The Nott Shed

Shed Features

This place is my sanctuary! Located at the bottom of the garden, my potting shed is my escape from a stressful job- a place where I can just relax...and breathe. The potting shed is where I can grow plants, sit and drink my coffee and listen to the birdsong around me. It is, quite simply, my happy place.

Having a small garden, this shed needed to be functional and beautiful.

Replacing the previous playhouse (that was over 20 years old and rotting) we decided to reuse as much as we possibly could. The shed had to be designed to fit into a small space, with an oil tank on one side and a garage door on the other. It was all about maximising the space, making it practical to use and multi-functional in a small space, whilst also being an attractive feature in our garden.

Other Shed info

I initially drew out the designs for what I wanted. My husband then drew a plan to scale, to work out how to build it and what we would need. Although we re-used some of the old wood on the construction. most had to be purchased. We bought the door and window from a reclamation yard to give it a more authentic look. The build took us most of last summer- working at weekends but has only just been finished in the last few weeks! It has really been a team effort, with my husband and I working together to design and build the potting shed, using his practical skills and my creative skills.

Everything on this build was hand made- the base, frame, roof and cladding, and all the internal fit out.

We clad the outside of the potting shed and painted it - using Cuprinol paint- to match out garden. (the blue theme in the garden is inspired by the Majorelle Gardens in Marrakech.)

We re- used a lot of the timber decking from the old shed base- cutting off the rotten ends. These were used for all the hanging racks, bench and the shelving. An old shelving unit (30+ years old) was re-sprayed and the shelves covered in oil cloth fabric to use as storage. Another shelving unit was cut down to provide storage underneath the bench. Old garden furniture has been re-purposed: the folding chair gives me a space to sit inside my Nott Shed. A lot of things have been donated from family/friends so they can be re-used- everything from the pegboard to the door handle. Many of the tools and equipment belonged to my parents or grandparents, so this makes it a very personal space.