Is your garden shed starting to look a bit forlorn and neglected? It’s surprisingly simple to refresh its image and keep it going for years to come.
Just as gardens need to be tended to, so do structures like garden sheds. When left unattended for long periods, it can affect your shed’s functionality and appeal. Even some simple fixes like giving it a fresh coat of paint and cleaning up the clutter can breathe new life into your shed.
A few basic edits can go a long way in protecting the structure of your shed, preserving its functionality and elevating its aesthetic value in your garden.
1. Organise and Give it a Fresh Coat of Paint
If, over the years, your shed has turned into a disorganised storage area, that’s where you need to start. Clean up, clear away the clutter, and come up with an organisational system for whatever you’re left with.
Erect shelves and create nooks depending on the items you need to store. Before you put everything back, give the shed a good coat of paint, inside and out. This basic hack can give your shed a whole new outlook. If you want it to blend in with the surroundings, try shades like olive green. For a quirky edit, think about painting the door a contrast colour or add contrast trim. Dark colours like deep blue or black for the building will give the illusion of a more compact structure so your garden appears to be larger. Painting your shed routinely also protects the integrity of the structure from the elements.
2. Add Charm with Plants and Nesting Boxes
Rather than leaving the roof bare, consider allowing climbers and creepers to grow over it. Besides the aesthetic value, it provides insulation and may even attract wildlife like small birds and pollinators to nest in the vegetation. If you’d like to plant on the roof itself, we recommend first putting in a shallow wooden framework and lining it with plastic before filling laying out the planting soil.
You can either buy nesting boxes and ‘hotels’ for bees or make them yourself. Position these on the walls of your shed to invite birds and pollinators to your garden. Just remember to choose spots that are well-sheltered from strong sunlight, harsh winds and the rain.
3. Make Your Shed Environmentally Friendly
A water butt/ tank is an easy way to save rainwater. This stored water can then be recycled to keep your plants watered. It is especially useful in the hot summer months. All you have to do is attach rain guttering along the edge of the roof with a drainpipe connecting it to water storage. This catches rainwater and directs it to the water butt where it can be stored.
4. Your Shed Is Your Kid’s Castle
Where adults see a garden shed, children can easily see a fort, a castle or the headquarters of their secret club!. If you don’t have a lot of gardening equipment, it may make sense to convert the space into something else entirely. A great way to get children to spend more time outdoors is by letting them take the lead on ‘decorating’ the shed. It’s an excellent way to draw them away from screens.
5. Need a Space for Your Hobby?
If your garden shed is large enough, you can even use it as a hobby area for yourself. Add skylights and windows for light and ventilation. Spread out a rug, bring in some comfortable chairs and better lighting for cosiness. Shelves, racks and tables will help keep your hobby equipment organised. Since it is private and separate from the main house, it offers you a space where you can spend a few hours by yourself and escape your routine (and children, and spouse).
If your shed sticks out in your garden and doesn’t really look like it belongs, try adding a feature that anchors it to the landscape. Create a path leading to the door, add flowerpots around the border or build a patio at its entrance.
With Duratuf, Get the Shed You’ve Always Wanted
With a range of different structural styles on offer, you can find the garden shed you’re looking for at Duratuf. Whether you need to store your landscaping equipment or park your quad bike, there’s a design to suit. If you’re not keen on an off-the-shelf design, use our 3D design software to create an accurate plan of the shed you have in mind.
