Wednesday, January 31, 2024

Are sauna pods the new shedlike trend for 2024?

You'd be a little hard-pressed to use one as a garden office, but according to the Evening Standard, sauna pods could be this year's back garden building trend. Pictured above is the one in an Islington flat on the market for £595,000 with Savills which has patio heaters and a glass window at the back. If you want to try before you buy, The Little Heat Retreat in Norwich is worth a look, an eco-friendly, private sauna powered by solar energy, which can fit groups of up to six. 

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Wednesday posts are sponsored by Booths Garden Studios, the UK's No.1 supplier of zero maintenance and portable garden studios

 

Tuesday, January 30, 2024

Latest issue of the Scottish Shedder out now

The latest edition of the always very readable The Scottish Shedder is out now from the Scottish Men's Sheds Association (click the link for ways to read it). Features include:

* a focus on a group of Shedders from Govan who have produced their take on the 2003 movie Calendar Girls, a 2024 Men's Sheds charity calendar which features some nakedish shedders (see above)

* an interview with veteran Royal Engineer Commando Ray Elliott, one of only three Shedders at Shotts Men’s Shed who have turned an old 18x18ft hut into a Men’s Shed

* storm updates on how recent storms have hit Men's Sheds across the country

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

 


 

Monday, January 29, 2024

Garden office powered by solar

Here's a fine example of what you can do with the roof on your garden office - use it to power your shedworking life. This work by DTW Improvements also comes with bifolding windows.

Friday, January 26, 2024

Fab Tree Hab receives major National Endowment for the Arts award

 
 
One of our very earliest posts back in 2007 was about the marvellous Fab Tree Hab from Terreform ONE - essentially offering the potential to grow your own garden office (or as they put it "creating multispecies dwellings using 100% living grafted woody plants, aiming to redefine green architecture) - and it was also featured in the groundbreaking Shedworking: The Alternative Workplace Revolution book. It's pictured above and lots more intriguing images at the Terreform site here.

So we were delighted to hear that the Fab Tree Hab has just been honored with a Grants for Arts Projects award from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), recognizing its revolutionary approach to architectural design.

For those of you interested in moe information, do click the top link, but in the meantime here are more details:

The Fab Tree Hab is a terrestrial reef and grafted living tree structure that serves as a habitat shared by both humans and animals. It is sublimely located on ten acres of land in New Windsor, New York [and] combines indigenous tree-grafting techniques and computationally designed wooden arch scaffolds. The primary objective is to prototype a dwelling seamlessly integrated into its natural landscape while replacing harmful industrial materials with decarbonizing, bio-based alternatives.

Spanning approximately 1,000 square feet, the structure ingeniously incorporates locally sourced 30-foot-tall tree clusters, meticulously shaped on-site using large cross-laminated timber (CLT) arch scaffolds. Harvested from a nearby biomass farm, these willow trees form the backbone of the construction. The infill wall modules, treated with a combination of beeswax and pine rosin, serve as the canvas for a unique blend of handmade crocheted jute fibers and 3D-printed bioplastic volumes, fostering multispecies habitats. The end result is a vibrant living habitat that significantly enhances biodiversity, creating micro-habitats and intricate food webs for both flora and fauna.

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


 
 

Thursday, January 25, 2024

Sheds in the snow

We were delighted to here from long-time reader of Shedworking, David Williams from Ramsbottom in Lancashire, who very kindly says the site was an inspiration for him during the design and build of his own garden office, constructed using left over stone, doors, and windows from ebay. "I know you like a snowy shed scene," he writes too, "so thought I would send it you." And here it is atmospherically above, looking fine.

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

 

Wednesday, January 24, 2024

New WooWooLoo GT Compact toilet cabin

If you're looking to add a lavatory to your garden office without an actual extension, you could always consider an additional shed-like structure. Friends of Shedworking Woowoo Waterless Toilets have a new offering for 2024, the WooWooLoo GT Compact which they describe as a "high-capacity, low-maintenance, toilet cabin... cute, durable, relocatable and entirely off-grid". It's available as a flat-pack or semi-assembled, depending on your requirements and naturally comes with a high-quality compact wooden cabin and a WooWoo GT 120 composting toilet starter kit. Click the link above for more information.

