Cool Sheds - 15 Amazing Shed Designs

Readers loved our cool treehouses post so today we are featuring some creative garden sheds which have been converted into pubs, churches and museums. Springtime feels like it's well and truly here in the UK with garden centres busy with people getting their gardens ready for summertime. So for those a little creative, here's 15 garden sheds which have been converted into pubs, churches and museums and are among the entries in a nationwide competition to find the Shed of the Year 2012 sponsored by Cuprinol.

 

Hobbit Shed

Owner says "I needed a shed to put my lawn tractor in so I asked my wife if I could build a shed out back. Being that I'm a fan of Hobbit architecture I figured this would be my only chance to build something resembling a Hobbit House. The structure is all reinforced concrete and took me about 4.5 years to complete".

Stubbs Arms, Milton Keynes. 

Owned by: Michael Stubbs

Colne Valley Postal History Museum, Halstead, Essex.

 Owner Steve Knight says "My shed houses my own special museum of all things postal. We've got postboxes and stamp vending machines, of course, but we also display cap badges, uniforms, telegram forms, steel cancellations, water jugs, fire extinguishers, collection plates, direction signs, scales, point of sale displays, string, scissors, knives, pencils, dip pens, ink wells, stained glass - anything that is stamped with those magic three letters - G P O. The shed is fully wired for power and telephone/internet and could, in theory, act in every way just like a real Post Office from any time in the last 50 years"

Clarkson Mk1 in Ickenham, Middlerex

Owner Chris Crowley says "The Clarkson is my first shed and was conceived on my computer and constructed with materials reclaimed from demolishing the house. It is fully insulated and double glazed. Jeremy Clarkson said: 'Every invention that has ever mattered in the whole of human history has come from a man in a shed in Britain'. As it resembles a classic shape of caravan it was christened in honour of the great man. It was in this shed I made my most successful contraption, a remote controlled rotating bird table. It does no worse than create entertainment plus a little indignity to marauding squirrels and wood pigeon"

Jabba the Hut, Dorset. 

Owners Gilli & Dicksay say "Jabba is an 80-year old beach hut who has been rescued from being destroyed by developers and has been sensitively refurbished with great respect to his heritage. Jabba got his name because of his sheer bulk and the fact that it took so many people to shift him to his new location where he has been lovingly restored using recycled resources wherever possible."

The Watdr Shed, Smuggler's Cove. 

Owner Geoff Hill says "The Water Shed will spend the summer moored off Smuggler's Cove. Access to the shed will be via canoe, rowing boat or swimming, entirely at your own risk. It will contain useful things. You are encouraged to look at the useful things and if you find something that you feel would complete a project you are working on, or at least help it on its way, you can take it home with you at no charge. Likewise, if you have something that you are sure is useful to someone, feel free to bring it to the shed, remembering that the shed is a comparatively small floating environment so a large container of high explosives would probably not be appropriate, whereas a tobacco tin full of Woodruff keys and washers would be."

 

 Tardis Shed

The owner of this Tardis shed writes: Has a working bakelite telephone so passers by can make free public calls - well, nothing is really free, is it? My phone package includes no charges to other landlines. Unfortunately, had to stop as people kept using it to make calls to those pesky mobile phones, but once I figure out how to bar calls to mobiles, normal service will resume.

 Corrugated Chapel, Shropshire. 

Owner Alan Terrill says "I needed somewhere to store the garden machinery, but also I have a love of follies, so I wanted to make an attractive garden building at the same time. There are several Victorian chapels around here made of corrugated iron, so I thought I'd model it on one of those, but as the fronts are usually very plain, I thought I'd model the front on the Pump Rooms at Tenbury Wells, a beautiful building made of galvanised iron."

Rosies Church in Oldbury

Owner Derek Rose says "I built this shed entirely myself (including door, window frames, and stained glass) about 8 years ago. This is my bolt hole, workshop, and playroom. Its a great place to work in the winter evenings, with the woodburner, candles and fairylights. The original sketches were of a castle, complete with drawbridge to ride a motorbike into it, but everyone told me to tone it down... I wish I had done it my way now."

 

The Priory, Weybridge. 

Owner Mark McGinniss says "Made mainly from recycled materials, designed to match the house (which is an old chapel). It was going to be a kennel for three dogs, but now used as a hideaway."

Beach Cove

Owner says "What started as a bit of fun ended up as a shed theme park. I ended up making a beach bar/shack to go with my original shed. The beach cove has been a big hit as it means all the family can use it. The grandchildren love having their own beach and boat and build lots of sandcastles and search for treasure. I love having a pint on my own barstool when the kids have gone home."

 

Duck End Thunderbolt, Oxfordshire

Owner Peter Strange says "Originally built in 1883. Withdrawn from railway use 1928. Used as a dwelling until 1960. Used as a garden shed until 1997. Rebuilt from abysmal condition and restored over an 11 year period.

 Barbecue Lodge, Chipstable, Taunton, Somerset

Owners Sue and Graham say "Fantastically spacious garden room that we use all the year round because it has a fire in the centre to warm it up and to cook over. We have had over 30 people to party in this shed and lots of fun, laughter, dancing and drinking has gone on in it."

Scallopers Shelter, Fisherman's Green Kirkcudbright. 

Owner says "This special tri shed is unique in being an installation on The Kirkcudbright Art and Crafts Trail. Visitors can sign in and leave their messages in the memory box pod. They can also place a pin on a world map where they have travelled from. This shows a flatpack supply can be truly individualised".

 

Tetra Shed in London

Owner  David Ajasa-Adekunle says "Tetra shed is an award winning innovative new modular building system, which as a single module, is a unique garden office/atelier. Tetra shed is an intriguing sculptural addition to the garden as well as an inspiring place to work. This single module, which can accommodate two people, can be extended to create larger garden offices. Two modules are perfect for up to four workspaces. Three modules make fantastic guest room accommodation. These have a large ensuite bedroom which is particularly appealing to those in need of extra living space in the garden for family and friends."



Pictures sourced from www.readersheds.co.uk and content sourced from Telegraph's Shed of the Year 2012 entrants