Architecture: The Versatility of a Mini House or Garden Shed

Home? Or watermelon confectionary? So hard to tell... 

These days it's very hard to tell the difference between a garden shed, a guest house and a tiny house. Note, I'm certainly not complaining or anything, but Millenials are re-writing the rules left and right, and I do feel like this topic needs to be addressed in a much larger forum. 

In my Fantasy Life #3 (that one where I chill out in my brick/stone manor house in a clearing in the woods), I absolutely have a guest house in the back for long term guests. I love the idea of family and friends being able to stay with us for more than a few days at a time without falling over the tipping point to overcrowding. No one wants to be on your futon for 3 weeks, but your guest house? That's a come and linger all Summer or from Thanksgiving to Christmas kind of set up. 

If guest houses aren't your jam, you can think of the following as functioning garden sheds, covered patio getaways, or "She Sheds". I hate having clutter in sight in general, so in a backyard I know I wouldn't want tools or planting material lying around against the side of the house or in a hedge.  If someone likes a little DIY, you could also make it into a woodworking shed where projects and tinkering can be done!

Basically, the moral here is that whether you stuff it with tools, or rakes, or saws, or humans, you need a mini fake house in your backyard. So let's see some cute ones! 

The glass in these skews very garden shed and the windows themselves are a little ramshackle. That place would be roasting in the summer, but I love how much light it lets in. Imagine prepping for first planting in February or getting things ready to hibernate for the winter in October in a great, sun-filled place that traps some light. 

True story, these are called She Sheds. This is not a joke because Living the Country Life has 18 more to show off! They're the ladies alternative to a basement Man Cave!

Or fully embrace the guest house vibe and create a simple studio. You can comfortably fit a full size bed in here, and that gabled roof with the white walls makes the space feel so much larger. 

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This little tower is so detailed and charming but without being twee or overly whimsical! It feels like a guard house from Marie Antoinette's fake village at Versailles. Now I really, really need to know if building a little rectangular tower like this is remotely reasonable from a planning board and materials cost perspective.  

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I never would've thought of connecting the structures via pergola, but here it does a great job keeping this from looking like a yard add on. A simple pergola makes things so cohesive! It could help to avoid the sense of a tag-on shed floating in your backyard.

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Really want to be a hero? Go for a living roof shed and feel smug every time you sip tea in the shade!

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Do you have a garden where you live? Do you see adaptable promise in a garden shed/guest house hybrid in your backyard, or do you prefer to keep the structures to your main house only? 

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