Dark Matter garden studio

 

 

This stunning garden office (called Dark Matter) in Tring, Hertfordshire, for a design recruitment consultant comes from architects Hyperspace who describe its exterior as "a scaly biodiverse façade". Like yesterday's post, it's actually a reworking of a former garage into a 40m2 studio, rectangular with one corner chopped off. Indeed, Hyperspace has commendably managed to hang on to and reuse 95% of the structure.

The 850 larch scales on the exterior are arranged in a grid pattern and chamfered at 15 degrees to provide homing opportunities for insects and spiders. And while inside there are white oiled timber rafters and light poplar plywood panels, its charred black appearance only confirms that black is very much back in the garden office world. Also worth a mention are the centrally pivoting door, and the two light chimneys. Lots more photos at the link above and at their instagram page.

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Malvern Garden Buildings offer a premium collection of garden buildings, displayed at 11 UK showsites.

Grange garage studio

A captivating facade by Konish Gaffney Architects for this garden office for an artist, repurposed from a former garage in Edinburgh. Here's what they say about it:

"We repurposed the existing garage, infilled a new floor and the old garage door and fully insulated and improved the interior. The project then became about the front elevation cladding, this becoming an abstract frontage, separated from the building like Buster Keaton’s 1928 film Steamboat Bill, Jr.

"We wanted to build in timber and decided on Siberian Larch, setting up a rhythm of timber fins and horizontal cladding. Compositionally arranging a window, a garden gate, a base and top band detail with varying fin centres."

Lots more photos of the interior at the link above.

Images courtesy ZAC and ZAC 

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Heaters in garden offices: Please be careful

Many shedworkers have heaters in their garden offices but please do be careful with them. Above are examples of a recent incident attended by Salisbury Fire Service who said: "Although the weather is slowly getting warmer it is still important that if you’re using electric heaters to warm you up, make sure they’re safe and away from materials that might burn."

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Shepherd’s hut garden office

Shepherds' huts make great garden offices, despite David Cameron slightly tarnishing the idea by buying one himself in which to write his memoirs. Richare Lee from Plankbridge (who didn't supply the former Prime Minister's hut), has a nice little piece on their site on the subject of shedworking in a shepherd's hut. Here's a snippet:

When you are free to cordon off designated time and space for your work, it’s easier to enjoy leisure with more pleasure. There’s a lot to be said for that – not least in an era where striving for work-life balance can sometimes feel like cycling a tightrope.

“After we bought the hut, which I use primarily for my work, the list of uses for the hut expanded rapidly,”explains Gwennie of her multifunctional hut space. “It offers additional guest space as the single bench bed can be opened out into a double bed for family and friends when they come to stay. And when the children were growing up they used it for music practice and exam revision. We have even celebrated New Year in it!”

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Garden office hairdressing salon

A good example of how garden offices work for a range of jobs, here's Ria Porter's The Hair Sanctuary business in Glemsford, Sufolk, housed in a SMART Ultra model. Here's what she said about it:

“I’m completely in love with my space and so are my clients. It’s so good to be back in a salon and knowing it’s just at the end of the garden. It’s fantastic, my clients get a piece of luxury and don’t have to worry about parking. They experience a one-to-one service in a quiet salon, overlooking great views which is peaceful for them.”

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Writer's room

Designed by Clancy Moore Architects and the winner of the Architectural Association of Ireland award, this 9m² garden office for a writer in Dublin is made from recycled sheet aluminium, anodised steel, and cherry red-stained beechwood. Features include a remarkable V-shaped roof, large picture window, and daybed. The whole thing was built offsite and then craned in from the street. 

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SMART designs and manufactures industry leading garden rooms from our very own Suffolk factory and installed all over mainland UK

View from Nigel Nicolson's gazebo at Sissinghurst

Back in the summer of 2022 I took part in a National Trust project for writers and artists to spend time working in Nigel Nicolson's remarkable gazebo at Sissinghurst Gardens. Work from those sessions (not my scribbled paper notes for a future book which don't make for great art) is now on show at Sissinghurst including this marvellous watercolour view by James Oses from inside the gazebo, looking out across the moat to the countryside beyond. Regular readers will know that James also provided the illustrations for my recent book Rooms of Their Own.

Photo courtesy Sarah Salway.

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Malvern Garden Buildings offer a premium collection of garden buildings, displayed at 11 UK showsites.

 

Brosh Architects Studio new garden office

 

 

While we naturally report on many garden offices which are designed by architects, we rarely see ones designed by them for themselves. So it's intriguing to take a look at what Brosh Architects came up with when they needed additional office space as they expanded the company rather than spending money on renting office space in central London (as well as cutting the commute).

