GARDENS
Garden studios are enjoying a dramatic surge in popularity right now. After months of hunching over kitchen tables or sofas during lockdown, many remote workers found themselves desperate for a home office – but with nowhere to put one. Freestanding garden studios offer a perfect solution. In many cases, they don’t require planning permission (unlike larger extensions). They also “offer space to work from home without clogging up the house, and provide a clear boundary between work and home”, explains Matt McKee from the team at Garden Room Designs – a local company which creates bespoke solutions including garden rooms and orangeries. “Building in an underused area of the garden can bring cohesion to the design and enjoyment of your garden,” he adds. And people aren’t just creating their dream WFH hubs. “Our free-standing studios and offices are becoming more popular not just for remote working, but to develop hobbies – in the past we’ve built to provide space for arts and crafts, including photography, as well as snooker rooms, music rooms, yoga studios and gyms!” If you choose a company like Garden Room Designs, you can create something exactly to your needs. Private dining room Space solutions LOCAL COMPANY GARDEN ROOM DESIGNS OFFERS ALFRESCO MAKEOVER INSPO
NEWBEGINNINGS In January, it can be easy to put the garden to the back of your mind, but it’s the perfect time to consider the year ahead
with built-in wine fridge? Recording studio? Cinema? The options are limitless! “These rooms offer the benefits of a conservatory, with views to your garden, but without the drawbacks of it being too hot in summer or too cold in winter,” says Matt. If you do want to go down the traditional extension or orangery route, you can introduce real wow factor to the space, using bi-folding or French doors. With an extension to your home, you’ll need to consider both building regulations and planning permission. Whether or not you’ll get planning permission depends on the location of the extension and the house. Generally, a semi-detached or terraced house is allowed permitted development of a three-metre projection, and a detached house four metres. If you’ve got a conservatory, but it needs adapting so it can be used year-round, Garden Room Designs offers conservatory conversions, too. This can involve re- roofing, replacing window frames and altering brickwork. No more shutting your conservatory up for the winter, or
sweltering in the summer! gardenroomdesigns.co.uk
5 Finally, I like to have a new project and have been inspired by Great Dixter and their exotic garden. I fancy some cannas again, after not growing them for several house moves. I also want melianthus, verbena bonariensis and single flowered, bright-coloured dahlias, in pots all around our large table, intermingled with our succulents. I can see it now, sitting out on a warm morning or balmy sunset, surrounded by a jungle of colour and foliage. I am really looking forward to it and hope you come to visit and join me. Very best wishes for a happy New Year to you. Anna grows cut flowers and runs classes, events and experiences from the studio and plots in Saffron Walden.
CAMBSEDITION.CO.UK JANUARY 2022 81
Powered by FlippingBook