Working from home is either a necessity or a strategic choice. But however you have ended up at home there are advantages. No more commuting during peak hours; extra moments for seeing the children off to school; walking the dog or eating too much breakfast. The real rewards are increased time for yourself, no more office rental and smoother integration of your personal and professional life.
On the flip side, how intertwined do you want your personal and professional life to be? A computer in every corner, unread business post in the kitchen and supervising the washing machine when you should be finishing a report?
Working from home is good. It can simplify your life and gives you space to concentrate. But boundaries can become blurred and unnecessary pressures can emerge. When does evening start and you stop answering the phone?
If your office is in the house, can you walk past your work on Sunday without being reminded of what you have to do on Monday?
When and how do you switch off? How likely is real peace and quiet? I used to run a textile design practice from my spare bedroom. I would find myself at 2am, staring at my drawing board thinking ‘Is that flower big enough?’ ‘Will I meet the deadline?’ So, after 10 years I moved my work into a garden office.
A purpose built garden room gives working from home a different perspective. Commuting down the path in the morning puts a small, valuable space between your work and the rest of your life. Hidden away in your garden office you can organise your life to suit the way you work. Your clients no longer have to meet the cat or trip over the shopping in the kitchen. In your own office you can create your own work environment; homely and untidy, alive and energetic or calm and relaxed. In the evening you can lock the door and go home.
When you move your work into a garden room, you discover that even the smallest urban patch isn’t the place you thought it was. There are new angles and perspectives, different views and sounds. There is also less grass to cut, now that you have used up some of the lawn.
There are many different types of buildings that can be used as garden rooms. They range from cedar bicycle sheds to housing standard timber-frame offices. Buy the best you can afford, it will still be cheaper than moving house. Though a cedar chalet looks cheap, a purpose designed garden room built to the same standard as a house will last forever and add value to your house.
To be comfortable you need a well designed building with six to eight inches of insulation in the walls, roof and floor, combined with double-glazing. This will give you a garden office that will a pleasure to occupy all year round. A badly insulated building will mean big electricity bills and condensation in winter and over-heating in summer.
If you would like to use this article please contact Lynn Fotheringham. Email lynn @ iobuild.co.uk
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