Friday, April 30, 2021

Shed names in new Idler magazine

The latest issue of the Idler magazine is out featuring my regular column on the world of garden offices and microarchitecture in general - this time I look at the names people call their sheds. If you want to find out what Sally Coulthard, author of Shed Chic, Shed Decor, and How to Build a Shed, calls hers, you'll have to buy a copy (ideally on subscription)... And for those who also like snooker, I focus my cue on the importance of keeping fit to perform on the green baize.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Friday posts are sponsored by Warwick Buildings, manufacturers of outstanding quality timber buildings. Click here for more information.

Thursday, April 29, 2021

Country Garden Studios


An interesting multi-shedworking project in a Northamptonshire village from Ashworth Parkes Architects which won a RIBA East Midlands Award. There are several shedlike structures which include a kitchen, bathroom, storage room, garden office, carport, and greenhouse (lots more excellent images at the link above). Here's what the architects say about it:

"Using a palette of unadorned materials, local coursed limestone, sawn larch timber, corrugated aluminium and Cor-ten, in a variety of different ways, we have created a relaxed informality between the buildings as if they have inhabited the site over a period of time as needs required."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

 

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

Aluminium garden offices


We generally assume that garden offices are made out of wood, sometimes brick, and occasionally something more unusual such as hay bales. For those who are looking for another option, aluminium is now an option with the introduction of a new range from Aliwoods.

The company - which will both manufacture and install the garden office pods - has been launched by Will Woods, managing director of IDF Aluminium which will use Alutech’s BF73 aluminium profile system for bifold doors. This has been designed so that the garden office buildings can be dismantled and relocated.

“I started developing this concept a few years ago," said Will "but have invested heavily in it more recently in light of an increased demand. There are three size options available and all come fitted with a set of Alutech bifolding doors as standard. We began by installing three show models but have already started selling them and are currently in the process of updating our website.”

----------------------------------

Wednesday’s posts are sponsored by Norwegian Log Buildings  - Log cabins and garden buildings for a better quality of life. Click here for more details.


Tuesday, April 27, 2021

Home office interior design trends


In its annual Home Improvement Trends Report, find-a-tradesperson platform Rated People looked at 100 what they called "stylish home offices" on Instagram to see if any patterns emerged. If you're looking to be on trend, here are the results (more details here):

Walls (top three)

1. White 
2. Grey  
3. White + colour accent 

Floor colours

1. Medium wood 
2. Grey   
3. Pale wood 

Floor materials 

1. Floorboards 
2. Rug  
3. Carpet  

Chair colour

1. White
2. Black
3. Grey 

Chair materials

1. Fabric   
2. Leather
3. Plastic

The average number of houseplants was two.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

Monday, April 26, 2021

George Bernard Shaw's writing shed 2021


 
 
George Bernard Shaw's writing hut is probably the Shedworking staff's favourite garden office and we've documented it in more detail over the last 15 years than I suspect any other site or publication. Way back in 2009 we ran a short photo essay, but we thought it was time to update that a little so we had a weekend trip to take it in again. It's all largely unchanged, though of course you can't go into his house at the moment, the only slightly upsetting thing was that the signage was all a bit bleak and the lovely little sign directing people to the writing hut has gone. And the shed itself is still shut, which is ludicrous. Nevertheless, always a pleasure.





--------------------------------------

Monday posts are sponsored by eDEN Garden Rooms. Stunning, bespoke high quality garden rooms, to suit your unique space and style

Sunday, April 25, 2021

Jarvis: shedworker



Awardwinning children's author and illustrator Jarvis ('Alan's Big, Scary Teeth', 'Mrs Mole, I'm home!', 'Lazy Dave') has recently become a shedworker. Pictured above is his recently renovated garden office. "Finally started working from the renovated garden office," he says. "New windows, electric, plastered walls and ceiling, and I put up some very wonky shelves. Unfortunately now I have no excuses to not be a best selling author-illustrator." Below is his own atmospheric take on the new garden office.

 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sunday posts are sponsored by Henshalls Insurance, specialists in insuring garden offices and other garden buildings. Click here for more information.

Saturday, April 24, 2021

10 best air purifying plants for the garden office

One of the joys of a garden office is the actual "garden" element. But as well as looking lovely, plants can be conducive to a healthy working environment with various plants offering air purifying options to ballte the dust, germs and airborne pollutants in your shedlike atmosphere. Nathan Raab, managing director of Pointless Plants, which plants 10 trees for every plant it sells, has picked for us his 10 best air purifying plants to help give your garden office a breath of healthy fresh air: 

1. Spathiphyllum Vivaldi - Peace Lily (pictured above)

2. Howea Forsteriana - Kentia Palm

3. Zamioculcas Zamiifolia - ZZ Plant

4. Nephrolepis Boston - Boston Fern

5. Ficus Benjamina Danielle - Weeping Fig

6. Chrysalidocarpus Lutescens - Areca Palm

7. Sansevieria Zeylanica - Black Coral Snake Plant

8. Dieffenbachia Mars - Dumb Cane Plant

9. Chlorophytum Bonnie - Spider Plant

10. Chamaedorea Elegans - Parlour Palm

-----------------------------------------------------

Saturday posts are sponsored by woowoo waterless toilets, the best toilet for your garden office

 

Friday, April 23, 2021

Beach hut asking prices up more than 40% over the last year

New released figures from hotel booking service Hoo shows that although rental prices for beach huts have unsurprisingly dropped over the last year, by just over 4%, the cost of buying one has jumped 41%, from around £25,000 to just over £36,000.

