Have you been dreaming of a truly unique way to enhance your backyard’s atmosphere and ambiance? With a custom-built shed, you can create a dedicated space that showcases your unique personality and interests as you entertain those who matter most to you.
Whether you have a longtime vision for your own personal escape or are looking for some inspiration to get started, these 5 shed ideas can help you kickstart the creative process. From a place to create your favorite BBQ dishes to a home library, we have you covered.
1: Build a BBQ Shack
Are you someone who loves the taste of savory, smoky, bold flavors? Have a passion for slow cooking? You could turn your shed into a personal BBQ shack to serve your latest creations while gathering with friends and family!
With a little advanced planning, your shed can equip you with all the tools you need to bring your dream dishes to life. Wire your shed with an electrical connection, save space for a deep freezer, and create a custom cooking and counter layout for all your barbecuing equipment. You can even add a serving window to give friends and family an authentic outdoor dining experience.
Keeping in mind that barbecuing requires an intense amount of heat, there are a few unique advantages that a custom shed can offer as your own personal BBQ shack. For example, you can select features like custom wall heights, window configurations, and oversized door sizes for maximum ventilation. Strategically placed fans and even a vent hood can help keep you cool and comfortable on warm summer days.
If you are planning to use heat to prepare food in your shed, we also recommend keeping a fire extinguisher within arm’s reach at all times. This will help prevent any potential fires from spreading and keep your shed and those around you safe while you are preparing your favorite meals.
16X24 Nantucket with cupola, 10’ overhang with open truss design, Trex® decking, PVC-wrapped square columns, 8’ sliding doors, and vinyl siding
2: Create an English-Style Pub (or Continental Tavern)
Pub and bar sheds have quickly become some of the most desired custom shed designs. With New England’s rich history influenced in part by British culture (and of course the revolutionary Continental spirit), you can create your own personal pub that brings all the comforts of a cozy booth to your backyard.
Some design inspirations you could add to your pub shed include:
- A large, open service window for guests who want to dine outdoors
- A covered outdoor seating area with a built-in bartop and serving window
- Built-in interior wooden bartops and back-bar shelving
- A plumbed in bar sink and dishwasher
- Wooden booths and tables
- Custom window placements near each table
- Electrical connections for air conditioning, fans, a refrigerator, taps, and other electronics
- A WiFi signal extender to work out of the house
- Large screen TV for streaming the next big match
Unlike most types of bar sheds, a pub shed typically includes design features like indoor seating. Depending on how you want to design your pub interior, you could choose from a wide range of shed styles or a fully custom large shed that offers more floor space.
3: A Fan Cave
Are you a passionate collector or a fan of a specific sports team or media franchise? Turn your shed into the ultimate fan cave for whatever excites you the most. Whether you want to deck the walls and floors with your favorite sports team’s memorabilia or make your own personal superhero hideout, you can do so in your own personal escape!
For a more complete experience, you can also outfit your fan cave with climate controlled air conditioning, built-in shelving, and heating and cooling for year-round use. You’ll be able to cheer on your favorite team no matter what the weather looks like outside.
12X16 Cohasset with custom cupola, transom window, window boxes, frieze board trim, and ramp
Front and back transom windows shine extra light in for a more inviting space.
4: Home Theater
Whether you wish to extend your fan cave with a television or projector screen or you prefer a more classic aesthetic, you can also use your shed to create a personal home theater. Electrical connections along with strategically placed shelving and windows can help create the ultimate viewing experience. You can watch your favorite programming during any time of day without having to worry about glare or expending the time and frustration to wall-mount your dream speakers.
Have a specific seating arrangement in mind? A custom shed can also be sized to your preferences so that you do not have to struggle to fit your favorite sofas or chairs into your new theater.
5: A Private Library
Have you ever seen home libraries in movies or shows set in decades past and wanted one for yourself? You can easily transform a shed into the private library of your dreams to house all of your favorite books and create a cozy personal escape for you to get lost between the pages.
When you are planning your shed design, you can also add custom built-in shelving to ensure that your current collection is properly organized while leaving enough space for future additions. Large transom windows and skylights can help brighten up your space and make for a pleasant reading environment. Similarly, custom countertops can also be installed if you want to have a reading desk near a window or in a comfortably secluded nook.
For any bibliophile, we also know that moisture can threaten the integrity of our favorite books. By insulating windows and doors, placing a climate control system in your library, and installing a dehumidifier, you can ensure that any humidity during the warm months doesn’t harm your most beloved volumes.
Design a Unique Shed for Your New England Home
Have a unique shed idea that you just can’t wait to bring to life? Like you, we’re big dreamers. We would be delighted to help turn your one-of-a-kind vision into a reality!
Since 1962, Post Woodworking has designed and built countless sheds for homeowners across New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Southern Maine. Using only the highest-quality materials, our professional shed team will build you a personal escape that you can return to for years to come. To get started, check out our shed styles and design your own dream building using our Shedview tool.