I decided to create a garden themed shed for myself out in the backyard, come check it out:
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Have you ever seen those miniature kits where you build one room or shop at a time? When my daughter was younger she had a greenhouse one just like the photo above. It took hours to put together and was full of plants, flowers and artwork. I thought it was such a wonderful place to relax, why not make a 'real' one for myself? And so I did...well, sort of...because all of my plants are fake 😄
I started with this shed that you can find on Amazon. I didn't want a true greenhouse because of the expense, size and upkeep that would be required. I also opted for a smaller layout (6X4) than what is depicted in the miniature. Lets face it, I'm not actually going to be growing any plants, so glass walls and a large space just aren't needed. This is strictly a space where my collection of fake garden plants and some artwork are going to be displayed so a metal shed is just fine.
Speaking of this metal shed -
The price is affordable at $140, though you will spend extra for shipping. You will want to prep your location by making sure that the ground is level and free of debris. Some people like to build a wooden or concrete platform, but mine is resting directly on the ground. Either way the shed needs to be anchored to prevent it from blowing over in high winds. My husband used rebar to pin the metal floor kit (included but not pictured) to the ground. The metal floor kit is not going to serve as a proper floor and you will need to add a flooring surface on top. My husband used pressure treated lumber that will stand up to moisture and attached it to the floor kit.
The metal panels are thin (so you don't want to step on them or mishandle them because they can bend) but it makes each panel lightweight. You may want an extra set of hands to keep the upright panels in place as they are screwed together (I just propped them up with outdoor chairs, but I'm impatient to wait for help 😁). You also want to be careful of the edges of the panels as they can be sharp.
The worst part of this kit is that every single metal panel is coated in a thin layer of plastic that has to be peeled off and it takes hours. The plastic is there to prevent the panels from scratching one another during shipping and if you leave it on it's eventually going to start peeling itself due to weather exposure and look terrible. I laid out a drop cloth in my front room (to protect my floor from scratches), turned on the TV and made an evening of peeling plastic while enjoying the air conditioning! You can also skip ahead to the section where you put the doors together and assemble them in the same way. That way once you are working outside and it's time to hang the doors, they are ready to go.
I painted the lumber floor in gray to make it look nicer and add a bit more moisture protection. I also sealed around the gaps where the floor does not meet the walls - no matter what though, you are going to have bugs enter this shed. It simply isn't made to prevent insects from entering so keep that in mind when you plan on what you will store inside. If you are using it for your outdoor garden tools, no big deal, but if it's going to be decorative like this one then make sure you don't mind your items getting a little dirty. I have another one (9X6) where I store all of my holiday decor, but I keep everything in plastic bins and it works just fine.
After painting and sealing, I stuck in a couple of small shelves.
Here is how it looks all filled up.
And some close-ups:
Left Side
The faux fruit trees I made like this and all of the plants like this. Most of them are fruits but you will notice a few nonsense ones like the egg, cheese and burger plants. This is a nod to the Sims 3 where you can plant these types of plants. Another couple of Sims references are the faux gardening skill books and the Mysterious Mr. Gnome. The gardening books I made by taking Dollar Tree hardback books, repainting them and then using my Cricut to cut new titles in vinyl. The gnome is a regular garden gnome that I repainted with acrylic.
The art prints are a couple of Van Gogh paintings; Starry Night and Starry Night Over Rhone. They were framed prints that I thrifted and then removed from the frames because I didn't want to put anything too heavy on the shed walls. The poster print (way to the left behind the fruit trees) is a photo from the Hubble telescope.
The tiered basket tray, picnic basket and faux fruits were all thrifted.
Middle View
The framed print is a photo taken by the Voyager 1 with Carl Sagan's pale blue dot quote layered on top, you can find a similar print here. The framed art and small canvas were made by my daughter in elementary school.
The lemonade, peach punch and lemon water glasses are all resin and I made them like this.
Right Side
The tiny gnome gardens were made like this, the moss cork board like this and the potted fruit plants like this. The plants on this side are a mixture of those I made and some thrifted, while the barrel is full of loose stems. The water color is another piece by my daughter when she was younger and the wooden garden sign is another Cricut project. The moss balls were found while thrifting and the tiny gnome is from Dollar Tree.
The seed packets I made myself from printables that used to be in my Etsy shop. I removed them due to a complaint about the resolution, but here is a new set that prints better.
And that's my garden shed! But what do I do with it? I have a rug out front and a seating area where I like to sit and read or drink my iced tea. I open up the shed and it's part of my outdoor decor, then when it's time to go inside I close it back up. It's really just another thing that amuses me 😎
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I hope you enjoyed this tour of my garden shed, thanks for stopping by!
-Jennifer
© Studio 27 by Jennifer Adams 2024
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Yes, I have seen those miniature kits before, they have so much detail.
ReplyDeleteI love what you have done inside that shed, it is so pretty! I love the nonsense plants. hehehe I am a Sims fan and remember them well.
Yay, a fellow Simmer!
DeleteGosh! How fun! I thought the plants were all doing really well.
ReplyDeleteLol, it helps when all the care they need is to be dusted off once in a while!
DeleteOh, this is delightful! I love all that color, too! Thank you for sharing this lovely post with us at the Will Blog for Comments #42 linkup. We hope to see you next time with more posts to share, old or new.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
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