 

"The shape of the space was born from the odd shape of the rear garden and internal spaces were designed to fit a working office and guest room with ensuite for guests and family to come to visit as well as space for garden storage," said owner Lior Brosh. 

 

Initially the cantilever roof was not part of the design, but was added after a visit to up-state New York, USA where many homes featured front porches with hanging benches. The structure was built with blockwork walls and timber structure roof with black colour fibre-cement cladding. Internally, there's a concrete floor with birch plywood walls and ceilings so that, according to Brosh, "it can be aesthetically minimal as a working environment whilst still feeling warm and cosy on dark winter days."

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How much can you earn from your garden room?

New research from Crown Pavilions indicates how much you can earn from renting out a garden room on Airbnb in counties across the UK.

The study analysing Airbnb data indicates that you can earn the most in Suffolk, with an average of £96 per night, or £672 per week.This was followed by the City of London (£95 per night) and Rutland in the East Midlands (£87 per night). Across England, on average, people could expect to earn £338 per week by renting out their garden room.

Across the border in Scotland, the Scottish Highlands topped the list with an average earning of £77 per night, followed by Argyll and Bute (£73 per night) and East Lothian (£69 per night). In Scotland, on average, people could expect to earn £349 per week.

In Wales, first place went to Gwynedd (£63 per night) then a tie between Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire at £60 per night. The countrywide average was £332 per week. Meanwhile in Northern Ireland, Down ranked first at £60 a night, or £420 a week. The NI average was £342 per week with Fermanagh (£54) and Armagh (£46) close behind Down.

Garden rooms can be let out for short-term stays, providing that you have the appropriate planning permission and that your build adheres to building regulations. “If you're planning on setting up your garden room for Airbnb rentals, there are a few steps you'll need to take to ensure that your space is ready for guests,” said Luke Dejahang, CEO and co-founder of Crown Pavilions (Sandringham model pictured top).

"Having ensured that you have the right permissions, you'll then want to make sure that the room is clean and well-maintained. You should also consider adding amenities such as a shower, mini-fridge or TV to make your guests' stay more comfortable. Additionally, be sure to provide detailed check-in instructions and make yourself available to answer any questions or address any concerns your guests may have. With a bit of preparation and attention to detail, your garden room can be a make a great short stay rental.” 

Find full results of the research at the Crown Pavilions' site here.  

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Shepherd's hut toilets

We've covered toilets in garden offices regularly on Shedworking as the rise in people wanting to include them as part of their build has become increasingly apparent over the last decade. What we haven't done is anything specifically on toilets in shepherds' huts, but Richard Lee at specialist hut supplier Plankbridge has now come up with his thoughts in an excellent short article on the subject. Here's a snippet:

It’s always worth considering the layout of your shepherd’s hut, and the toilet noises that may emanate from within. It's best not to position the toilet too close to the bed for example, our Signature huts have the toilet at the opposite end of the shepherd’s hut to the bed.

If the addition of such services to the shepherd’s hut isn’t possible you can fit a cassette type toilet, familiar in a caravan, motor home or boat. Some have a small tank of water to flush, or are connected to a water feed. Most simply have a hatch which drops into the chamber below. These have a cassette which needs emptying from time to time.

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Craning in a garden office

How do you get a garden office into a back garden when there are access issues? Here's an example of one solution from Sky Pods.

And into place...

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MSPs urge Deputy First Minister to reconsider Scottish Men's Sheds funding cut

40 cross-party MSPs have signed a letter written by Liam McArthur MSP (pictured and available to read rather more easily at his official site here) sent to the Deputy First Minister John Swinney asking him to rethink the decision not to award core and development funding to the Scottish Men’s Sheds Association in last month's draft budget.

"The Men’s Shed movement has been a tremendous success over recent years with the number of Sheds and ‘Shedders’ across the country continuing to grow," said Liam McArthur. "This has been mirrored in Orkney where the success of the first men's shed has now led to plans being taken forward in Sanday and most recently Westray. I know from the experience in Orkney how rewarding it has been in providing men a place to gather, work and relax. Indeed, as it has been demonstrated across the world, these facilities can make a tangible difference in efforts to tackle loneliness, social isolation and mental ill health.

"It is therefore difficult to understand why Scottish Ministers are planning to withdraw funding to the men's sheds movement altogether. Against a backdrop of soaring demand for mental health services, now more than ever we need to redouble our commitment to this invaluable public health movement.

