It’s only 36 days until Christmas and I wish for a Whacky Tower Wooden Playhouse, in a green colour please with its yellow window and door and a pink shiny slide. To get to my playhouse, I would ride my Little Tikes Princess Cozy Coupe with its easy to grip steering wheel, opening drivers door and honking horn.
I can then race round the garden with my brother when he rides his Yellow DAF FX Pedal Truck with its high back adjustable seat and rubberised wheels, we can have endless hours of fun. And for when the weather is nice again, we could ask for the Jumbo 4 or the Giant Snakes and Ladders with an inflatable dice, a bright colourful mat ,eyelets and pegs, with plastic counters our friends would love playing with these in our garden.
Last but not least, my biggest wish is to ask for a Jumpking JumpPOD Trampoline 12′ (3.7m) with a fully integrated safety net to keep mummy and daddy, myself and my brother from falling off and hurting ourselves.
Christmas Deliveries
The putting back of the clocks, the dark winter evenings and the cold winter temperatures…all signs that Christmas is just around the corner. With just 36 days to go, the buying of presents is sure to be in the forefront of everyone’s mind.
With almost 4,000 products to choose from, here at Taylors Garden Buildings we are pleased to offer a vast range of present ideas catering for the whole family. Focusing on the younger members of your family, we can provide the dream gift this Christmas; choose between go karts, playhouses, games tables, play centres and much, much more.
To avoid disappointing your little ones this year, we are keen to make you aware of the last order dates to guarantee a pre-Christmas delivery.
Little Tikes Indoor and Outdoor Toys – before 1st December 2011
Football and Games Tables – before 21st December 2011
Ferbedo Pedal Go Karts – before 16th December 2011
Dino Pedal Go Karts – before 19th December 2011
Football Posts and Goals – before 19th December 2011
Sledges – before 16th December 2011
If in doubt, please contact us before placing your order.
Why wait until spring arrives before you start thinking about changing your garden?
The great British Summer seems to be getting earlier each year so don’t wait until spring before choosing a new Summerhouse or Gazebo, think about having your building delivered and fitted early and make the most of the lovely weather. Early ordering is especially important with some made to measure summerhouses as delivery can take up to 6 weeks.
With a wide range of Summerhouses available there will always be a style and price to suit all budgets. Traditional Summerhouses offer a good quality but relativity inexpensive choice and are ideal if you are after a classic design with fast delivery and easy installation.
Lugarde and Bertsch Summerhouses provide high quality made to measure buildings along with an incredible number of variations across their “off the shelf” ranges, but if you’re after a stunning top of the range building then look no further than HSP whose Old English Summerhouse collection offers some of the very best lead roofed buildings in the world.
If you would like a focal point in your garden but are not keen on a summerhouse then a Gazebo makes an ideal alternative. With unique designs across a range of sizes a Gazebo will create a relaxing shaded spot within your garden or offer shelter from coolness of the early spring evenings and those April showers.
Tuin and Lugarde offer a great selection of large open and partiality enclosed structures which are ideal for those who love hosting parties and barbeques and can even be used as a covers for hot tubs.
Garden Offices and Working from Home
With advances in technology, broadband and wireless internet connections and smart phones, improved communication between the office and home has made working from home a possibility. And with this, more and more people are choosing to do so with as many as 3.7 million home workers in the UK. Whether you are considering running a small business from home, combining time at the office with home and family or simply wanting to cut down on the long and stressful commute, a home office could hold the key.
It is important to create a dedicated and definable workspace; making a distinction between work and play. This is where a home office or log cabin becomes an invaluable asset, offering a space away from the home in which to create a productive working environment. There are more and more purpose built stand alone buildings now being manufactured to meet the increasing demands for home working and it need not be as expensive as you might initially imagine.
Some of the considerations you may need to make before deciding on a home office:
• How much space do I really need? Will it need to house more than 1 person?
• Do I need just desk space or will I need a storage area too?
