With a Waltons log cabin the potential uses are endless. Whether it’ll be a peaceful spot for you to create a home office, a bright and airy space to make an extra living room or, if you’re anything like Clare, it’ll be your very own garden pub.
When we saw the images of Clare's garden building over on her Instagram account @theblackpug2021, it’s safe to say we were blown away. She had transformed her log cabin into the perfect pub, somewhere she and her family can go to have a couple of drinks, play games and make memories.
We caught up with Clare to find out how she used some clever customisation to turn her 4m x 3m Pent Log Cabin into the garden pub of her dreams.
Choosing the right garden building…
We can see you opted for the 4m x 3m Pent Log Cabin, what made you decide on a log cabin and this building in particular?
We were limited for space in our garden, so the 4m x 3m was perfect for the area we had available. We chose a log cabin as we didn’t want it to resemble a converted shed - the laps of the log cabin give it a nicer finish overall. We also love the central double doors.
Log cabin installation
How did you prepare the space ready for installation, and how did you find the installation process?
We previously had a Waltons playhouse in the space we were using, so extended the area and installed a level, concrete base. We had power and internet cables installed underground. We then extended our patio area so that it went right up to the log cabin doors. Building the log cabin was so much fun! Like putting a jigsaw puzzle together!
Customising the log cabin
The finished log cabin looks incredible! We can see you’ve done lots of customisation to turn it into the perfect pub. How did you get the cabin to the point it’s at today?
We want to use our log cabin all year round, so we installed insulation to the roof and flooring and put laminate flooring down over the top, so it can be easily swept and cleaned.
I had a vision from before we even ordered the log cabin, so customising it was relatively easy, from my point of view. My husband took on the role of the building and I was the designer! I knew the shape of the bar I wanted and fortunately, my husband is really clever and managed to create exactly what I had dreamed of. We didn’t want the weight of glass on the walls, but I wanted mirrors to give a true pub feel. So we went for mirrored acrylic which is much lighter than glass.
The frosted door decals and the hanging sign really finish off the exterior along with a landlord and landlady sign. We used Urban Slate and Natural Stone on the exterior and a dark oak oil for the inside.
Decorating the pub
What gave you the idea of creating your own garden pub?
My parents were Publicans when I was a teenager, so having our own village pub is something we’ve discussed often but never to the extent of actually going ahead with it! Even as recent as 2019 when a lovely little pub became available in a nearby village. We’re so relieved that we didn’t take our dreams further though, due to the global pandemic that was just around the corner!
This is the perfect alternative! Somewhere we’ll be able to socialise with friends and family, and make memories.
What was your inspiration behind the fantastic decor?
I always wanted a traditional-looking pub, with a dark bar and furniture, curtains and pictures etc. Even a last orders bell!
We love the name you’ve given the cabin. What, or should I say who, was the inspiration behind the name?
We wanted a traditional pub name, but something personal to us too. You often see The Red Lion, The Black Bull, The White Swan etc, so The Black Pug sounds like a pub name, but named after our 4 year old black pug, Betsy.
We have since noticed a couple of real pubs with ‘pug’ in their name!
The finished log cabin pub
How would you say you mostly use the cabin and do you get lots of use out of it?
It’s only been completed a few weeks but we’ve had our Sunday lunch in there a few times whilst watching the football. Oh, and a Chinese takeaway!
Our teenage daughter often sits in there with music on. She likes to go in there and clean all the bottle shelves, and we’ve all suddenly become a big fan of playing darts!
I’m certain that we will use it a lot once we’re to invite people over when the current restrictions ease. We lost my Uncle at the beginning of March 2020 and were unable to celebrate his life as a family, so we’ll be certain to get together to reminisce when we can. We have missed other family occasions such as my mum’s 70th, and my parent's 50th Wedding Anniversary, so we need to celebrate those events when we can. I don’t think Christmas, New Year, and Birthdays will ever be the same again!
Finally, are you happy with the finished result?
We are over the moon with the end result. It still has the WOW factor every time we open the doors. We absolutely love it and it is exactly how I envisaged it to be!
Have you got snaps of your Waltons Log Cabin you’d like to share with us? We’d love to hear all about it over on our Instagram or Facebook page! Or share it with us on social media using the hashtag #MyWaltons.