"The Men's Shed movement has long enjoyed strong cross-party support and I'm delighted to bring this together once again in a united message of support for the SMSA. Hopefully this will prompt the Scottish Government to rethink its proposed cut and continue providing the modest level of funding that helps do so much good in Orkney and communities across Scotland."

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SMART designs and manufactures industry leading garden rooms from our very own Suffolk factory and installed all over mainland UK

Traditional office vs garden office

A good, and honest, summing up of the pros and cons of renting a traditional office as opposed to getting your own garden office on the Cabin Master blog. You can read the whole thing here but here are their key takeaways:

* Renting office space can be expensive, especially in big cities. 

* If you live in a big city, then commuting can be expensive and time-consuming. If you have a garden office, you can say goodbye to your daily commute. 

* Building a garden office can also be costly, depending on the size and design of the project. 

* There are no lengthy contracts to sign when you build your own office. 

* Building your own garden office increases your work/life balance as you can drop off/pick the kids up from school, walk the dog, and cut out commute time (not discounting the 2-minute walk to the bottom of your garden). 

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Malvern Garden Buildings offer a premium collection of garden buildings, displayed at 11 UK showsites.

 

UK Antarctic Heritage Trust to repaint iconic Damoy Hut

 

Historic Site and Monument No. 84 is better known as Damoy Hut, Antarctica’s only protected historic transit facility and skiway. As well as providing shelter and safe passage for scientists, more than 14,000 tourists stop by each season. Established in 1975, it's been looked after by the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust since 2009, with the rooms inside effectively frozen in time from its working days. The hut has a fascinating history which you can read more about at the UKAHT page here and do watch the short video at the bottom of this post. 

Here's what they say about the conservation work they are currently undertaking:

"This season, we plan to restore the hut back to its original orange. This decision follows paint sampling by our conservation team in 2018 and research by paint scientist and conservator, Phillipa McDonnell, in 2019. The restoration of the original colour scheme will improve the legibility of the hut’s historic function as a transit centre, and provide a key hook for the improved interpretation of the site as a whole as well as protecting it from the elements.

"The work will be undertaken by a small field team of one field guide and two conservation carpenters experienced in conserving historic buildings. They will spend up to four weeks on site from mid-January, working around challenging weather to strip back the existing paint by hand, prime, and repaint the building. As with any UKAHT conservation work, the team will work to strict methodologies to ensure no contamination of the surrounding environment."

 

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Barbara Hepworth studio to get overhaul

Interesting news from the Tate that it is holding a competition for people to come up with ideas about how to use Barbara Hepworth's second studio/workshop in St Ives. The building was formerly a dance hall and cinema but now has Grade II status - Hepworth started using it during the 1960s for her larger works but it hasn't really had anything done to it since her death in 1975, even though it is very central in the town. The idea is to transform it into a community facility as part of a £3.6 million project, hopefully all done and dusted in 2026.

Image ©Historic England/Samantha Barnes 

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Two Cabmen's Shelters get Grade II listed status

Two green cabmen’s shelters - in Kensington and Chelsea at Pont Street and Chelsea Embankment - have been listed at Grade II by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on the advice of Historic England. As we've reported before on Shedworking, cabment's shelters were rest stops for licensed cab drivers but sadly only 13 of the more than 60 that were built survive in London, relics of the capital's 19th century horse-drawn hansom cab trade. 

They offered drivers a spot where they could rest and have access to hot food without leaving their cab unattended. They were established as part of The Cabmen’s Shelter Fund (CSF) in 1875, a charity that still runs today.

The two in the most recent listing are those at Pont Street and Chelsea Embankment. Pont Street shelter was built in 1892 and is still open today for taxi drivers after some modernisation. The shelter at Chelsea Embankment (pictured above) is known as ‘The Pier’ as it is close to Cadogan Pier, and was built by the Cabmen’s Shelter Fund in 1912. It became redundant and fell into a poor state of repair until recently funded works last year by the Heritage of London Trust which hopes to open the newly restored shelter as a public micro café soon.

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Hartley Botanic reveals its build for RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023

Thoughts are already turning to this year's Chelsea Flower Show. Hartley Botanic are early out of the traps with its tradestand, The ‘Feel Good’ which they say will be both uplifting and mood-boosting. As we said last year, we're starting to look at glasshouses/greenhouses a bit more on Shedworking now that they're increasingly performing hybrid garden office duties.

So Hartley Botanic will be showing four of its handmade aluminium structures at this year’s show, on its usual position at stand number 143, on the corner of Main Avenue and Southern Road. It is continuing its partnership with last year’s awardwinning team, with Llevelo Garden Design providing the design and styling, and Stewart Landscape Construction in charge of building and planting. 

