The long-awaited winner of Cuprinol’s Shed of the Year has finally been revealed. The 2018 competition, which showcased extraordinary creativity and D.I.Y. talent, included a luxury yurt and a floating piano raft. In the 11th year of the competition, 24 finalists battled it out to win the crown. Contenders were judged by a panel of shed experts, including Ben Swanborough, builder of last year’s winner The Mushroom Shed. Take a look at the incredible shortlist and find out which worthy winner took the crown.
The Taxi is an old London Black Cab, owned by Lee Connelly, that's been converted into a glorious shed in his back garden in Colchester, Essex. For months Lee and his team, the ‘Skinny Jean Gardeners’ attempted to repair the car but when the problematic project never quite reached its potential, he decided to transform it into a shed. Lee had to knock the back of his garage out in order to drive the cab into the garden. The impressive conversion has a bed inside and acts as a chill-out room next to the allotment.
This unusual shed, built by Ben Cummins from West Yorkshire, is a floating piece of art. It has been manually pulled by a rope from Liverpool to Leeds, on buoyant skis down the canal for the last five years. The building has been added to along the way, using reclaimed materials found on the journey. At the moment quirky Ben is working on transforming the drifting den into a musical instrument.
This poolside shed, owned by Geoff Pike in Salisbury, is not what it first seems. The cabin, first built 12 years ago, does not store pool floats, towels and ice cool beers. However, it is used to hold Geoff's impressive and still growing LEGO collection. In the past few years, the collection has become so huge that the shed started to feel overcrowded, so Geoff built a homemade adjoining shed to create a second space.
Entrepreneur Rachael Taylor's bright shed design was the first finalist in the Workshop & Studio category. After purchasing her Liverpool home in 2015 she set about turning an overgrown plot into her dream garden and workspace. Being someone with a passion for colour and the owner of a pattern and design business, she used her own motifs on the floor, cushions, lampshades and artwork.
The Viking Bauhutte, owned by Chris Walter in Hampshire, is named after a time in the middle ages when craftsmen would discuss their ideas in a shed over tea. Built from timber, birch ply and a roundwood chesnut frame, the hut is well-insulated, with running water, electric and natural light, and an antique Norwegian stove and copper kettle. Chris and his family use the cosy space much like it would have been used in Viking times – for various craft and DIY projects.
This impressive shed by Mark Humphrys from Norfolk is made entirely of recycled material. He asked neighbours, roofing manufacturers and rummaged in bins for offcuts of wood, stained glass, perspex, and even a microwave plate to bring together in a work of impressive craftsmanship. The shed is dotted with bird boxes and animal lodges, this eco-friendly hut will now be a carpentry workshop and home for his sea kayak.
The Green House, built by Andy Ramsay and Kate Spencer in London, was the first finalist in the Cabin & Summerhouse category. They designed it to fulfill two purposes: a place to pot and grow plants and a cosy spot to retreat with a cup of tea (or G&T). The shed was put together with reclaimed stained glass from the Victorian era, which took nearly two years to collect, and looks particularly excellent lit up at night.
The Limes, owned by Michael Long in the City of London, was built as a space for friends and family to gather. It is hard to believe it's built from repurposed material: the sign 'The Limes' was taken from his grandparents home and other pieces were acquired from construction sites. With its cosy interior, complete with a wood burning stove, fire pit and seating, it's a great space for spending time outdoors. The plant pots and wild-growing foliage make it blend seamlessly into the garden.
When George Smallwood from Sheffield built a base on which to put a ready-made shed, he had no idea he would get so carried away that he would end up putting together the whole building over the course of two months. This marvellous eco shed, with a giant bughouse on one wall and beehives on its roof, self-waters the flowers, herbs and vegetables it contain and nurtures the environment around.
This eco shed made by husband and wife, Philip and Lauretta Denton from Scarborough, was inspired by a story written by Lauretta’s primary school teacher Mrs Arnold. The bottle shed is made entirely out of reclaimed materials – a repurposed staircase, windows, doors and bottles – pieced together organically over four years, without any plan, much in the way a magpie would build its nest.
The bright yellow Shed & Breakfast in Bristol, owned by Daisy and her husband, was built to generate more income after Daisy became a stay-at-home mum. Inside the shed is a super-king size bed and small kitchenette, and climbing up the exterior, jasmine, honeysuckle and clematis plants. You can find the shed available to rent on Airbnb – when they are not making it available to the young homeless people of Bristol.
