Garden & Project Shack {Update} #HDYGG

As I looked out of the window on Sunday I felt uninspired by the garden.
It was damp, muddy and the scrabbling chickens were not helping.
I planted some Spring bulbs a few weeks back and that part of the garden is safely fenced off from the inquisitive chooks.
Determined to find something out there to raise my spirits I took out the camera, bravely switched it to manual and explored.

The trees were still demonstrating their Autumnal hues whilst leaving carpets of work for me to rake up.

The tree adjacent to my shack always confuses me as I'm never quite sure when it should flower - with its buds and pink it looks like it should be currently Spring.

Outside the greenhouse the Pyracantha is bursting with red berries giving a distinct feel that Christmas is on its way.

The end of the garden remains untouched following some hard digging a few weeks back. I'm not sure what to do with the space next to the husband's shed. It has a nice view back up the garden so am torn between turning it into an area within which to sit or just leave it wild and let the children play down there and get muddy.

Neighbouring trees hang over the rickety old picket fence adding some much needed colour to the garden.

The exterior of my shack cannot hide the fact that I have neglected it this year - it is crying out for another coat of paint and some cracks in the wooden panels need filling somehow.

Inside I had a good tidy up and clear out as the kiddos have recently taken my space over.
I cleared the table top then realised how much the orange wood of the interior makes it look like a sauna - maybe a fresh oilcloth on the table will break it up a bit.
I am tempted to paint internally too but it will be one of those jobs that has to be done right.
I covered the lower half of the shelving unit with my, never to be finished, t-shirt quilt. It actually works quite well and hides boxes of work books and files.
My 'Project Shack' has been on-going since 2008 and looking back to this post in 2012 it seems to be progressing the wrong way!

One day I will get on top of it all.

How is your garden looking at this time of year? 

Linking up with Annie...

x x x

Project Shack

Big relaxing sigh - the children are now back to school and preschool I have reclaimed my Fridays - hoorah! Although it's still only January I am looking ahead to Spring and Summer in the garden. I have accepted that I need to fall back in love with my house again - see here - and with the house loving comes some garden loving and, more specifically for me, some shack loving! The lovely Kerry, aka @thelovebump, reignited my passion for my garden shack last night with an interesting little project she has got on the boil - watch this space.

My shack was always intended to be my space, so the plastic ELC kitchen will have to find a new home - the children are NOT turning it into a playroom!

Project Shack started over three and a half years ago and is still not completely finished. That's what happens when you have children - nothing gets done.

My lovely father in law did the majority of the work from digging out the garden...

... to laying the concrete base...

...to putting up the shack.

With a little help from Edith.

Since it's structural completion I have put in a table - actually a little too big so hope to change it at some point - my old feeding glider chair, and lots of girly hearts and knick knacks!

What I really want to do, now that I have my Fridays back to myself, is.....

Fit some curtains for the side windows and possibly the front and door windows too.

Make my own bunting with coordinating fabric.

Cosy up the chair with a patchwork quilt or appliqued throw - made by me obviously!

Run some electricity into it so I can set up a work blog station.

Maybe paint it rather than stain it - the jury's still out on this one.

Get some heating in there for the cooler days!

Maybe insulate the walls - but that would spoil the quirky panelling inside, grrr.

Fit a better lock so I can hide in there securely on the weekends - HA!

I hope to achieve some of the above over the next few months but whatever I do to it my shack will always hold a special place in my heart as it was put up for me to create my own little space for some peace and quiet (?!?)- just a couple of weeks after this little sausage was born in May 2008!

That's why it's taken this long to even think about finishing it!