Friday Finery: Hermitage Hut

This week's Finery is a celebration of Plankbridge's 25 years, the fresh off the production line Hermitage Hut. It's off-grid, with solar panels and a living sedum roof, and clad in waney-edge Western red ceda. Features include a fold-down oak desk, wood-burning stove, a 4ft 6in handmade box bed, and a feature wall lined with Organoid Stone Pine Forest flax fleece that apparentl releases the scent of herbs, moss and pine and ferns. The Hermitage Hut measures 14ft x 7ft 5in.

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Hawker's Hut (video)

We've covered the Rev. Robert Stephen Hawker's hut before on Shedworking, the spot where Victorian priest and poet spent much of his time in Cornwall, writing many of his poems in the hut which he built in 1844 on the clifftop overlooking the Atlantic Ocean using driftwood. Here's a nice little video from the National Trust which shows us briefly around inside.

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Shed of the Year 2025 shortlist announced

The shortlist for Cuprinol Shed of the Year 2025 has been announced which means it's time for the public voting to begin.

This year’s competition attracted 84 entries, and now 22 sheds have made it through to compete for the coveted title of Cuprinol Shed of the Year and the prize of £1,000 in cash, a one-of-a-kind nature’s getaway experience, and £250 worth of Cuprinol products.

“19 years in, and I’m still constantly amazed at how much passion and imagination people pour into their sheds," said Andrew Wilcox, founder and Head Judge of the competition. "Behind many of them lie powerful stories, sheds that connect generations, bring families together, and serve as hubs for communities. These aren’t just garden buildings; they’re meaningful spaces full of history, purpose, and connection."

Voting is up and running now at readersheds.co.uk and ends on July 31. The nominated builds are:

    •    The Beach Hut At The Bottom Of The Garden

    •    Nanna’s Cabin & Bampa’s Shed

    •    Redondo Trading

    •    Cast Away

    •    Cosy Cabin 

    •    Bird Song

    •    Colourful Cuban Cabin

    •    The potting shed

    •    The Plotting Shed

    •    The Gnome's Rest 

    •    The Bombardier Arms

    •    Cushty’s

    •    The Ticking Tappet

    •    The Melon Shed 

    •    The Homeshed

    •    Grottoloo

    •    Far Meadow Cabin

    •    The Garden Room

    •    The Old Stable Potting Shed

    •    The Tiny Workshop

    •    SHEDstudios

    •    Pottery Shed



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Swedenborg’s Lusthus

One for the shed bookshelf at home, Swedenborg's Lusthus published by London-based Swedenborg House is a fascinating selection of essays about the 18th century Stockholm back garden summerhouse (the 'lust' bit is not what you might think) in which Swedish philosopher and mystic Emanuel Swedenborg wrote his most famous works. It features more than 100 colour illustrations pieces from the likes of Iain Sinclair on the links between writing and place, plus a foreword by shedworker Deborah Levy who writes: “To write in a summerhouse is to serenely contemplate one’s own fear of losing the life we have planned and to be humbled by the spider architects spinning the perfect composition of their silken webs in every corner.”

Happily, you can still visit the summerhouse today. Lots more information about it and links to even more at New Church History.

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Friday Finery: Ornate Garden Pods

It's RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival again this weekend and if you pop along you'll be able to have an up close and personal gander at the marvellous range of Ornate Garden pods - and their new arch - pictured above. 

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

 

Garden offices with houses for sale

A nice little photo-based roundup at The Guardian of homes for sale around the country. Pictured above, on with Savills for £600,000 is the above in Ketton, near Stamford, which comes with a Grade II listed house from the mid 19th entury.

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Thursday posts are sponsored by Cabin Master, bespoke garden rooms and offices designed, manufactured and installed throughout the UK

The Brass Shed

The Brass Shed is the tremendous interactive site of brass musician, composer, and arrange Sam Ewens which features ambient brass covers, videos, photos and other examples of his work including his instrumental solo project Night Auras. Well worth a nose around.

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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

Wittgenstein's hut

We have touched briefly before on the remote Norwegian log cabin above Lake Eidsvatnet Lake in Sogn in which philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein did some of his finest thinking overlooking the fjord but realised we are guilty on not keeping readers properly up to date on its existence.

Long story short, for many years it was left to degenerate and in a state of some disrepair, but in 2019 it was finally rebuilt/restored after being carefully taken down, windows, roof tiles, timber, and all (and for a while rebuilt on an entirely different site in the nearby village).

His philosopher friend Bertrand Russell commented on Wittgenstein's extended time in the cabin: “I said it would be dark, and he said he hated daylight. I said it would be lonely, and he said he prostituted his mind talking to intelligent people. I said he was mad, and he said God preserve him from sanity. (God certainly will.)” Wittgenstein wrote back: “I am sitting here in a little place inside a beautiful fjord and thinking about the beastly theory of types"

Wittgenstein also wrote in a letter to the English philosopher G E Moore in October 1936:  “I can’t imagine that I could have worked anywhere as I do here. It’s the quiet and, perhaps, the wonderful landscapes; I mean, its quiet seriousness.”

