~~ A Flea Market Gardening ‘My Big Garden Project’~~
Like many of us, Kathie Schram dreamed about her potting shed for quite some time. Here is how she finally got it…
Creating a fun garden shed for play and work
Kathie Schram and friend
Kathie’s daughter already had a playhouse that her husband built for her that she is too tall to walk into anymore. He has skills! So when a friend of Kathy’s offered some rustic barn board siding for sale she mentioned to her skilled husband, Kevin, that she would really like to build a rustic style potting shed….a place where she could work on her gardening and keep all her supplies in one place.
It’s a truth we all know,…we long for a room of our own.
Kathie’s new shed and play area
Now, Kathy says, “My very talented husband has just finished the potting shed I have wanted for so long! He did such a wonderful job and now all my gardening things will be all in one place making my life so much easier! I love it! Just in time for planting season, too! Now I can’t wait to do the fun stuff… decorating the outside with flowers, plants and other Flea Market goodies!
Kathie’s existing deck faces the shed area
We’re in Northern Indiana. My daughter just turned 14….this is her swingset, and though she doesn’t use it much any more…. we decided to keep it for our great nephews and nieces. Everyone uses the pool, of course. I had fun decorating this week from garage sales and consignment shops. I’m in the process of putting slats in the chain link fence to camouflage the trash cans outside the courtyard. It looks like a white picket fence and sets the area off very nicely.
Kathie’s new shed, not as rustic as she wanted, but matching the house
A few days passed…..Kevin then came to me and asked if I had my heart set on having a “rustic” potting shed and couldn’t it be built to match the house. I really wanted a potting shed, so I compromised with him and this is what we came up with.
Roof lets in sunlight for people and plants
I especially like the translucent roof. That will allow me to start plants in the early spring with just enough light to get them going, but not too much to cook me while I’m working in there! Ha!
Rethinking and recycling
Initially, we were trying to save the roof from the old playhouse, but couldn’t figure out a way to rebuild a taller structure underneath the current roof. What we ended up doing was to remove the old roof completely, we removed the sheeting and shingles from it to lighten the structure of the roof itself. He was then able to rebuild a new body for the potting shed….much taller, of course. With the help of our neighbor and the bucket on his tractor, Kevin was able to lift the rafters back up on top of the new base structure and save that portion.
Lots of counter space to work or play
“We salvaged the windows from the old playhouse as they were in good shape, so we didn’t have that extra expense.”
Pegboard organizes tools
I love it! It’s small…..8′ x 8’….but just right for me. Love my container garden on my decks as well as my small vegetable garden that is roughly 35′ x 50′. I now have all my supplies and tools in a central location between the two. My Husband has his barn clear of the somewhat eclectic collection of decorations and gardening supplies! Ha!
Kathie created a courtyard in front. “I love my Courtyard!”
Sitting area just inside the gate
My new shed is compact and functional and that’s what I needed. It will also protect the young plants from the frosts we get in the early Spring in Northern Indiana.
We have just under two acres here. That’s enough to keep us busy and this will really help a lot!
“Touring” Kathie’s garden
Whiskey Barrel Fountain using an old Watering Can
Deck garden using old bricks from our sidewalk
“My Red Rocket Snapdragons are still blooming”
Another of Kathie’s tub liner fountains
Night time glow
7 Comments
What a wonderful recycle!! From a child playhouse to Mom’s! Your hubby did a great job on this & I love that you could ‘compromise.’ Oh boy, bet you are going to enjoy everything @ one location. Thanks for sharing your pretty garden ideas (love the use of the bricks! & your whiskey barrel/watering can fountain.)
Thank you Jeanne! I love my little Potting Shed! Best thing we ever put in the back yard! My Husband does have some serious carpentry skills and I am very lucky. I hope some of them wear off on me eventually. My Mother used to be an avid gardener, but I didn’t have an interest in it much until we moved here. Now, it’s my favorite thing to do! Love coming up with new and different ideas for my Courtyard. We just expanded it a little further this year to include more of our pool area, so I get to expand! LOL Glad you enjoy my ideas and thanks again!
Your garden is amazing….love those vibrant red snapdragons!!!!!!
So ready for the planting and flowering season to start!!!
Happy Gardening
Earlene
Thank you so much, Earlene! I love my little Courtyard and it has evolved significantly over the last year-and-a-half. Collect new flea market and garage sale finds all the time to put out. And new plants and flowers, of course. Looking forward to Spring!
What a terrific shed. So lucky. Love the working counter and the windows too so the breeze will blow through and keep you cool. That husband of yours is a keeper!! Donna at the Small House Homestead. http://smallhousebigskyhomestead.wordpress.com
Thank you, Donna! I love my potting shed and Courtyard. Yes, my Husband is a keeper….a very talented guy! Looking forward to Spring so I can get back outside and it’s green again instead of white!
I got an antique wheel barrow from freecycle.org. It was badly rusted, but only had one place on the lip where the corrosion had broken thru. The wood had completely deteriorated, so I don’t have any idea how to reassemble it yet. The reason for my comment is to share how I treated the rust problem. My brother told me to go to the store and get some rust kill. I went to Lowe’s and bought a product by Loctite not realizing that it only treats light rust. I called my brother back and he said to go to the auto parts store. I bought a product called Rust Kill by DuPont. This stuff works great! The key is to follow the directions exactly! I used a wire brush to remove the loose rust being careful NOT to remove all the rust. I then washed all the parts with warm soapy water and let them dry. This next step is very important…shake the can of Rust Kill for TWO FULL MINUTES. Spray the pieces with a light coat followed by an additional coat within a couple of minutes. The spray goes on clear, but as it dries it has a chemical reaction neutralizing the rust and turning the surface black. It also acts as a primer. I chose to paint it kind of a traditional red and black. Once I figure out how to put it back together I will post a picture.