The Historic category finalist called The Bush Inn, owned by John and Joy Parks in Kent, was originally built to form part of a recreated wartime village in Kent. The pub is erected at various war revival shows across the UK where veterans come together and play darts, dominos and cards. The couple have gone above and beyond to create an authentic pre-war experience, even serving drinks in period glassware.
When Greg Whale, Dorset, asked his wife Jo what she wanted for their 25th anniversary she requested a shepherds hut, so Greg got to work building one from scratch. After six months working weekends and evenings, the project was finally finished. Painted green on the sides and black on top, the shed resembles their ideal sanctuary with sheepskin rugs, cushions and a wood burning stove for cosy nights in.
Angus Thompson from Northumberland, built this shed to pay homage to his two favourite subjects: plants and history. The Temple uses both Greek and Gothic design influences and is made principally from salvaged and reclaimed wood. The location is on a public historic walkway and Angus uses the outbuilding to sell plants, flowers, garden sundries and books to passersby.
Inspired by the sturdiness of glamping yurts – the only shelters to survive the 2008 Bestival storm – Paul Martin from Suffolk set about building his own makeshift construction. With a budget of £400 and nine years work, Paul made a Mongolian yurt using an exterior of fence panels in place of the traditional animal wool, which has a removable sky port awning and canvas and bamboo interior.
Hywel Jones in Gwynedd, who has been a qualified carpenter for over 35 years, created this budget shed from 90% recycled materials. It is covered in incredible details which reflect the surrounding environment including a stream, a nearby iron age hill fort, woodlands and the Menai Strait. The shed is used as a place of relaxation, for reading, guitar practice and the occasional party zone.
This tiny Tudor playhouse was built by Craig Clavin in Norfolk and his two four-year-old sons Hugo and Ralph. It is made from mostly reclaimed and salvaged materials: old scaffold board, fence posts, clay roof tiles and cement board. Despite their age, Craig says Hugo and Ralph were instrumental in creating the vintage playroom and that it represented a great father and son project.
The advantage of having a pub as a shed is you never need to travel further than your garden for a pint. This impressive pub shed was painstakingly built in a period of heavy rain by David Morris in Caerphilly, Wales. Once finished it was visited by neighbours who always seemed to arrive in twos, aptly triggering the name Noah's.
This charming pub built by ex-Royal Navy, Lee Carrie from Essex, arose from an idea he had after making a purchase. He first bought the ‘Admirals Head’ pub sign and began collecting more vintage navel and pub memorabilia – mugs, mirrors, bottles and a deer head. The result, this historic pub shed, which sprang from little more than hard work and a good idea.
This unbelievable shed, built by Doug Smith in Blackpool, is pretty much an exact replica of a working Irish rugby pub. The shed was built by Doug and his friends three years ago and has a 25ft clone of Blackpool Tower on its roof. More recently the pub gained an extension so that it could accommodate more guests to enjoy the craic.
The ingenious Scaffold Board Summerhouse, built by Scott Stickland in Hampshire, is a multifunctional space holding an office, a home for his rowing machine and a space for the family to watch movies and hang out. Thanks to Scott's keen eye for detail and design, the shed has an incredible feature: two of the walls rotate, enabling the space to open up, while the cantilevered roof floats above.
A truly one-of-a-kind shed, Barnaby Dearsly from Exeter, built it from the upturned bow section of a decommissioned 1945 fishing trawler. It is fitted with electric sockets, a stove, a sail canvas door, oak flooring, and has even been recorked and made watertight using marine resin. It can be used as a writer’s retreat, artist studio, children's hideaway or decorative feature.
This magical yurt, built by Jack Fetherstonhaugh in Abergele, Conwy County, is surrounded by beautiful countryside views. It sits atop a wooden shed built directly into the hillside and much like The Weasleys' tent in the Harry Potter books, it is much bigger and more luxurious from within than on the outside. The wondrous construction can basically be lived in – it has an upstairs, downstairs, wifi, electricity, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom. Find out which ingenious shed took the crown next...
Built by George Smallwood, The Bee Eco Shed takes first prize! Having beaten off stiff competition, we think that this self-sufficient home for vegetables, herbs and insects is definitely a worthy winner. The Sheffield-based victor walks away with the 2018 title and a £1000 cash prize for his bee haven. The competition attracted nearly 3,000 entries and an impressive 16,000 public votes.
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