Daily rent rates naturally vary, but the figures put the average at £52 - Bournemouth is only £26, with Sandbanks and Southwold a tad higher at £28. Whitstable is a leap up at £50 while the much maligned Mudeford is a whopping £130.

“With a great deal of uncertainty remaining around what we can and can’t do this summer, there has been an understandable wobble in the cost of renting a beach hut," said Hoo co-founder Adrian Murdock. " That said, beach hut rental prices remain robust and with another summer of staycations on the cards, they’re likely to climb considerably over the coming months.

"It also seems as though demand for beach huts is pushing up prices as holidaymakers invest in their own piece of beach hut bricks and mortar. A 41% uplift in the last year alone is pretty considerable although as with any property investment, location is key when it comes to both the price achieved and the property’s rental potential.”

Pictured top is Salad Days at Dunster Beach, Somerset, which claims to be Britain's first 5 star beach hut and can be rented out for short breaks. It will come up for sale at the end of the summer season. Price on application

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Friday posts are sponsored by Warwick Buildings, manufacturers of outstanding quality timber buildings. Click here for more information.

 

Thursday, April 22, 2021

New research shows how much a garden office adds to the value of your property


The latest study by find-a-tradesperson platform Rated People indicates that a garden office is one of the top ways of adding value to your property. Its annual Home Improvement Trends Report suggests that the top 10 most value-adding garden improvements for 2021 plus how much they'd add are:

1: Swimming pool £7,707

2: Home office garden room £5,325

3: Summerhouse £5,249

4: Gym/studio room in the garden £5,107

5: Bifold doors/French windows to the garden £4,654

6: Outdoor entertaining area £4,286

7: Decked patio £4,227

8: Paved patio £4,083

9: Greenhouse £3,805

10: Mature plants/trees/flowers £3,716

Adrienne Minster, CEO at Rated People said: “Our gardens and outside spaces have been a lifeline over the past year. For many of us, outside spaces have gone from being somewhere we might spend a bit of time when the weather is nice, to an important extension of our homes which have allowed us to see friends and family when it might not otherwise have been possible. It’s easy to see why homeowners and homebuyers now place more value on outdoor spaces.

"41% of those working from home told us they didn’t have a proper desk, and 24% said they were embarrassed by their background on video calls. So, it’s no surprise that 38% of us want to improve our home offices in 2021. The number of ‘home office’ jobs posted on Rated People more than doubled in 2020 and 43% of UK residents say they plan to work from home more than they did before even if COVID-19 were to completely disappear, so we’re definitely expecting this trend to continue into 2021 and beyond."

The study's analysis of home offices on Instagram showed that 'Scandi' styling was increasingly popular in 2020, and neutral colours, house plants and simple furniture look to be the main trends for 2021. 

Image courtesy SMART

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

Wednesday, April 21, 2021

Police issue garden office security checklist

Secured by Design - the official police security initiative to improve the security of buildings - has put together some advice for both new shedworkers and those who have been working from their garden office for some time. As well as some broad guidelines, the SBD team recommend that any products you install meet the standard PAS 24:2016 requirement. You can see all their suggestions in detail here, but this is a summary:

- Laptops and mobile phone are easily removed and shouldn’t be left in the garden office overnight
 
- Although it may not be practical to remove printers and computer screens on a daily basis, if you are going on holiday or will be away from the office for an extended period, consider storing them in the house

- Keep valuables out of sight by fitting blinds to the windows and doors and keep them closed when the room isn’t being used
 
- Security marking your office IT equipment using an SBD recognised forensic asset marking or etching kit is a highly effective and visible deterrent
 
- If your company provides your IT equipment you may have a policy on home working and the security of the IT equipment – be sure to find out anc check that you have adequate cover under your household insurance for theft
 
- Make sure that your fencing or hedging is in good condition
 
- Technology which allows you to monitor your home and property has changed considerably in recent years, including the installation of closed-circuit television

Image courtesy Warwick Buildings 

-----------------------------------

Wednesday’s posts are sponsored by Norwegian Log Buildings  - Log cabins and garden buildings for a better quality of life. Click here for more details.

 

Tuesday, April 20, 2021

EvilJeff Multi Room Log Cabin

Um...

Available from Dunster House.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

Monday, April 19, 2021

Garden office with outside planters


The My Home Office comes from designer Cosmas Bronsgeest in the Netherlands. The smallest model of the interestingly-shaped garden office measures 2.5m x 3.2m, has an FSC-certified larch wood exterior, floor to roof glazing on two sides, and a number of options including fold-down bed, lavatory, and shower. There is also an option to rent it on a monthly basis.