• Will the office be used all year round and therefore need double glazing and insulation?
• Can I get electrics into it easily?
• Do I need planning permission?
• Do I need to investigate a change of use from the local council from domestic property to part business?
• Where shall I site my home office?
• Am I happy to adapt a log cabin, summerhouse or workshop or shall I buy a purpose built office which I can just move into?
• What is my budget?
• What are my timescales?
With the answers to these questions in mind, you will then be able to make more informed choices from the wealth of home and garden offices that are available. Taylors Garden Buildings have numerous garden buildings which are either dedicated purpose built home offices, designed to be installed and are ready for you to move into and work from within just a few weeks of placing the order. Others are log cabins, summerhouses or workshop style buildings which lend themselves to being adapted to suit your individual needs, both aesthetically and from a practicality point of view.
Having taken on board the growing home working trend, we have sourced an excellent range of dedicated, purpose built home offices from Henley Offices. We have a Henley Homespace Orwell garden office installed here at our show site near Norwich. This range comes fully insulated and the price includes installation which is carried out by a team of trained Henley Office installers who can complete the job usually in just one day. There are various options such as various external colours, window and door blinds, carpet (in some models carpet comes as standard) and even a desk and storage system in a choice of two finishes. These home offices have a 5 year manufacturer’s guarantee but in reality they have been designed to have a much longer life than this – approximately 20 years! These garden offices can also be taken down and re-assembled by the Henley Offices team of installers if you are moving house and want to take your office with you! Our display model office is fully fitted with carpet, Venetian window and door blinds and a multi desk storage system and we have samples of alternative colours available for inspection too!
More recently, we have installed our very own Log Cabin office at our head office site near Norwich. A bespoke model from Dutch manufacturer Tuin, this office was designed to fit our exact requirements. This log cabin has also been fitted with electrics, a service available through Langhale Electrical, and all other essentials required for a productive working environment.
Our customer service team are very knowledgeable about the products available, having dealt with numerous enquiries, sales and after sales service over the years. Please do not hesitate in contacting us if you require a home office or indeed any other garden building.
Shed Superstar Aaron Cook Aims for Olympic Glory
He is one of Britain’s biggest hopes for gold medal success at the London Olympics 2012, but before he makes his way to Olympic Village, he’ll be honing his skills in the garden shed. Taekwondo star Aaron Cook, 20, will train in a purpose built shed at the bottom of the garden, for the biggest event on next year’s sporting calendar, after withdrawing from the sport’s central funding programme in the run up to the games.
Cook chose the garden shed over the British training programme in June of this year, and has no regrets, after some patchy form convinced him that the only way to an Olympics 2012 podium place would be via the garden shed.
He began 2011 as the European under 80kg number one, but had slipped to fourth place by May and placed a portion of the blame with the British World Class Performance Programme. Returning from the South Korea World Championships without a medal, was the confirmation that Cook needed to suggest that the garden shed would serve as a better training ground and now preparations are in full swing, as Cook aims to regain the top spot in the rankings.
“My dad built it for me two or three years ago, it was just if I needed any extra practice. It’s perfect for me now though, because I have nowhere else to train,” Cook said.
“This is my commute. I come out to the back garden, train as hard as I can, then go back, eat food and sleep!”
The young taekwondo star believes his current regime will allow him to put the disappointment of 2011 firmly behind him, and believes there is no greater opportunity to set things right than the forthcoming London Olympic Games.
“It’s very rare you get to compete at an Olympic Games and to have it in your own country is even more rare,” he said. “Basically, winning (gold) will set you up for life.”
Author Neil Gaiman joins Shed of the Year Judging Panel
Neil Gaiman has agreed to join the Shed of the Year 2012 judges panel, in an announcement sure to get shed enthusiasts, and fans of fantasy fiction, buzzing. Author Gaiman is a hugely popular, and internationally acclaimed author of prose fiction, graphic novels and even TV and film work. His fantasy creations include the Sandman graphic novel series, plus novels such as Stardust, American Gods, Coraline and The Graveyard Book. Many of this genius author’s masterworks have taken shape within his very own shed, near Minneapolis in Minnesota; making him an ideal judge for another exciting Shed of the Year competition.