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Wednesday posts are sponsored by Booths Garden Studios, the UK's No.1 supplier of zero maintenance and portable garden studios

 


Tuesday, January 23, 2024

Garden offices and home insurance

A useful brief look at garden offices and home insurance at Anthony Jones Insurance Brokers looks at various insurance considerations for shedworkers. Here's a snippet:

If you’re using your garden room for strictly commercial purposes, or even as a home office, then you may need to get some kind of dedicated commercial insurance policy that’s separate to your home insurance policy. Even if your current home insurance policy does include cover for outbuildings, it may be capped at a certain amount. This specialist insurance will provide additional cover for any expensive electronic equipment, or other materials, that you store in your garden office.

Also, if you ever invite clients to your garden office, your home insurance policy won’t cover any injuries they may sustain while they’re on your property. But a dedicated commercial insurance policy for your garden office may also feature some public liability cover, meaning you could entertain clients on your property with total peace of mind.

The whole post is well worth a browse via the top link.

Image courtesy Modern Garden Rooms

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

 

Monday, January 22, 2024

Garden office nesting boxes

An excellent idea here from multiple award-winning garden designer Martyn Wilson who runs Wilson Associates Garden Design.

Friday, January 19, 2024

Chelsea Flower Show sheds preview: The National Garden Scheme Garden


We're starting early with our annual previews of garden offices, sheds, and other garden buildings at the Chelsea Flower Show. Here to kick us off is The National Garden Scheme Garden designed by
Tom Stuart-Smith and sponsored by
 Project Giving Back and 
The National Garden Scheme
.

There's a woodlandy theme but most interestingly the RHS organisers say that the garden centres on a timber hut made from UK-grown and reclaimed timber, and designed as a carbon sink. Rainwater collected from the cleft oak hut will drain into the plant beds. The hut is designed as a place where visitors and garden volunteers can congregate for tea and cake, as they do under the excellent National Garden Scheme garden open days. A portion of the hut's timber comes from Hertfordshire where Tom Stuart-Smith and his family open their gardens for the National Garden Scheme.



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


 

Thursday, January 18, 2024

Hot drinks in cold conditions

Many shedworkers are also keen coffee drinkers. I've not tried them myself, but I was intrigued to recently come across the 'ember' cup. The USP is that it is a 'smart' mug which allows you to set the temperature - 50°C - 62.5 °C - at which you like to drink your [insert type of coffee here], ensuring thanks to a built-in battery that it stays that way throughout your drinking experience (up to an hour an a half or all the ding dang day if you use the charging coaster which comes as standard) rather than getting a bit old and yucky. I have tried insulated mugs before and quite enjoyed them. One slight issue is that you don't get much/any change out of £100 when you buy one. But for the right person it could be a tremendous investment and stop you reheating old dregs in the microwave.

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

Wednesday, January 17, 2024

Installing in the snow

Installing garden buildings is never easy, even at at the best of times - tricky trees, complex craning, and just straightforward rain can all be issues. And then there's snow. Here's what the installation team at Outside In Garden Rooms is up against today in Skye.

 

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Wednesday posts are sponsored by Booths Garden Studios, the UK's No.1 supplier of zero maintenance and portable garden studios

Tuesday, January 16, 2024

Nearly 75% of employees believe they work more productively from home

Almost three quarters of employees claim that when they work from home they are more productive, according to a new poll by People Management, the official magazine of The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. Nearly 1,600 employees were polled 

It comes hard on the heels of a similar-sized poll by Scalable Software which showed a third of people dislike being forced to go into the office for a certain number of days, and a similar number are unhappy to be told which days these should be.

Earlier this week UK fashion house Vivienne Westwood, which employs around 250 workers, announced that it has adopted a hybrid work system, most employees working from home three days a week, partly to improve the sustainability of its operation.

