There’s nothing quite like a summer house to escape to at all hours of the day! Especially if your garden building has been decorated to reflect your tastes, it can become a real haven. Here at Waltons, there’s nothing we love more than a stunning summer house - Zoe’s garden building has been a labour of love, and we’re very pleased that she shared it with us!
A theme is a wonderful way to completely transform your summer house, which is exactly what Zoe has done with her appreciation for Harry Potter.
Zoe chose to transform the 9x9 Premier Corner Summer house.
Why did you choose this particular summer house?
After hunting around for a good size corner summer house that would let in loads of light and not require any planning permission, I finally hit on the Waltons website.
The 9'x9' had enough space to fit the sofa I already had and allowed me to add extra shelves and a coffee table. Brilliantly, the ceiling height meant that even my 6' hubby wasn't likely to hit his head!
What inspiration did you have for decorating your summer house?
Initially, I had lots of different ideas for decorating it, some quite sophisticated and grown up, but they weren't really 'us' - we are a real geek family.
Spotting a Harry Potter 'Room of Requirement' metal sign in a gift shop was my lightbulb moment and the idea of 'Hagrid's Other Hut' was born.
As a HUGE Potter fan, I already owned merchandise from visits to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and the Studio Tour so the idea just grew and grew. I've also spent time crafting to accessorise the Hut, and all my family and friends bought me items for Christmas and my birthday - including a Niffler and a Snitch suncatcher.
Today the Hut is a real joy for me and always makes me smile. Potterheads love looking round and spotting things (like the Horcrux ring and Dobby) and non-Potterheads? Well, it's a conversation starter! And no-one has left without being Sorted into their House by the Sorting Hat.
What extra work did you do to customise your summer house?
I painted both the inside and the outside of the Hut, including ceiling and floor. It required patience - I wanted to get on with the Harry Potter decorating - but I'm so pleased I did.
The colour scheme fits in really well with the rest of the garden.
What are you hoping to use your summer house for?
We live in the North East, and even sunny days can be breezy or chilly. The Hut allows us to be in the garden but snug. It's been great for coffee with friends - there were seven of us in it on Christmas Eve! But I also love quiet moments at dusk with the twinkly lights on, reading a good book.
Are you happy with your finished summer house?
Delighted - the summer house was a fantastic purchase and we've used the garden so much more since we got it. The garden sofa we had had been purchased when we moved into the house eight years ago but it was very rarely used.
Now I wander out most days with my morning cuppa. It's given a chilly North East garden a new lease of life!
Zoe has done a wonderful job with transforming this space to make it her own; this would be a wonderful place for any fan of Harry Potter to spend their time reading the books all over again! If you’ve got a garden building that you’d like to share with us, we’d love to hear from you over on our Facebook page.