She-Shed Chic

There’s no reason a garden shed can’t be pretty as well as practical. Lori’s backyard charmer doubles as a beverage station for summer parties. “People love to come in and see what is new,” she says. Here, she shares some of her favorite ideas:

Nooks and Niches. Line the walls and rafters with shelves, cubbies, hooks and nails for easy organization of tools and collectibles. A small cupboard or bookcase lends a homey air.

Fab Furnishings. Bring in furniture and accents that you like but don’t work well in your home, such as a small painted hutch or boho light fixture. “Expand your decorating style,” Lori advises. “Do something unexpected.” A concrete floor in a shed is a luxury, but a washable rug will do.

Ins and Outs. Decorate outside as well as inside. Consider signage, window boxes, string lights, birdhouses and weather vanes. Lori hangs a clothespin holder and washtub on the facade closest to her laundry clothesline.

Seasonal Storage. Keep seeds and other organic matter away from woodland creatures looking for a meal. Secure them in mason jars and metal fishing tackle boxes. Lori mounts a fake owl at ceiling height inside to discourage squirrels from nesting.

Above left: The garden shed is a work space as well as a gallery of nature-themed and outdoor treasures, such as bee skeps, flower frogs, brooms and even an abandoned hornet’s nest. Lori stages the interior with cottage comforts and wall art.

Left: Resident pooch Bert ventures out with Lori as she tends to her growing vegetable and flower gardens. Wooden bowls hanging on the door are handy for gathering vegetables and herbs.

Above: A former owner’s make-do workshop, the garden shed got a new look with olive green shutters and decorative sconces. The chimney atop the corrugated-tin roof is deliberately askew. Beneath the sliding window, the Craigs hung a trough-style chicken feeder that Lori plants with easy-care succulents. Anthony enclosed the vegetable bed with a wooden fence, using vintage garden implements as stand-ins for pickets.