigious title, Chris wins £1,000, a wooden plaque, £100 worth of Cuprinol products and a massive crown for his shed. For more details see Uncle Wilco's Shed Blog and for more images of Bux End, go to its section on readersheds.co.uk.

And we were delighted that Mary Price's Artistintheshed won the workshop/studio category, the closest to a garden office section since that was discontinued some years ago. We've profiled Mary before on Shedworking and suggested it was a strong contender.

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Goodbye to the Shed Manual shed

As part of producing the Shed Manual for Haynes earlier this year, we naturally had to produce several sheds. The one that was closest to my heart was the garden office and it has now finally gone to a good home where it is currently waiting for a new deck to be built for it overlooking its new owner's garden pond in an apple orchard.

If you'd like more information about how it was moved and transported (by road at 20-30mph), read John's account of it here - it's an excellent detailed post with plenty of images showing each step of the way. I rather like this one which makes it look like it is magically floating...

And of course the book in which it is featured is still very much for sale.

 

 

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Writer's Block garden office

Writer’s Block is a spectacular garden office design by London-based Zac Monro Architects for a screenwriter which also features a large screen for watching films. "He wanted it in the quiet part of the garden," say the architects, "specifically where the compost heap stood steaming in the autumn light." It is made from locally-sourced timber with a hardwood-slatted exterior to blend in nicely with the garden (and as you can see from the image above also provides intriguing shadows) and a polished concrete base.  

One in seven UK workers is based at home

More than four million UK shedworkers and other homeworkers have ended the daily commute in favour of working from home, around one in seven UK workers. Analysis of ONS data carried out by Aviva Insurance indicates that Powys in Wales tops the homeworking table, closely followed by Kensington and Chelsea, and Brighton and Hove.

Workers in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland are least likely to be home-based according to the study. Scottish regions appear throughout the top 10 least common areas for home workers, with Aberdeen City and Inverclyde coming second and third on this list.

According to Aviva’s analysis, 14% of UK workers are home-based for their main job. This includes people who work in their home (5%), in the same grounds or building as their home (1%), or in different places, using their home as a base (8%). The ONS data shows the majority of people who work from home are self-employed, accounting for 60% of this group. Employed individuals make up 39% of home-workers, while the remaining small number are unpaid workers at the family home.

10 UK regions with highest proportion of home workers

UK Region	Percentage of workers who are primarily home-based
Powys	25.7%
Kensington and Chelsea	25.0%
Brighton and Hove	24.9%
Ceredigion	24.8%
Devon	24.6%
County of Herefordshire	24.6%
Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly	23.8%
Camden	23.6%
Richmond upon Thames	22.5%
Pembrokeshire	22.1%

10 UK regions with lowest proportion of home workers

UK Region	Percentage of workers who are primarily home-based
West Dunbartonshire	5.6%
Aberdeen City	6.4%
Inverclyde	6.6%
Clackmannanshire	6.7%
Hartlepool	7.2%
Sandwell	7.3%
Leicester	7.3%
Dundee City	7.4%
North Lanarkshire	7.5%
Salford	7.6%

Adam Beckett, Product Director for Aviva UK General Insurance said: “Flexible working and home-working options are now part and parcel of many people’s lives. Advances in technology mean many individuals can work remotely in a whole host of careers, from web design to tutoring. And indeed, at Aviva we offer home-working options to many of our employees!

“If people are home-based, it’s important that they have the appropriate insurance for their business needs as well as their personal lives. Aviva covers home office equipment as part of our home insurance products, but people should inform their insurer if they plan to use their home for any business purpose other than office work. For example, people will usually require additional insurance if they store large amounts of stock or cash in their homes; and if customers visit their homes, the host will usually require public liability insurance. Similarly, if people use a vehicle for their work, they should make sure it’s insured for business use.” -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Studio Shed offier

One of the biggest names in the garden offices in the USA, Colorado-based Studio Shed is offering 15% off all its products starting September 20 (slightly earlier if you subscribe to its newsletter). Click the link above for more details.

About Studio Shed | Customizable Prefab Backyard Sheds and Accessory Dwelling Units from Studio Shed on Vimeo.  -------------------------------------------------
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The Harry Pierce Micro-Museum opens today

We've talked about Kurt Schwitters' Merz Barn on the Cylinders estate at Langdale in the Lake District before on Shedworking (and you can find lots more about it on their site here) so it's great news to hear that work on the site near Ambleside continues apace. This time the focus is on the landscape gardens there created by Harry Pierce in the 1940s and 1950s which are in the process of being restored.

The Harry Pierce Micro-Museum and Reading Room will be officially opened by the garden designer's grandson William at 2pm today. The reconstruction of Pierce's original drawing office on the site of the derelict original measures 4.3m by 3.2m so is among the smallest museums in the country containing a desk, drawings, books and plans he made to convert the former gunpowder works estate into experimental gardens, as well as writings about his experiences and contemporary photos.

The work has been made possible thanks to a grant from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, supported by the Cumbria Fells & Dales Local Action Group.
   
The original office was built by Pierce (who owned Cylinders in the early 1940s) as a garden office in which to create his plans for Mawson’s of Windermere where he was the chief designer. It was here where he met the German-born artist Schwitters and they began a lifelong friendship. It will be open daily from 10am to 5pm with no admission free. The painting below is a portrait of Harry by Schwitters.

