Shed shaped and Bristol fashion

This afternoon my long suffering friend Fiona and I arrived on site laden with buckets of paint, paintbrushes, screwdrivers, hooks, twine, carpet tiles and snacks ready to transform the shed into a cosy hideout.

We removed everything from the shed (again!) and borrowed a broom to remove the remaining cobwebs. Part way through, I spotted movement out of the corner of my eye. I immediately grabbed Fiona and both of us vacated the shed rapidly and not without a scream. A blasted, evil 8 legged monster had reappeared and there was no one to remove it… except us. After a hasty consultation, I re-entered the shed armed with the broom. Not without some intrepidation, I approached the hideous monster and prodded it until it got caught on the broom. Yelling to Fiona to stand back I legged it out of the shed, terrified the spider would work out what was happening and climb up the broom to eat me. Luckily, I frantically waved the broom about by Phil’s plot and it got flung off and we were safe again.

Spider incident aside, we went back to work and fully cleared the cobwebs and swept the floor. Next, we opened the first paint pot – we had chosen a light cream colour, confusingly called Ahoy. Whilst Fiona tackled the painting of the ceiling, I made a start on painting the panels. This of course in no way reflects my lack of height which gives me more than a passing resemblance to an adolescent hobbit.

After the first three panels were done and Fiona had done half of the ceiling, the shed was already significantly lighter. As the painting continued, we were able to see more and more of the once dark and pokey corners of the shed. The end of the first paint pot meant that we had to open the second smaller pot which contained a different colour paint called clotted cream. How this is different from Ahoy beats me as they are almost exactly the same colour. As the first coat of paint was now dry, we used the new paint to complete a second coat. The wood is still visible through some area but it give the shed a rustic charm. We rapidly finished the second pot of paint and decided this was a good time to get some fresh air and a drink.

We adjourned to the corner shop for sustenance before heading back and enjoying our drinks in the sunshine.

Back to work and we decided to paint the uprights and beams in duck egg blue. It is a gorgeous colour and matches well with the base colour of the panels. The final result pending finishing touches tomorrow, is a light and airy shed with a lovely rustic charm.

We put in the carpet tiles which fortunately cover most of the floor without needing too much cutting. We will be buying a mat to go by the door and paint the outside of the shed tomorrow with a special wood stain. If we have time, we will also be sanding down and painting some of the shed furniture. I have been busy creating artwork to go up as a final touch and I am also trying to find the perfect fabric to make a pair of curtains.