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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Monday posts are sponsored by Tiny House Cabins. Beautiful cabins for all year round... oozing character!

 

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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Sunday posts are sponsored by Garden Spaces, contemporary living spaces offering premium quality, bespoke buildings without the hefty price tag

 

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

 

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

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.