Shedloads of style in south Cumbria holiday home

As a Cartmel schoolgirl, Rachel Holcroft used to walk past a stonebuilt council shed which was variously used to house a truck and a steamroller for repairing the roads. Rachel, who grew up in nearby Field Broughton, would pass the old shed on The Causeway on her way through the village.

“I remember a lot of the local council workers standing outside, leaning on their shovels,” she says. “They kept the snow plough in there as well.”

The shed eventually fell out of use and, in 2010, Rachel and her husband, Ian, who live next door, were delighted to be able to buy it from the county council. Their plan had been to use it for storage but the building had begun to deteriorate, and Rachel and Ian decided to give it a new lease of life as holiday accommodation called The Old Roller Shed.

Although the shed had a water supply - which would have been used for the steamroller - the building was an empty shell.

“It was looking a little bit dilapidated,” says Rachel. “The door was rotting, the roof was going, there was ivy everywhere. It looked really sad.”

Rachel and Ian had the roof replaced using local Burlington Stone tiles and renewed the exterior woodwork. They replaced the old wooden doors with aluminium and glass doors which let light flood in and create a feeling of space, while remote control electric roller blinds provide privacy when needed.

The only problem is that passers-by are so intrigued by the contemporary looking building that they can’t resist coming up to the glass to peer in. Rachel spends a lot of time wiping away their handprints but she’s happy that people like the shed.

“It’s all good publicity,” she says.

Inside, the shed has been divided into two floors, with a bedroom for one couple created on a first floor mezzanine level. The ground floor has an open plan kitchen-diner and sitting room and a separate bathroom.

Linking the two is a ‘floating’ steel staircase with oak treads and toughened glass panels made by the Ulverston-based award-winning metalworker Chris Brammall.

Whatever Rachel and Ian asked for - from the mezzanine to display alcoves - Backbarrow builder, Joe Shaw, was able to accommodate. Rachel prefers neutral colours and a country style in her family home, but says The Old Roller Shed lent itself to a contemporary look, dark grey metal work and bright accent colours.

One of her first purchases was a set of coloured shot glasses from Asda, which cost £3 for four and are displayed in an alcove. She used the glasses as the inspiration for her colour scheme which is echoed in the red coat hook, spotty rug and multi-pendant light fitting, all from online retailer Wayfair. The sofa cushions, in the same shade, are from Next.

The same colours are used in the oil painting, by Allan Morgan, which hangs over the stairs and which Ian has owned for a long time. Rachel didn’t feel it worked in their own home, but says the colours tie in perfectly with The Old Roller Shed decor.

A heart-shaped driftwood wall decoration was bought from a shop in Longridge near Preston. The sofa was an inexpensive find on the Wayfair website.

Rachel says shopping locally is her first choice but if she can’t find what she wants, she favours looking for a good deal online.

A Bose bluetooth music system is hidden in a cupboard behind the flat screen television. The ground floor has underfloor heating and the floor tiles in the sitting room and kitchen-diner, which were chosen for their subtle markings, are from UK Slate at Flookburgh.

The kitchen, which was supplied by Webbs of Kendal, has a fitted oven and hob, microwave, dishwasher and fridge/freezer. The high-gloss handle-free cupboards, granite sparkle worksurfaces and upstand and glass splashback are designed to be smart, contemporary and easy to clean.

The high stools, which Rachel picked up half price in a sale, were from Debenhams. Rachel supplies guests with a starter pack of local food including Farrer’s tea, Unsworth’s Yard Brewery beer and cheese from Cartmel Cheeses.

The bathroom is from The Builders Supply Company at Ulverston. Rachel selected square fittings, including the monsoon shower head, wc flush panel, and door furniture, so that they would tie in together.

The distinctive curved sink was chosen to soften the effect. The patterned tiles in the walk-in shower were from Smart Tiles at Kendal, who also supplied the floor tiles. Rachel says the shower tiles lift the neutral decor:

“It was going to be a cream box otherwise - those tiles just give it something,” she explains.

Rachel designed a corner unit for towel storage and so that guests would have a place for their sponge bags and bath products. The unit was made by Cartmel Joinery and finished with a granite top supplied by Stoneworld in Kendal.

The bathroom has Elemis bath products, robes and slippers for guests’ use. In the first floor bedroom, the sloping ceiling means that the bed has to be positioned away from the wall.

Rachel says if sockets had been fitted in the standard position, low down on the wall behind the bed, it would have made them difficult to reach and potentially left cords trailing along the floor. Electrician Robert Coglan, from Backbarrow, came up with a solution of fitting a wooden pillar either side of the bed to house the electrics.

The pillars and other woodwork were made by Cartmel Joinery.

The bed is from online retailer Loaf and cushions, throw and lights are from Next with an additional cushion from Marks and Spencer. The chest of drawers is from Linen Stop in Kendal and the chaise longue from a shop in Longridge.

The carpet was supplied by Wilson Robinson in Grange-over-Sands.

Rachel says guests enjoy the outlook from the Velux window across fields to the village’s ancient Priory building:

“What’s really lovely is just to have a coffee here and look at the views of the Priory,” she says.

Outside is a decking area with space for a table and chairs. Metal railings and a flowerbed were designed by Rachel’s dad, retired coal merchant John Wilkin, and made by Robert Moorhouse, who has a workshop at nearby Field Broughton.

Rachel loves making sure everything is perfect for her guests. Her children, Harvey, 11, Annabel, 10 and six-year-old Charlotte, know that their mum is likely to be busy on one of her ‘shed days’ and help as much as they can.

“It’s better than I ever thought it would be,” says Rachel of the building. “I do love it but I still worry about it all the time. I still get nervous when people book in because I want everything to be absolutely perfect.” Some guests have already made return visits and The Old Roller Shed has firm fans:

Rachel adds, “One of my guests said if Carlsberg made sheds, this would be it.”

Give your home a tranquil tone:

LOOKING to emulate the stunning look of the Cartmel former shed-cum-holiday home?

Tranquil tints are the key ingredients for stress-busting schemes. A neutral palette is not only fashionable but visually restful.

Atlanta Bartlett, along with her husband Dave Coote, is co-author of the Pale & Interesting, a guide to decorating. They encourage people to take their pick from a sophisticated 'Chic White' scheme or 'Shades of Pale', a fresh interpretation of rustic.

Chic White

“When it comes to furniture and accessories, less is definitely more. Stick to one or two key pieces and allow them plenty of space to breathe so they can speak for themselves." "Soften the look with colour for accents and focal points.”

Shades of pale

“Take inspiration from nature's earthy tones and combine rough with smooth, geometric with organic, and light with dark. Furniture and accessories that show signs of wear-and-tear are like dear old friends - full of warmth and character.”

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