Happy Christmas from Shedworking

“Yo ho, my boys,” said Fezziwig. “No more work to-night. Christmas Eve, Dick. Christmas, Ebenezer. Let’s have the shutters up,” cried old Fezziwig, with a sharp clap of his hands, “before a man can say Jack Robinson.”

Shutters open again on January 1.

Haynes Shed Manual

We've saved the best until last for the final post of 2017 and so I'm very excited to let you know that plans are well underway for a Haynes Shed Manual which I shall be co-authoring with the hugely knowledgeable John Coupe who runs the hugely popular Secrets of Shed Building site. Haynes came to us in the autumn to discuss the possibilities and now John and I will be working on the manual throughout 2018. We're both delighted to be collaborating with such an iconic publisher which has an impressive worldwide reputation for its manuals covering everything from cars and coding to the Millennium Falcon.

And we will also be coming to you as readers of our two sites for help and advice about what builds YOU would like to see featured - we'll be doing several to cover various shed-based needs - and what kind of information would be particularly useful so please do look out for regular shout-outs here on Shedworking and on Secrets of Shed Building. We'll also be updating our progress during the year so you can get an idea of how it's all moving on. I hope you will be pleased with the shed manual which should be published in time for spring 2019.

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Saturday posts are sponsored by Eurodita, the leader in serving smart dealers

A 5 minute guide to buying a garden office

The fine folk at Cabinmaster have put together their 5 Minute Garden Office Guide. If you're thinking of buying a garden office in 2018, this is a an excellent (brief but useful) place to start. Here's a snippet on lighting:

Talking of windows, floor to ceiling glass panels don’t only look contemporary but will also bring in plenty of health-giving natural light. Inside the office you have a choice of lighting. Many garden office owners choice LED lighting set into the ceiling. Dimmable lights and different shades are available. You can personalise your office and make it cosier with the addition of standing and table lamps.

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

The Little Book of Building Fires - book review

Regular readers of this site will be familiar with friend of Shedworking Sally Coulthard and her previous books including Studio, Shed Chic, and Shed Decor. Her latest book, ideal for a last minute gift for Christmas (and just the right size for a Santa sack), is The Little Book of Building Fires ('How to chop, scrunch, stack & light a fire'). Though not specifically aimed at the garden office market, many shedworkers will certainly enjoy it and there are useful chapters on wood burners, choosing the best wood to burn, and making a fragrant fire (the Shedworking staff also enjoyed the chapter on scrunching newspapers). Written as always in her very readable style, the illustrations (in the style of the one pictured below) are especially charming. If you only buy two books this Christmas, as well as this one we'd strongly recommend Sally's.

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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.

Converted tram shed reconverted into tram

This almost 100-year-old, 32- passenger tram is running once again at the Black Country Living Museum, Dudley, after a fundraising campaign, £75,000 and five year refurbishment project, and life as a shed and garden room. It was built in Tividale in 1920 and is one of only half a dozen of its kind that survives. After many years of good service, it disappeared and was rediscovered in a back garden in Dudley.
  

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Wednesday posts are sponsored by The Stable Company®, the UK's premier supplier of garden offices and garden rooms. Click here

Shepherd's hut garden office

An interesting shepherd's hut garden office build underway at Plankbridge with an extended covered deck for open air shedworking. More pictures coming soon as the build progresses...

Narrow #Englishoak door leading out onto the deck of the 20’ #hut pic.twitter.com/QhSp3D2k7a

— Plankbridge (@Plankbridge) December 19, 2017

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

Garden office in the woods

Here's a lovely piece with plenty of 'how we did it' step-by-step photos of how writer Rasha Selim built her writing shed. This is what she says about it:

This is my Oasis.  In the middle of the lush woods of Upstate New York, I have created something that reminds me of my childhood home. When I step into my office, it is with a smile on my face. Now I have the best of both worlds, my loving kids and husband in New York, and my young life in Dubai.

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Monday posts are sponsored by garden2office, the Swedish garden office specialists. Click here for more details.