Image courtesy Garden Affairs

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


Friday, January 12, 2024

Arctic Cabins go on the road for 2024

Arctic Cabins are one of the most regular exhibitors at shows in the UK throughout the year which makes them easy to catch up with if you can't make it to their show sites in Nottingham and Studley. Coming up over the next couple of months they will be displaying their wares and welcoming chats from the public at:

- The Homebuilding and Renovating Show (January 13 - 14) at Farnborough Exhibition & Conference Centre

- The Build It Live - South East Show (February 24 - 25) at Kent Event Centre

- The Homebuilding and Renovating Show (March 21 - 24) at the NEC Birmingham

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

Thursday, January 11, 2024

New garden office could add nearly £10,000 to your property's value

Although the main reason to get a garden office is usually not as an investment, various figures over the years indicate that a good quality one which is well maintained can definitely be an asset. This is confirmed by latest figures from online estate agent Get Agent who have crunched the numbers to see what are the best ways to improve your property to get it ready for sale in 2024.

They estimate that a deep clean can add just over £7,000, repainting and redecorating nearly £6,000, and a garden shed £4,600. But their top tip is a home office/garden office at £9,584, ideally not turning a spare bedroom into a home office as this removes valuable bedroom space. They suggest that something well-furnished with electricity and warmth should cost around £12,000. 

"It’s a hefty investment," said a spokespeson, "but will confidently add an expected 7.5% to your home’s market value. At the current average UK house price of £287,782, this is a value add of £21,584, leaving you with a renovation profit of £9,584."

Co-founder and CEO of GetAgent.co.uk, Colby Short, said: “While the rate of house price growth may have slowed in 2023, the market has stood firm and so sellers should remain confident that their home is likely to achieve a strong price in the current market. We’re now starting to see buyers return to the fold, with mortgage approvals having climbed over the last two consecutive months and this will also help increase the price a seller can achieve. However, there are a number of things you can undertake to help further increase the asking price potential of your property." 

Image courtesy Arctic Cabins

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

 


Wednesday, January 10, 2024

New options and predictions from Cosy Garden Rooms

Nottingham-based Cosy Garden Rooms (example pictured above) are offering new garden room options and upgrades for 2024, including 10% off all buildings in their January Sale with a confirmed installation date before April 30, 2024.

New design options for this year include:

·         Sedum green foofs
·         Solar panels
·         Windows with integral blinds
·         Halo lighting
·         Slatted interior walls
·         Wall mounted radiator
·         Track lighting
·         Aluminium windows and doors
·         Bespoke wall coverings and wall paper graphics
·         Underfloor heating and air conditioning

In an interview with East Midlands Business Link, Mark Jennison, Director of Marketing and Business Development, looks into his crystal ball and suggests raw material prices may start to drop, interest in finance options when buying a garden office will grow, and schools and universities will become more important customers in the market. Click the link for the full interview.

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Wednesday posts are sponsored by Booths Garden Studios, the UK's No.1 supplier of zero maintenance and portable garden studios

Tuesday, January 09, 2024

Smart Garden Offices rebrands as Smart Modular Buildings

Smart, one of the longest established garden office suppliers in the UK, has given itself a shiny new rebrand for 2024. A spokesperson for what is now Smart Modular Buildings described it as a "fresh new look for a new year, a look that represents our evolving brand. We still have our garden room core, providing high-quality garden rooms for a variety of uses. Our new re-brand is following our growth as a business, merging education, commercial spaces and SMART Living Spaces into one.
 
"Our new re-brand reflects what we offer, not just garden rooms. From buildings for educational facilities to spaces for more habitation, SMART Modular Buildings can provide it all. We have a lot of exciting innovations in store for this year, full of fresh designs and ideas for the garden room market, making the opportunity for extra space easy. Our core values as a company remain the same, with our team full of talented individuals ready to help you create dream bespoke garden rooms."

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

Monday, January 08, 2024

Solar-powered garden office

How would you like doing some shedworking from a garden studio like this one? It's the suggestion of Chinese new energy power generation specialists Busbyr New Energy who say chirpily: "Dreaming of a new home office or garden studio? Tap into the sun's energy to power all your home additions. Make your space shine with sustainable and cost-effective solar solutions!"