The hut is open to visitors though it's literally a bit of a trek to get to it.

CC image courtesy Olaf Meister

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Friday Finery: Ben Fogle's writer's hut

This week's entry is an interior, broadcaster, writer, and keen shed enthusiast Ben Fogle inside his hut as posted on his instagram page.

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A post shared by Ben Fogle (@benfogle)

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

Study indicates that working from home can significantly boost productivity

A new study by researchers at King’s College London suggests that remote work has the potential to significantly boost productivity and bring underrepresented groups into the workforce. It found productivity increased by 10.5 per cent after the switch to remote work. 

Co-authored by Dr Cevat Giray Aksoy of King’s College London, the study examined the long-term impacts of flexible work arrangements through a case study of Tempo BPO, a multinational business process outsourcing firm with 3,500 employees.

The firm transitioned to fully remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic and has maintained this model since. The study found that, following this transition, productivity increased by 10.5 per cent, driven largely by shorter call durations as employees benefited from quieter home environments. Service quality also improved with shorter calls and hold times.

Remote work also transformed the firm’s workforce composition. The share of female employees rose from 50 per cent to 76 per cent, with significant increases in married women and workers from rural areas, groups traditionally underrepresented in Turkey’s labour market where Tempo is based. Additionally, the firm attracted more educated and experienced employees without raising wages, as remote work expanded its talent pool.

The study also showed that employees who began with in-person training before switching to remote work showed higher long-term productivity and lower attrition rates than those who started remotely. The finding suggests that initial face-to-face induction processes foster stronger workplace connections and better performance.

“This case is a striking example of how remote work can be a win-win for firms and workers, even in low-wage service-sector settings,” said Dr Aksoy, lead economist at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development who co-authored the study with Nicholas Bloom and Steven J. Davis (Stanford University), Victoria Marino (European Bank for Reconstruction and Development), and Cem Ozguzel (Paris School of Economics). “It broadened the hiring pool, improved productivity, and did so without raising costs.”

Image courtesy Warwick Buildings

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Thursday posts are sponsored by Cabin Master, bespoke garden rooms and offices designed, manufactured and installed throughout the UK

 

Recent developments at SMART Modular Buildings

Regular readers will be familiar with Suffolk-based SMART Modular Buildings (previously SMART Garden Offices, founded 2001) which designs and supplies modular garden rooms, studios, offices, and residential-grade living spaces.

SMART has recently overhauled its offering:

* composite cladding is now available on popular models such its The Belle and The Evolve

* flush finishes have been introduced for a modern architectural look

* there is improved thermal insulation across ranges, lowering U-values and improving year-round efficiency

* the range now includes larger and more flexible size formats, removing the previous limitations of fixed sizes

“We’ve removed the old constraints of our in-house factory model," explained CEO Matt Moss, "and reimagined our approach to bring the very best of British modular innovation directly to our customers.”

Coming soon is a new online configurator tool which will allow customers to custom-build their building in real time, and adjust sizes, finishes, and upgrade packages so that overall it will offer instant visual feedback and pricing.

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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

Indoor sheds: Kabin 1

We've not looked at indoor sheds for a while so here's something to consider if you're looking for that garden office working atmosphere but not an actual garden office. It's called Kabin 1 and comes from Kabin Space. There are three models, one pretty titchy one, one designed for two, and this one pictured above, all aimed at "reducing surrounding noises and visual distractions...An empowering environment for your most meaningful work".

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Friday Finery: Bothy garden room

Oliver's Huts has a lovely range of shepherds' huts, bothies, and garden rooms. Here's a rather nice example, complete with electrics and fully insulated with Plastisol coated metal cladding.

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

 

Multi-purpose garden room

A complex recent 6.5m x 5.17m build here by Garden Spaces for a client who wanted a building that the whole family could use to enjoy quality time together, including a space for a sauna (which another company fitted), a bike and running machine, and with a 1.5m x 3m storage area. It also had to fit in with the garden renovation project which was going to start after Garden Spaces had finished erecting the building - as part of the garden project, the client planned to install a hot tub, so the electrical plan needed to take that into account too. 

Other features included a screw pile foundation system, full length window, Red Cedar cladding, and because of the long roof span, additional roof engineering and extra beams. 

"Our ability and flexibility to deal with the complex nature of the client requests, our close relationship with our suppliers and engineers, and our ability and flexibility to connect with other trade companies mean that we are especially fond of this project," said a spokesperson for Garden Spaces.

