Thanks Pixie and Gram,
Don't know if you saw the Wee Plot Beginning, but what you see back there now is a far stretch from when I bought this house.
Gram, the garden shed is 12x14. A lot of people snickered when I said I was building one that size, but I am *so* happy I went with my gut on this one.
Look here to see the whole thing inside and out:
http://davesgarden.com/journal/ed/index.php?tabid=1167
I did a lot of research and knew what I wanted and what I wanted it for. There's a work area, but also a living area. The latter means enough room for my rocker, an end table for tea in the mornings and a place for me to sit and hand write in my journal or use my laptop if I'm working from home or cataloging plants, seeds or whatnot.
The work area has benches which have convenient storage space underneath them for soil amendments and such (I try to buy those items in bulk to last all season). I also made the roof pitch a specific way so that I could have overhead storage.
One thing I asked everyone who had a potting shed was, "If there was one thing you could do over, what would it be?" Nearly everyone said, "I would have made it two feet wider/longer/extra/etc."
So I figured I would just start two feet longer on both sides from what I had originally planned. And it's *Perfect*.
Most people think it's a kit, but it isn't. I drew the plans myself and had a friend I know who's a master carpenter build it from scratch (We bartered... he got marble I got the shake.) That goes for the doors too, I designed them, he built them. I put a lot of sweat equity into it also. I did a lot of the framing and the inside is all my work, 'cept for lifting the benches to bang them into place. They were solid and too heavy for me to be able to handle that myself.
If someone asked me if I could change one thing, my answer would be:
Design your door ledges better than I did, the pitch is wrong. Or, leave them off entirely.
I do use them though and so don't rip them out.
Also, having dutch doors allows you to close the bottom at night to keep at least some of the critters out (I had a bad experience once with locking a rabbit in a shed unknowingly... hence, the doors) and allows you to regulate temperature a lot more than if you have solid doors.
The arbor/seat is a kit.
It was also at an unbelievable price, was a breeze to put together (but then, I like building things) and worth every penny. It's solid cedar.
Sorry, I'm going on too long.
As you can tell, I'm rather fond of the garden shed. In truth, I live in it most days and evenings and rarely am in the house, even when raining.
Anyway, thanks again for taking the tour. Glad you liked it!
Annie
