The idea of garden rooms or summer houses conjure images of beautiful gardens and halcyon summer days – a little corner of luxury away from the main house.
They are aspirational home features for many of us. In fact, Origin’s recent research found that 40 per cent of homeowners imagine their forever home having a garden room, and 45 per cent aspire to having a property with a summer house in the garden.
With the rise in the number of us working from home, garden rooms have taken on a very permanent practical role as additional home space, increasing their popularity. Traditional wooden summer houses or sheds are making way for modern contemporary structures, popping up in gardens of all shapes and sizes, up and down the country as people make the most of the space their property has.
Here are our tips on what to consider when turning a disused corner of your garden into a tranquil bolt hole or calm office space.
Future proofing
The way we use our homes changes constantly as family life evolves, and the use of a garden room is no exception. Try and plan for the potential uses this space might have, and factor this in from the outset. For example, it may be a space to relax now, but might it become an office or used for guests to sleep in, in the future?
Use
If you plan to use your garden room a lot, for example as a home office all year round, then this brings with it a list of other considerations.
Electricity: lights, heating, IT equipment, all need to be powered, and you should have an electricity supply professionally installed.
Insulation: using the garden room in the winter months will require insulation in the floor, walls and roof to make the space comfortably habitable and energy efficient.
Security: it is easy to accumulate equipment of value in a frequently used space and there are easy measures you should take to protect it. Multi-point locks on doors and windows with superior locking technology are effective deterrents, as are security lights and alarms.
Permission
It’s always better to be safe than sorry when it comes to planning permission. Even if your garden room is no bigger than a garden shed, contact your local planning office just to be on the safe side.
Investment
Quality materials and craftsmanship are worthy investments in building projects. Get the best quality structure you can afford, to ensure you have a space that will last as a true addition to the home and add value for years to come.
Location
You may not have the luxury of choice when it comes to the positioning of the garden room. But if you do have more than one corner to choose from, consider the time of day you might be using it the most and how the sun moves across your garden to ensure you catch it on the garden room when you want it. Including large expanses of glass, such as bi-folding doors, will make the most of the outlook your garden room will have.
Design
Although the garden room is separate from the main house, it is still part of the same property, so consider whether it will be a complementary structure or a bold modernistic statement. To be a truly valuable addition to the home, give the interior design of your new space as much care and attention as you would in the main house. Match the external fixtures and fittings to those on the house, keep the colours in similar tones, and incorporate aspects of the surrounding garden into the finishing touches to link the building to the landscape.