Tom Barry, CEO of Hartley Botanic said; “We expect the magic and exuberance of Chelsea to provide some welcome escapism for visitors for what continues to be a very challenging time for most, and our aim is to heighten this effect on our tradestand. We want our tradestand to make visitors ‘feel good’ and to provide a moment of happiness and light relief. Many people will be drawing on the invigorating and joyful properties of their gardens and our tradestand’s design and theme will allow them to do the same.”

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Allotment sheds in new issue of the Idler magazine

The latest issue of the super soaraway Idler magazine is out now in shops and other places which sell good things (as well as on subscription of course). In my regular column on sheds and garden offices, I point the focus on that most traditional member of the family, the allotment shed. Here's the opening snippet:

Small sanctuaries of shelter surrounded by the splendours of the soil. Human-sized refuges amid a patchwork of flora. Homemade havens in glorious greenery. As Frank Sinatra so very nearly put it, sheds and allotments go together like a horse and carriage.

Postmen's Huts

Today's guest post is by Alan Cleaver. Our paths crossed professionally before he retired from journalism and Alan now writes books on British footpaths and the stories behind them. He is the author of Corpse Roads of Cumbria (he lives in Whitehaven) and his next book will be Postman's Paths.

Shedworking is nothing new. Back in the 19th Century (and until the mid-20th Century) rural postmen had their own sheds, or Postmen's Huts as they are generally known. These basic structures made from corrugated iron and with a pot-bellied stove inside were once common place throughout Britain but today only a few survive. 

Rural postmen often had a tough walk of up to 20 miles each day, six days a week and the hut was a halfway stopping place where they could have their lunch and rest. But many also used it as an 'office' for their second job. The poor pay of the postman or postwoman meant many had to subsidise their income by offering services as a cobbler. Boots and shoes could be left at the shed for the postman to repair.  

Postmen had to fight hard to be given even this basic facility. The post office came up with the design but it was frequently the postman who had to pay for it to be built - and he or she also had to pay for fuel for the fire. Other rural postmen were offered food and a bed at a farmhouse - again paid for by the kindness of the farmer rather than by the post office.

These huts could at one time be seen in most villages but today only a handful survive. Most have simply worn away to nothing or have been recycled as garden sheds or even dog kennels. Only at Nesfield in Yorkshire has the community remembered the valuable role of the rural postman and his meagre shelter, converting it into a village seat. A plaque bears the legend:

 "Postman's Shelter: Built in 1926 to replace an earlier one for his use when delivering mail on foot to Nesfield and Langar twice daily. Restored in 2008 by Nesfield residents for your enjoyment." 

Let's hope the remaining postmen's huts are preserved in a similar way to record this valuable piece of social history.

Photo by Michael Dibb courtesy Geograph

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Malvern Garden Buildings offer a premium collection of garden buildings, displayed at 11 UK showsites.

 

Garden office (also good for movie nights and gaming)

 

Here's the London garden office belonging to food photographer and image retoucher Hema and her husband Ajai who met on Channel4's First Dates six years ago and are now married. It's a Malvern Garden Buildings build, its Pent model, which they call 'Rodney' after one of Ajai's favourite pubs in Nottingham. Here's what Hema says about their shedworking journey:

“After moving into our first home 18 months ago, we’d planned for various renovations to start this year. As both of us work from home part of the week, we wanted to create extra space so our working environments didn’t encroach into the bedrooms or living areas. Ajai had been working from what we’d planned to be our dining and entertaining area, so we wanted a separate space for him to be able to work from home comfortably without interruptions, but also a space where he could relax and use as a gaming room.

"Prior to Ajai’s WFH office furniture going into the building, we managed to fit a few ‘dinner date nights’ in. Whilst the space was emptier, I was able to get creative with the styling – plenty of floor cushions, throws and candles can really transform a space! Since then, the electrics have been installed and he has fully setup his WFH office in the studio. We’ve also added a few cosy furnishings for movie and games nights – rug, sofa, side table and lamp.”

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Susan Green: shedworker

Artistan bookbinder and bespoke book maker Susan Green runs Bound by Hand and works from her bespoke bookbinding studio at her home in Wimborne, Dorset. You can read more about her beautifully calming setup on her blog (pictured above) but here's a snippet about how she started as a shedworker:

Like many people, in 2020 I made a hasty shift to working from home when covid hit. Luckily we had not long before moved to a house with a garden room, which we affectionally call 'the cabin'. It had electricity and running water and was a pretty decent size, so I was able to set up a makeshift bookbinding studio. I had a folding wooden garden chair at my desk (not recommended), essential materials in boxes and two trestle tables for workbenches that family members no longer needed.

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