--------------------------------------

Monday posts are sponsored by eDEN Garden Rooms. Stunning, bespoke high quality garden rooms, to suit your unique space and style

Sunday, April 18, 2021

Director's shed


An intriguing timber build from Studio Oort for a theatre director in London. It's on the footprint of a former rundown garage. The exterior is Iroko slats and includes a cantilevered roof, while inside it's exposed plaster and white oiled oak, plus two skylights and bi-folding doors. The studio is fitted out with a wet room and timber decking. Quite rightly, it's been shortlisted for this year's annual New London Architecture 'Don't Move, Improve!' award for 2021.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sunday posts are sponsored by Henshalls Insurance, specialists in insuring garden offices and other garden buildings. Click here for more information.

 


Saturday, April 17, 2021

Black garden office


Black garden offices were all the rage a couple of years ago and while some of the heat has gone out of the 'influencers' gushing over them, they're still very popular. Here's a fine example from Ayr Cabins, a decent sized 7m x 2.8m in their Cresswell range. It's clad in matt black stained timber on the outside, with birch-faced ply on the inside. This particular build includes a kitchenette and lavatory, as well as large sliding doors. 

-----------------------------------------------------

Saturday posts are sponsored by woowoo waterless toilets, the best toilet for your garden office

Friday, April 16, 2021

Will rooftop garden offices be the next 2021 trend?

While people without gardens understandably say they're not really in a position to have a garden office, we've actually covered plenty of examples of shedlike working atmospheres on Shedworking over the last 15 years, including a surprising number of rooftop garden offices including the fine one pictured above from Boundary Space at the  top of a London townhouse, a kind of urban meadow (and here are some rather more spectacular examples).

So we were intrigued to hear from John-Paul Manning, managing directgor at Build4Less that their latest research into rooftop garden trends for this year puts a rooftop office in the mix, coming in at a creditable 10th spot, hard on the heels of container gardens, canopies, and decking.

"During lockdown the line between indoor and outdoor space became increasingly blurred as people tried to maximise their use of space and make it feel homey as the spring season sets in," says John-Paul. "Rooftop real estate is often a pretty hot commodity. In most cases there’s a limited amount of space and as a result most rooftop trends focus on ways to use the space as efficiently as possible. We’ve found that people are moving towards making the rooftop as open air as possible. Fences are being replaced with tall garden elements like trees and vertical gardens, and glass has begun to replace wood as paraphets in a way that gives privacy but also keeps the space fresh and open." 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Friday posts are sponsored by Warwick Buildings, manufacturers of outstanding quality timber buildings. Click here for more information.

 

Thursday, April 15, 2021

Garden office numbers projected to rise by 3%


A new study by insurance giant Aviva confirms that the number of shedworkers will rise over the next year as Covid-related changes to working from home begin to take hold.

The survey reveals that one in 10 of the 1,400 people questioned already work from a garden office, converted shed, garage or summerhouse and that this proportion will rise to 13%. Currently, it indicates that only around a third of people at the moment have a dedicated home office but that this figure will also rise, by around 10% since only one in five said they found working from home more stressful than 'normal' working routines (nearly half found it less stressful, pointing to the lack of commute, family-friendly nature of homeworking, and easier clothes decisions as key areas).

Aviva spokesman Gareth Hemming says in the report: "Flexible working and home-working practices have been around for some time, but they have really come into their own in the last year. While home-working is not the choice of every individual, we are likely to see more flexibility as a basic benchmark for the future, with many people working remotely, at least some of the time."

Elsewhere, the report also shows that around two thirds of people are keen to make career changes as a result of Covid, with 10% hoping to work from home, putting it top of the wishlist, especially among the under-25 age group.

Image courtesy Cabin Master  

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

Wednesday, April 14, 2021

Don't move, improve!: lunchtime garden office talk

This looks to be a fascinating (and free) digital lunchtime talk next Thursday (22 April, 1pm - 1.45pm). 'Don't Move, Improve! Working from Home' is part of the New London Architecture's design week programme and will focus on how homes can best be redesigned for the increased amount of working from home everybody is planning.

Among the short presentations are Hayley Robson, creative director of design studio Day True on making multi-functional spaces, Timothy Robinson from Sonn Studio on designing for small spaces (including their marvellous Terazzo Studio which is pictured above), and Hanna Zminkowska and Richard De Boise from Zminkowska De Boise Architects (whose 'Claire and Tom's' garden office we'll feature next week) on 'Considering all your options'. There'll also be a panel discussion and Q&A at 1.30pm.

-----------------------------------
Wednesday’s posts are sponsored by Norwegian Log Buildings  - Log cabins and garden buildings for a better quality of life. Click here for more details


Tuesday, April 13, 2021

Warwick Buildings new virtual tour

Although garden office suppliers are now starting to reopen their show sites as lockdown gradually eases off, it's still always nice to have the option to have a nose around the possibilities from your home. Warwick Buildings has just produced an excellent new virtual tour, with various ways of exploring and links to more details of models of interest. It's easy to use and really quite engaging - you can also see it via this link.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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