Summerhouses

Lets start with some interesting background to summerhouses

In Scandinavian countries, a 'sommerhus' is a second home - a holiday home or or cottage near the sea or in the picturesque countryside. Frequently equipped with saunas, ovens and fireplaces, of timber construction they can be used all year round. Many resorts in Denmark have high numbers of tourists who rent them at more attractive rates than hotel prices.

The Chinese were lovers of summerhouses. Used for meditation, and to rest and rejuvenate in peaceful surroundings, surrounded by their tended gardens.

British history searches trace their use back hundreds of years; Henry V111 had a summerhouse in the grounds of Nonsuch Palace to entertain his numerous visitors. In the late 1700's they were made in decorative ornate styles - 'chinese-esque' style was one example, and you could even have summerhouses made with stained glass windows!  As with many decorative garden features, their use was mainly for gentlemen's gardens - those with the funds to afford to impress and entertain.

By the end of the last century summerhouses had found their way into cottage gardens. It is said that while Mrs Beeton toiled in her kitchen with the cooking, her husband Samuel wrote his book "The Dictionary of Everyday Gardening" in which he recommends the use of rustic summerhouses.

George Bernard Shaw had a 'writing hut' which was essentially a summerhouse. He is quoted to have said "People bother me" and "I come here to hide from them" It was rather like a tardis - far bigger in the inside than it appeared from the outside and very well equipped for his needs. He could give it a hefty push as it effectively sat on a type of 'lazy susan', and his windows then caught more natural light and sunshine for warmth. How ingenious was that!

THE MODERN DAY

Summerhouses are now a cost effective way to create your own sanctuary,home office, studio, teenagers den- the list goes on.

Now relax, imagine throwing open the doors to sit on the verandah of your summerhouse in peace and comfort, or opening the windows to catch a gentle breeze. Furnish it to your own taste - make it as individual as you are. The natural wooden finishes of Garden Oasis summerhouses are soothing and blend in with natural surroundings, but if you want yours to look unique, then paint it using cuprinol or similar woodstain - made in a wide range of colours. Restaining will be required every few years to maintain appearance.

Planning permission is not normally required  with any summerhouses sold by Garden Oasis unless you are erecting a very tall/large summerhouse, or intend to site one to the front of your property - our product details will give you more information on this. If in doubt just telephone your local planning department for clarification. We don't sell the huge ones which could be used as second homes or public park retreats, our range is designed for garden use.

Summerhouses are part of British tradition, and here we list some of the ways you may want to use yours:

Home Studio/Hobby Room

Do you have an engrossing hobby, where a place to escape and enjoy it without interruption would be your idea of heaven? Do you enjoy writing, knitting, sewing or creating poetry? Do you enjoy making scale model airplanes or oil painting or sketching? The list of hobbies you can enjoy without the guilt of seeing routine domestic tasks that can wait under your nose, or your partner or children interrupting you - utter bliss. We all deserve 'me time' - so stress relieving - and an ideal setting for yoga  or exercise enthusiasts.

Home Office / Study

Using W-Fi and laptops or tablets you can work from your summerhouse, without the distractions being 'in the home' can create. Save time on commuting, and associated costs. Are you or members of your family needing to be alone to study or revise for exams? Your summerhouse is the perfect setting, undisturbed - just leave your mobile in the house or on silent mode-  and don't be tempted to surf the net! Write reports, essays, briefings, etc.No TV or family members to distract you or perhaps your teenage prodigy who needs to be taken away from the distractions of modern life to knuckle down and study.

Outdoor Games Room 

Set up your favourites games and invite your friends around. A game of chess or a card table with a long cool drink or a glass of wine? How heavenly does that sound. Your children can set up a playroom for their make believe games - little girls with their shops, dressing up outfits and teasets; little boys with their Lego, dragons and 'dens'. Then if you have visitors arrive in your main home you wont have to disturb their play to carve a path to your front door!

Enjoy the Garden in All Weather

If the British weather is mixed or uncertain - is it ever anything else?then use your summerhouse as an extension of your home to enjoy at close hand the scents and delights of your garden up close. Watch the wildlife - the butterflies, bees and birds you have encouraged to enter your garden. Listen to the peace and quiet - even a drizzle of rain sounds softer and less disappointing when you are relaxing or curled up in your summerhouse, perhaps with your favourite book you are longing to read. It may evoke happy memories of childhood - did you ever have a caravan holiday and love listening to the rain tapping on the caravan roof when you were in bed?

A summerhouse is an extension to your home

An extra room - but outdoors, away from the TV and the Net, you can take afternoon tea and enjoy each others company and conversation. Then if you have children with you, watch them enjoying the fresh air in the garden as they let off steam and use their pent up energy, while you maybe relax with the newspaper or your favourite book or magazine.   Bliss.

A summerhouse can be a childrens den

Sadly we mainly can't let our children out to play in the streets or fields nowadays. What happy memories so many of us retain of outside play without grown ups watching in fear for our safety. Your children need 'space' as much as you do. Do you remember the  Enid Bylton Secret Seven stories? The children and Scamper the dog would  hold meetings in their shed to plan their next adventure. They had secret passwords to be told before anyone could enter. Your summerhouse could be the perfect, safe meeting place for your children and their friends. Just supply them with a tray of sandwiches, cakes, and ample drinks and they will leave you in peace for hours. How much better is that for their health and wellbeing than just sitting alone at the computer playing attack games in cyberspace? They wont care what the weather is like either, and you may find them pleading with you for permission to use it for a sleepover party. With a summerhouse as their 'den' you won't have children complaining they having nothing to do, or that they are bored and then get under your feet.

A summerhouse as a changing and relaxing room

Need a rest or lunch during your day tending your garden, but not wanting to go back inside your home? Take your packed lunch with you into the garden in the morning, and stop to enjoy it perhaps when the sun is too high in the sky.  Do you have visitors staying - they will love to relax in your summerhouse, as will the elderly, who love the peace and wildlife.  Of course if your family is one of the few who have the luxury of an outdoor pool, what better place to change and dry off afterwards than your very own summerhouse, positioned conveniently for pool users.

So you can see the possibilities for uses of summerhouses are endless - incredible havens when the weather is glorious; retreat from inclement weather without giving up 'being in the garden' when the sunshine turns to showers, or the sun goes down.

Now all you need to do is just peruse our range of brilliant, competitively priced models of summerhouses to find the one that suits your needs. Remember delivery is free (certain postcodes excepted), and if you have any questions just pick up the phone or email us - we are here to help at Garden Oasis.