There's an excellent article about the work by Mike Glover in Lancashire Life here. ---------------------------------------

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Cabin Porn: Inside

The original Cabin Porn book has been a great success (though we wish they'd called it something else - even the publishers seem a bit uncomfortable as they refer to it as Cabin P*rn throughout their publicity bumph). Out on October 3 from Particular Books is the follow-up, Cabin Porn: Inside, again by Zack Klein, the co-founder of Vimeo.

So the focus this time round is more on the interiors of shedlike atmospheres around the world, as the publishers put it "offering close-ups of the stunning architecture and interior design that make them truly remarkable. With more timeless photography and new design stories, Cabin P*rn: Inside brings fresh inspiration for your quiet place somewhere".

You can enjoy a sample of the book here.

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Roald Dahl's writing hut

It's Roald Dahl Day today so there's all sorts of Dahl-related events around the country. Naturally, it's his writing hut and garden office that we've been most interested in here on Shedworking over the years so here's a quick guide to some of the most interesting posts about him and his shedworking lifestyle:

Roald Dahl shows how to procrastinate in your garden office

 

Up close and personal inside Roald Dahl's shed

 

Roald Dahl on his writing shed (plus sausages and snooker)

 

Moving the writing hut

 

Conservation work in Roald Dahl's writing hut

 

Roald Dahl's writing shed was inspired by Dylan Thomas's writing shed

 

Roald Dahl's writing hut by Quentin Blake

 

There was a lot of fuss about moving the shed in 2011 which caused a huge rumpus and our reporting of it was noted in the Guardian by Mark Lawson. Here it is day-by-day if you want to follow it:

Controversy rages over restoration of Roald Dahl's writing shed: UPDATED

 

Dahl's shed: Day 2

 

Dahl's shed: Day 3

 

Dahl's Shed: Day 4

 

Dahl's Shed: the media U-turn 

 

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Building a garden office: part 8

One garden office build we've been following all year is at the roofing stage. Web designer and developer Jack McConnell is now chronicling stage 8 of the build (you can see the others here) and the video below shows him adding fascias, completing the rubber roof (which readers of my recent Shed Manual from Haynes will know pleases the authors), installing the window and door (with help from his father-in-law), and getting the trench dug for his electrics.

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Menus That Made History

Regular readers will know that as well as producing Shedworking, I also write books. The latest is Menus That Made History, co-written with my friend the actor Vince Franklin (Bodyguard, Thick of It, Cucumber, etc). Here's what some famous folk very kindly said about it:

An absolutely riveting book - reading it makes you intelligent, full of brilliant anecdotes - and very hungry indeed.' - Richard Curtis

'This brilliantly conceived and well-researched book is a source of real delight.' - Dr Annie Gray, BBC Radio 4's The Kitchen Cabinet

'Superbly written, a complete joy to read, and just about the perfect present for anyone even vaguely interested in food.' - Mark Diacono

'A gastronomic delight. You can savour it a course at a time, or you may consume the whole banquet in one sitting. It's delicious either way - utterly scrumptious, in fact!' - Mike Leigh

And here's the lowdown on what it's all about...

This fascinating miscellany of menus from around the world will educate as well as entertain, delighting both avid foodies and the general reader.

Each menu provides an insight into its particular historical moment - from the typical food on offer in a nineteenth-century workhouse to the opulence of George IV's gargantuan coronation dinner. Some menus are linked with a specific and unforgettable event such as The Hindenburg's last flight menu or the variety of meals on offer for First, Second and Third Class passengers on board RMS Titanic, while others give an insight into sport, such as the 1963 FA Cup Final Dinner or transport and travel with the luxury lunch on board the Orient Express. Also included are literary occasions like Charles' Dickens 1868 dinner at Delmonicos in New York as well as the purely fictional and fantastical fare of Ratty's picnic in The Wind in the Willows.

As always, it's available wherever good books are sold, ideally from your local independent bookseller, but also the usual suspects online such as Amazon.
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Shepherd's hut workshop tour

It's always interesting to take a look behind the curtains and see how garden offices are actually made. Here's Richard Lee from Dorset-based Plankbridge guiding us round his workshop which features shepherds' huts, large cabins, and some bespoke models. 

The Plankbridge team are also celebrating as they recently became the only shepherd's hut maker endorsed by the Royal Horticultural Society.

 

 

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Garden office one year on

A fascinating post by digital marketing consultant Ryan Gibson looks not only at the ins and outs of a home office/gym build warts and all, but also includes a detailed breakdown of the financials involved. In particular, he works out whether it was a decent investment, taking into account savings made on commuting, coworking rent, etc. And here's his conclusion:

Just under 5 years and 2 months to break even. Of course this was far more than a financial decision but any decision made should have some loose justification. It’s worth noting that we have had the house valued and it’s now 35k above our overall investment. House values are incredibly subjective and mean nothing unless you sell the house but it’s another positive on the ROI front.

Well worth a read if you are considering going down the shedworking route and want to get a handle on the financials. Link to the whole blog post is at the top of this one.
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Garden office library

A nice blog post by Emma Mitchell at Smart Garden Offices looks at the attractions of combining a garden office with a home library. Essentially, she points out how nice it is be surrounded by nature as well as books, in a peaceful atmosphere, warmly insulated, and with decent shelving. Here's what she writes about climate control:

"Books are very sensitive to heat, humidity and damp, so installing a climate control unit is the ideal way to keep your building at a constant ambient temperature. Fully programmable, the climate control unit will provide warmth on the coldest of days and coolness on those scorching hot summer days."

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