Potting Shed -Inspiration & Design Details

Have I mentioned that I love patina? Chipping paint. Nubby linens. Delicate gilding. Worn silvering on mirrors & tarnished (and polished) silver. Weathered wood and so much more. Basically, bring me all the patina- and it is even better mixed with something that is elegant and deliciously detailed. And with this English Cottage Potting Shed design- patina was key.

So when we first started talking about the potting shed plan for the garden- I had something in mind for just how that would look. And the main detail? You guessed it-patina.

A few fun facts about this little shingled shed

We didn’t have a building plan. We used a vintage door and windows and bundles of cedar shake shingles. And my husband did not love my design plans. Namely- the shingles and the tall peaked roofline I wanted it to have. I know I will tell you more about why not below- but let’s start at the beginning with the inspiration and the design details for this first part in the series on this garden and shed.

I have gotten a few questions about this potting shed since revealing it- and so today answering a couple questions about details.

Where We Started

If you saw my reveal- you know we started with a whole lot of grassy and tree area and not a lot more. This area is above the greenhouse- about halfway to the back of our property from the greenhouse point. It has been an area where I have taken photos before when it gets overgrown with grass- but for the most part- it has stayed natural. There is a pet cemetery in the tree line area- we made sure to be far enough away and my daughter was happy that something beautiful would grow in the area and in some way honor the pets. Also, since this area of our property is a bit rolling hill type- we would have to build up part of the foundation to accommodate.

Inspiration Details

As I mentioned in my INSPIRATION POST I wanted an English Cottage/ French Country style garden and potting shed. Something that had lots of character, old world charm and felt welcoming and inviting. I scoured Pinterest for European gardens that I loved and began to put together an inspiration board. Something I have learned over the years with any design is to note what it is that you love about an inspiration photo. For example- in the garden inspirations- maybe it was the color, or the height of the plants. For the shed- the finish of the paint or wood and the scale. Since this post is focusing on the inspiration for the potting shed (garden details to come) these are the details that I jotted down for the outside:

Old world patina: Weathered shingles. Vintage windows. Dutch door. Tall peaked ceiling. Pea gravel path leading to deck or landing area.

The Design

I usually start sketching designs on a plain old piece of paper & lots of scratching off, erasing, changing and random notes and measurements go into it. For this shed- we had an idea of the size we wanted it to be. I was looking at something on the smaller size – dainty and delightful so to speak. This shed is around 100 sq ft to give you an idea. Aside from the footprint- I wanted the scale to be correct for the look I had in mind. Dainty- with a nicely peaked ceiling for height and more deep than wide. So with that in mind… kit or build to suit?

A Shed Kit or Build from Scratch?

There are a lot of shed kits out there- and Home Depot had a whooooole lot of them out in the parking lot and online that were Amazing. We looked at each one to see if there was one similar to the size, look and style we ( okay I … haha ) had in mind. But since we had a very specific look, scale and idea in mind- we decided to build from scratch and customize.

That said- the kit would have been easier from the standpoint that they give you everything you need in one purchase and you can absolutely customize colors and finishes. Plus- with lumber prices right now- there are a lot of things that are quite expensive and so- the shed kit might be less expensive in material cost. To be honest, most of the time, the design or look that I want is not the easier (or less expensive) option. There is a reason my husband says that I am difficult at best when it comes to projects. haha.

Since we are familiar with building from the ground up on projects and have a contractor in the family to oversee – we made a list of what we would need to build from scratch.

Vintage Details

We knew we wanted vintage pieces included to make this newly built little shed feel more like it had been here awhile. So we did some shopping at architectural salvage spots. The windows were a Re-Store purchase and were not actually the full windows- they are just half. The door is also vintage and one I bought years ago for another spot that we didn’t install. I knew it would be perfect for this potting shed- and we turned it into a dutch door for even more charm.

Special Touches- Shingle Details

As I mentioned – I wanted to shingle the shed. In order to do that- we had to build the shed with walls in place already to be able to add the shingles. There are a couple of unique options for creating a shingled building that I will delve more into -but for this project- each shingle was nailed in place one at a time. It really is not hard- more just tedious work. They come in bundles that cover maybe 25 square feet or so- and in California each bundle costs between $80 and $100 right now depending on species.

Weathered Wood

Old weathered wood and silvered patina… yes, please- I am in love with old wood details. We are big fans of using old reclaimed boards for projects- we have built farm tables and wall finishes with them before. But these deck boards are brand new. And the weathered finish is so pretty- I am tempted to weather those shingles instead of waiting for them to age on their own- but- I do love the natural cedar (and the color matches my well loved boots haha) so leaving it as is for now.

Coming up next in Potting Shed Build Details

This post is getting long already- so I am planning to break the potting shed build up into several posts to be able to really delve into the details- so send all the questions my way so I can try to include them.

Coming next- the start to finish on this shed build. Why we chose to work with those vintage pieces (even though they were not the easiest) and the cost compared to new. And yes- shingling the shed as I mentioned-it is not the first time I have shingled a building- we actually have shingled areas on our house and on the cottage. There are pros and cons. but the look is hands down a favorite.

Also coming your way- the details about that weathered and worn deck and how we got it to looks like it had silvered away in just about an hour.

And also the garden planting details because that is a whooooole post on it’s own. You can see more of the Garden Reveal HERE

If you have any specific questions on the garden or the potting shed that you would like me to try to cover in the next post- let me know.

Happy Tuesday all.

*We built this potting shed as part of a collaboration with Home Depot but this post is not sponsored.*