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Thursday posts are sponsored by Cabin Master, bespoke garden rooms and offices designed, manufactured and installed throughout the UK

Rotating summerhouse

Regular readers know that the Shedworking editorial team loves nothing more than a revolving shedlike construction (though underground sheds run a close second). Here's a fabulous example from Scotts of Thrapston of its 2.4m Burghley model in a light grey Wood Ash finish with deocrative leaded windows that was built for Vicky Pugh in Devon who was after a summerhouse remembered from her youth. Other features include a copper finial, and a composite glass fibre roof which looks like slate, as wll as robust handles to rotate the base on nylon wheels which is all hidden by a timber skit

"We have found ourselves enjoying the summerhouse all year round even when the weather is not so good," she says. "It was lovely to sit out there when it snowed in December, and I like to hear the sound of rain on the roof too. My son says that he would like to sleep in it overnight."

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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

 

Emma Jones leaves Enterprise Nation to become the government's new Small Business Commissioner

Shedworking and Enterprise Nation were, coincidentally, established at almost the same time 20 years ago so it's slightly bittersweet news to hear that EN's founder Emma Jones CBE has just been unveiled as the government's new small business commissioner, in a role especially focused on tackling late payments and unfair payment practices.

Emma, and San Sharma who was also hugely instrumental in its early success, were valuable and vocal supporters of Shedworking, especially in EN's earliest iteration when it was aimed very much at businesses operating from home rather than SMEs in general - Emma included an interview with me in one of her first books and years ago I wrote intermittently for the site which has gone on to hugely impressive heights.

Announcing the appointment, Small business minister Gareth Thomas said: “I'm delighted that in Emma Jones's appointment, we have someone who has long championed small firms and entrepreneurs right across the UK. I am confident that her passion and expertise will ensure small firms have a powerful advocate fighting in their corner." Aaron Asadi, Enterprise Nation's new chief executive, said: "Emma is a powerful entrepreneurial force in the UK. She is a campaigner and a connector who has helped reshape the landscape for startups and small firms, giving them tools, visibility, and a compelling voice."

I'd certainly echo all of the above, adding that she's a smashing person as well as the most dynamic person I've worked with, and wish her all success in her new position.

Shaw's hut and corner on Father's Day

The Shedworking team headed to Shaw's Corner yesterday for its annual pilgrimage to the great man's writing hut. Here are some shots of the pleasant sunny experience, with the hut at the bottom, and the house and grounds below.

Friday Finery: Edgerton Road bus shelter

The fabulous timber-framed Edgerton Road bus shelter in Huddersfield, formerly a tram shelter. Grade II listed, it was built in 1896 then completely refurbished and turned into a bus shelter in 2015 in time for the Tour de France that year. Features include a pyramidal slate roof, and a nice bench to sit on.

Photo by Tim Green

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

 

Sage green garden office

Here's a 12 sqm garden office tailormade by Hawksbeck Garden Rooms for clients in Kensington, London, who wanted something fully functional but that also blended into the relaxing garden atmosphere. Features including a marvellous oak desk, plenty of storage, two single entry doors. On the outside, the lap weatherboard cladding is in pale sage green Cedral Lap Weatherboard.

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Thursday posts are sponsored by Cabin Master, bespoke garden rooms and offices designed, manufactured and installed throughout the UK

Hybrid work offers better work-life balance than fully remote, says study

A new study of 6,000 people by automatic time tracking specialists DeskTime suggests that working from home and garden offices is a key element in balancing life and work.

Its figures reveal that the most productive employees tend to work on a 75/33 work-to-rest cycle (work for 75 minutes, then rest for 33 minutes) compared to during the pandemic remote working years when the ratio was more like 112/26 which DeskTime argue means that in-office or hybrid work encourages a healthier work-life balance than fully remote work.

CEO, Artis Rozentals, said: “When DeskTime conducted the work/break ratio study back in 2021 we saw that working from home had immensely impacted workers’ ability to draw a line between work and life. Now, our latest productivity research shows we’re returning to more balanced working habits. Knowing the prevalence of hybrid work, the new 75/33 ratio may be linked to working in-office again.

“Working from the office, we’re naturally prone to taking more breaks – getting coffee, talking to co-workers, etc. While these interruptions may seem unproductive at first, they’re vital for mental rejuvenation and contribute to employee wellbeing. Plus, it provides us with the necessary social dynamic of a workplace. Ultimately, my experience as a CEO has shown that the hybrid model is the goldilocks choice, as it best leverages both this in-office social dynamic and the deep focus afforded by remote work." 

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Cressida Cowell's June path to the writing shed

It's been some time since we caught up on Cressida Cowell's regular 'path to the writing shed' updates so here's the author of How To Train Your Dragon's evocative entry for June.

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A post shared by Cressida Cowell (@cressidacowellauthor)

Friday Finery: The Hideaway

As we've often said before on Shedworking, sheds are for children too, and here's a fine example, The Hideaway from Scotts of Thrapston. Features include a cedar shingle roof with a copper finial, double doors, and a rear leaded 'peep window', and built with sustainable FSC-certified hardwood.

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