Shed crime is on the decline

New research from Tiger Sheds about shed burglaries makes for heartening yet still unpleasant reading for shedworkers.

The company looked at data from police forces around England from 2014 to 2017 which shows that on average more than 22,500 cases of garden and shed burglary are reported every year with the highest figures as follows:

1. Lancashire Constabulary - 11,226
2. Greater Manchester Police - 10,408
3. Humberside Police - 9,022
4. West Yorkshire Police - 8,604
5. Cleveland Police - 6,827

Of the police forces that supplied data for 2018 too, Humberside had the most reports of theft (1,711), followed by Greater Manchester (1,538) and Essex (1,525).

Which doesn't sound great but the good news is that the volume of garden and shed theft being reported to police is decreasing. In 2018, there was a fall in the total number of burglaries in almost every location, especially Nottinghamshire, where instances of garden and shed burglary decreased by more than half (1,794 in reports in 2017 vs only 781 reports last year). As you might expect, the most common thefts were of bicycles and power tools/lawnmowers.

The report is a reminder that all garden offices and shedlike atmospheres need decent security. Doors and windows are a basic must, but shedworkers should also consider other options including outdoor sensory lighting and alarms.

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BBQ cabin office with extension

This 10m cabin build from Arctic Cabins is a mixed use build which is not only a garden office but also a mancave/bar. It includes a special extension for food prep which gives it an interesting look and is used regularly at the weekends for family meals as well as during the week. Owner Tim says: "It’s a great escape for the adults and a space for us to chill out but also a fantastic space for our children who are now young adults to have freedom to hang out with their friends but not be too far from home." It is decorated with Beatles memorabilia
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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.

The rollercaster emotions of shedworkers, homeworkers and homepreneurs

New research from Barclays has revealed what they describe as "the rollercoaster of emotions Britain’s army of homepreneurs experience while running their business and the support they need to grow".

Around 38 per cent of UK businesses are now home-based, with the number increasing by three per cent over the last five years. This new study looked at the way home-based business owners feel when they work from home - overall, two thirds said they feel happy and a similar figure said they "experienced excitement" while running their business at home. Over half (said they are more efficient working alone without distractions from others.
 
However, just over a third of those surveyed also admitted to experiencing feelings of loneliness while working from home for their business, attributing these emotions mainly to not having colleagues around to discuss ideas with or not having people around for support when things get stressful. Almost a fifth said they actively phoned their friends and family during the day to combat isolation.

When they were asked about the support needed to grow their business, about a third said they want to work alongside more like-minded businesses, and over a quarter that they would like to collaborate with more people who can help grow their business. 

Image courtesy Cabinmaster

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An office like a garden-space inspired by monks

This project by Italian designers DEGW for pharma giant Pierre Fabre in Milan shows how far the concept of a garden office has seeped into the mainstream design of more traditional offices. According to the architects: "The layout is geared to the distinctive characteristics of each work team, in the same way a monk would take meticulous care of every single thing in their own botanical garden." They go on to say:

The concept that DEGW developed derives from a desire to create a garden-space with geometric, directional internal corridors designed like a garden of “simples” (a simple is a medicament made from a herb), where mediaeval monks once grew medicinal plants and herbs, the same that Pierre Fabre still uses to develop its main pharmacological and dermo-cosmetic products.

To add to the effect, the buildings meeting rooms and even phone booths are named after medicinal plants. More images at the link above and here for details of a similar project.
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Garden art studio

Here's a garden office from Booths Garden Studios for potter Andy and artist Jaynes, measuring 5.5m x 2.8m. Features include a large picture window to the front, two fanlight windes to the rear to increase light/ventilation (the kiln gets very hot) and a door on the right hand side to maximise space. The sink was installed by a local plumber. Below, Alex Booth discusses the build.


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Build your own shepherd's hut

Shepherd's hut specialist Plain Huts are suggesting that 2019 could be the year that you build your own shepherd's hut using one of their kits. This could be particularly useful if you've got no chance of getting one delivered to your back garden.

The flat pack consists of a rolling chassis with cast iron wheels and oak axles, walls, roof joists, roofing material and fixings (plus of course a planner but not windows or doors unless you buy the super deluxe version). According to Plain Huts: "The kit you receive is constructed in exactly the same way we build our own huts." One happy customer is pictured above with his diy hut. More details and images at their site here. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

The Fuselage

The Fuselage comes from Tree Tents and while it's aimed at extreme glampers it would also make a cracking garden office. According to the company it is inspired by the principles of modern aerospace design and is lightweight, robust and extremely portable - the frame is made of sustainably-sourced wood and recycled aluminium and features include a wood stove and low-voltage radiant heating. There are also various off-grid extras. The Fuselage can be mounted on stilts, on uneven ground, or suspended from trees. More images here.

Their other model, below, is also intriguing, though rather different and also ideal as a garden office.

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