The Shed
Kids build dens.
You can’t stop them. They have a need for a space of their own, somewhere their imagination can unfold.
Grown-ups build sheds.
A small space we can make ourselves, and imagine into whatever we like or need.
My own shed was supposed to be a workshop.
Somewhere to carry out DIY jobs, keep the tools and have a bit of space to make things.
It has been a jewellery workshop, a bicycle maintenance workshop, and currently it’s a fishing tackle workshop. Well, that’s what I’d like it to be.
It always has to serve as a storeroom as well.
The place for things that might be useful, but aren’t useful enough to keep in the house.
At the moment, there’s a piece of insulation board in there.
Left over from a job on the house, it’s too big to throw away, but I don’t actually need it.
It’s always in the way. Every time I move something, the board gets moved too. Every time I need something, it’s behind the board. I’m constantly working around it, until I move it outside, that is. Slowly, it’s becoming more and more damaged.
The kids like pushing nails into it.
I don’t think I’d get away with keeping something like that in the house.
It will probably become too damaged to be useful and finally get thrown away.
And that’s when I’ll find a use for it.
The shed can be somewhere I go alone, a place of escape if things get a bit much in the house. It can also be somewhere I take the kids when they decide they want to build something.
My daughter is very creative. She comes up with fantastic ideas that need a little help from me to bring to life.
I’ve noticed her older brother choosing to go to the shed alone. It’s somewhere to hit things with a hammer or dismantle his mum’s old hairdryer and turn the bits into a spaceship.
He has less of a plan, but no less imagination. He lets the shed and its contents inspire him.
A house is valuable, but a shed can be precious.
I like to think it’s my shed.
But sharing it feels good.
From our shelves
Beautiful
Dents Fronthill Flat cap
Dents have used a beautiful chestnut coloured check tweed fabric from Abraham Moon to make this traditional flat cap.
Founded in Yorkshire in 1837, Abraham Moon has been producing woollen cloth for generations. Dents dates back even further, to 1777.
A traditional cap made with cloth from a long-established British mill.
Useful
Tie Tac
Not seen as often as tie clip, a tie tac does the same job as a tie clip, but with a different look.
It pins through the tie, then fastens to your shirt with a T-bar at the back. It keeps your tie in place when you forward.
Properly Made
The Bexley Waxed Jacket
Whether you’re walking the high street or heading into the woods, the Bexley from Peregrine is made to work in both settings.
Made in Smethwick, in the West Midlands, using waxed cotton from Halley Stevensons in Dundee, it’s a proper British-made jacket.
The fit is tailored, so consider sizing up if you prefer a little more room.
