Shed of the year 2024, Sponsored by 
I’m an author and use my shed as a writing space, as well as a cosy nook to hide away and read. I have two young children so peace is not really a thing in my house, and there's nothing like escaping to the bottom of the garden to really get the words flowing!
I bought the shed itself in the middle of the global wood shortage, so waited months and months for it to finally arrive. I'd planned for it to be my summer holiday project, but it actually turned out to be a September evening and weekend project, completed just in time for the cold, dark nights! After the initial build, it took six months to get it just how I wanted. Other than the shed itself, and the paint, I spent next to nothing on furnishing it - upcycling, re-covering and restoring free finds from selling sites, donations from friends and neighbours, plus repurposing items from elsewhere in the house to get just the look I was after: quirky northern charm. The bureau is a particular favourite: I bought it for a few pounds from a local man clearing out his parents’ house. He'd lost them both in the pandemic and said he just wished that their things would go to people who would use and appreciate them. I told him I could definitely do that. Since then I have stripped, sanded, painted and waxed it into the writing desk of my dreams. Lots of love stories will be written at that very desk, in this little shed!
