A SHED BY ANY OTHER NAME...

This is a shed:

 

Beautiful isn't it?

 

Unfortunately it isn't our shed.

 

Our shed looks like this:

 

 

Not in the same league.

 

That's because our shed is ugly.

 

However, even ugly sheds serve a purpose. Ask any male. He will tell you a shed is a sacrilegious place, an alpha chamber housing important handyman stuff.

 

That may be true for some sheds. It is not true for ours. Our shed, like so many others, is a giant dumping ground. It is the final go to when the hall cupboard groans 'enough!'

 

Last time I looked (and I try not to go in there for obvious reasons) I fought my way through several half started timber projects, a collection of unrepairable electrical items (kept because the parts might come in handy) and a box of treasured memorabilia from long ago footy bus tours of the outback (stubbie coolers, framed underpants etc.)

 

So what happens when there is a need for something specific?

 

The search will be long and hard but the item will never be found. The final defeat comes with a trip to the hardware store to buy a replacement.

 

Final score: Shed 4; Handyman 0

 

So sheds might be a necessity but ugly sheds steal the focus, sucking the beauty right out of any landscape.

 

For instance, this is the garden along the back fence. In spite of endless days of scorching heat, it is starting to look just a little bit tropical.

 

 

 

The acalyphas 'Musaica' have grown to a commanding height and the orange heliconias and multi coloured cordylines are starting to fill out the gaps nicely.

 

 

 This garden should not have to compete with an ugly shed.

A quick scan of the internet convinces me that with a little bit of tweaking - OK a lot of tweaking - our shed could morph into a quaint pseudo cottage (good gardens are all about illusion after all.) But I'll need some supplies.

A set of French doors is first on the list. Consequently our weekends are spent scouring second hand shops for a bargain (Ian loves this part especially when it means missing sport on TV.)

Eventually we find what we're looking for deep in the undergrowth of an old furniture yard (getting them out was a nightmare.)

 



As soon as we hit home I get to work.  After giving them a good scrub I have the look I want - clean but rustic. And because we don't want the shed walls showing through we coat the back of the glass with mirror finish paint.

 

A bit of trellis to hide the ugly zincalume fence extension and ...voila!

 

  



 





Ian is ready to pack up his tools and hide them back in the shed never to be seen again but I am not finished yet.

 

A cottage, pseudo or otherwise, needs a window.

 

Family comes to the rescue and to Ian's relief (second hand stores are not his thing) his son donates an old casement window to our cause.

 

 

This window is way past rustic. So we reglaze it, sand it back and spruce it up with a fresh coat of paint. We enlist the help of another son (thank you Chris) and the window is proudly screwed onto the shed.

 

A couple of strategically placed pots of beautiful Mandevillas and some Japanese Box by the door and I am a happy woman.



 



Well almost happy. While the outside of the shed looks suitably glamorous, we still can't find anything inside!