Friday, January 05, 2024

Garden office case studies

There's an excellent roundup of interesting recent builds and their owners' garden office-based businesses on the Green Retreats website. Pictured above is the garden workshop belonging to eco-friendly silversmith and sculptor Claire Zwozny-Bestwick who says: “The main benefit of working from home, or in my case ‘My CRZyBest Shedquarters’ is that I can do my creative work whenever I want. It cuts out travelling time, has lots of flexibility, lower overheads and I have more control over my opening times." Other short case studies include a hair salon, therapeutic coach, sustainable futures artist, and a natural & sustainable business owner. Well worth a look.

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



Thursday, January 04, 2024

New Year garden office special offers

This is a good time to buy a garden office as several suppliers have special New Year/January offers running. Among them is Malvern Garden Buildings (example pictured above) which is offering various savings across their range of buildings, including up to 30% off on ex-display models, and 10% off all new Malvern Collection garden buildings.

Booths Garden Studios also has various offers. If you have a Garden Studio installed in January, Booths will include free mains connection which normally costs £960. This includes all the armoured mains cable (up to 40m without trenching) the connections and the important Part P Certificate. Similarly, for installations this month, they will include free delivery to anywhere in England. Additionally, subscribers to their newsletter recieve a £250 discount. 

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

 

Wednesday, January 03, 2024

Saying goodbye to your garden office

 
 
Friend of Shedworking Chris Routledge has recently said farewell to the garden office he built. Here in a guest post, he discusses his feelings about saying goodbye after many years of faithful service.
 
In 2003 I decided to build a writing hut at the bottom of our garden in Lancashire. Even though it took me all Summer and most of the Autumn, resulted in a lot of hammer-thumb impacts, and made my hands go up a glove size, it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The motivation was to provide a place away from the house to work, and to keep work-related things there, but the actual act of building it was life changing in a quiet sort of way. As I wrote at the time: "That first week, listening to the rain pounding on the roof I made and not coming in, I felt connected with something very old and very human."

For a while the writing hut was shedfamous, featuring in the 2010 book Shedworking, and being visited by curious local dignitaries, such as the vicar and the postman, who, despite the extra legwork involved in traipsing down the garden, seemed to accept it as a new address on his round. It was always amusing, on a work call, when one of our chickens began to celebrate laying an egg, and the question would come, inevitably: "Where are you?" It was a question I never quite felt I could answer convincingly: a shed, a writing hut, an office, an escape, a farmyard, a cabin in a meadow; for one children's party it was a pirate ship, the Blue Pig. Despite my over-specified collar ties and roof timbers the hut was an imaginative space that somehow remained unfixed.

Over the years my wife and I wrote many thousands of words there and several books. For one memorable project I used it to interview distinguished people around the world. Near midnight on one dark Lancashire night I had to explain to a prominent Hollywood agent that the background noise to our phone call was the sound of wind in the trees and heavy rain beating on the roof. More recently, during the Covid-19 pandemic, it became a teaching venue, where lectures on English Language were delivered to students at the University of Liverpool.

But twenty years after I laid down my hammer and saw, my writing hut is sold; we threw in a free house to sweeten the deal. In all the days and weeks of clearing out a large family house in order to downsize, clearing out the shed was the hardest part for me and took far longer than it should have. The house was where we raised a child, had friends round for dinner and parties, Christmases and birthdays, and spent long lockdown days together. 
 
But the shed was something different; an achievement even to build it, but somehow also a laying down of deeper roots. What went on there was not just two decades of work, but a whole other phase of life, of youth thickening into middle age. They have been two decades of dreams and disappointments, of struggle and breakthrough; two decades that seemed to stretch ahead in the building and now, in the leaving, seem short.

What will I miss about the shed I built all those years ago now it is no longer mine? I'll miss it as a mental reference point in the geography of our lives; I'll miss the writing and reading that went on there, the cocktails on the stoop on a warm evening, and watching the seasons pass in our unruly garden. But most of all I'll miss leaving the house with my shed key and my laptop at the beginning of a promising day.
 

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Wednesday posts are sponsored by Booths Garden Studios, the UK's No.1 supplier of zero maintenance and portable garden studios