Shrewsbury graphic designer eyes prize for the best shed

Nicola Brown, 30, of Shrewsbury, even took inspiration from the space and named her backyard business In The Shed.

"To most people, a shed is just a wooden structure at the bottom of the garden filled with junk and a lawnmower," she said.

"To me the shed has been a dream come true. It's my business, my space to be creative. It's like a second home and is filled with years of memories, hard work and pride."

Nicola started a studio in her mother's garden more than four years ago, after being made redundant from a Shrewsbury photographic studio.

"It was a case of looking for another job, doing freelance or doing it on my own so I decided to go for it," she said. "The shed was already there as I used it as a studio while I was at university so it was perfect."

Her extraordinary headquarters has proved a talking point with new clients who are intrigued and are now always keen to visit her office.

"When I answer the phone they say 'are you actually in a shed?' I say 'yes' and they say 'oh that's different, that's interesting.' The feedback has been really positive."

The wooden workshop has evolved to become a hub of creativity. "When I first started out I was using whatever furniture I could find and added to it over the years but I have had a refurb to make it more girly and grown up," said Nicola.

The 10ft by 12ft shed off Hawkstone Road, in Harlescott, has everything a modern office needs. It is fully insulated, and equipped with power sockets and lights. Nicola picks up wifi from the house and uses her mobile to make business calls.

She has entered the ReaderSheds.co.uk online competition every year since setting up her enterprise, and has attracted support from contest followers, but needs even more backing if she is to win.

"As a previous finalist, I know I can do it, but not without the support of the people voting," she said.

"To be crowned shed of the year would mean the world to me. It would be a huge boost the business and the £1,000 cash prize would allow me to buy equipment I need to develop the range of products I have been designing and get them on the market."

The voting deadline is midnight on May 31 and the winner will be revealed in Shed Week from July 1.

Earlier this week the Shropshire Star featured an upturned boat beached aboard a shed.

Alex Holland of Cemmaes Road, near Machynlleth, is responsible for the eccentric entry to the online competition run by readersheds.co.uk

The shed roof is made from a clinker built boat that is 14ft long and 7ft wide at its widest point.

It was an inshore fishing boat made between 1900 and 1910 from Cardigan Bay. It was placed on a frame of four telegraph poles with cross beams.

Once in place, the walls were filled in using aluminium framed windows from a 1940s caravan and single glazed windows from our 400-year-old farm house. Other walls are wattle and daub, a mixture of mud, clay, and straw stuck on a woven frame.

The shed is shipshape inside, featuring refrigerator, sink and gas cooker with a grill and an oven. To see more pictures of Nicola's shed and to vote visit www.readersheds.co.uk

l Do you have an unusual shed? Contact our newsdesk on (01952) 242424.