Of his own, rather unique garden shed, the author said “I had the gazebo built about 15 years ago and go through phases of using it, and then I’ll abandon it for 5 years, then rediscover it with delight.
“I love walking to the bottom of the garden, and settling down to write. Nothing ever happens down there. I can look out of the window and some wildlife will occasionally look back, but mostly it’s just trees, and they are only so interesting for so long, so I get back to writing, very happily.
There are heaters down there, because it gets cold here in winter, and blankets on the chairs, ditto, and I have to try and remember not to leave bottles of ink on the table as they freeze.
It’s just out of reach of the house wi-fi, too, which is a good thing.”
Gaiman joins fellow Shed of the Year judges Sarah Beeny and reigning Shed of the Year champion Jon Earl. It all adds up to the prospect of another thrilling Shed of the Year contest.
Taylors Guide to Laying a Base
Once you’ve made the decision to buy a new garden building, be it a shed, summerhouse or log cabin the next step is to make sure you have a good base, this is especially important if your building is large due to the weight the base needs to accommodate. Problems with the base could end up being costly with doors falling out of alignment, windows not closing, timber splitting or worse in the case of some log cabins an uneven base could cause the logs to move leaving unsightly gaps.
No matter what size of building the main points to ensure are:
1. Your base must be straight, level and square
2. Make sure it’s not susceptible to subsidence at a later date.
3. The entire area of the building must be supported across its floor
Ideally your base should be laid to the buildings footprint, this will allow any rainfall to drain away into the grass/gravel surrounding the base rather than hitting a solid base and splashing up against the side of the building.
There are three main types of bases that can be used:
A timber bearer base is an extremely easy solution and costs very little, although this method is only really suitable for smaller sheds and summerhouses. It is important that the bearers are laid on flat compressed ground, this can be earth, shingle or hardcore, it is never advisable to lay bearers on uneven ground.
Another simple method is a paving slab base which is ideal if you want to move the building in the future and if laid properly can support some very large buildings even log cabins. Again it is important to ensure that the groundwork is done correctly and that the paving slabs are laid on to a flatted level base. We suggest a mixture of sand and cement be used to secure the slabs in place, it is never advisable to lay paving slabs onto unprepared ground or to use sand to keep the in place as this will give you issues with subsidence in the future.
For a more permanent base and for larger sheds, summerhouse, timber garages and log cabins you will need a concrete base, this method is also ideal for corner or octagonal summerhouse where the base can be to the exact footprint. If you opt for a concrete base you will need to allow 3 -4 days for the base to dry before removing the shuttering, the edges can then be finished with a layer of pea shingle to make it look more aesthetically pleasing.
Depending on what building you are having or its eventual use, it is also a good idea to incorporate a damp proof membrane into the base, this is usually applied in the sub base.
Further advice on how to lay each of these bases can be found here.
Electrical Safety in Garden Buildings
The humble shed is fast becoming an essential part of peoples everyday lives, from storage of power tools to freezers, hobbies and even a place to escape for a little peace and quite, thousands of households now have electricity in their shed, but at what cost? Recent research undertaken by YouGov for the ESC (Electrical Safety Council) revealed that the garden shed could be a hazard to your health.
Constant changes in weather conditions and with many sheds not begin correctly maintained making them prone to leaks and mould, electrical equipment, wires and plugs can deteriorate and it is essential that they are checked regularly to guard against electric shock and that mains powered equipment should have RCD protection.
Of the top five shed hazards identified in the survey three relate to electrical safety.
Storing mains-powered tools uncovered – 32%
Not checking lead or plugs for damage – 28%
Using mains-powered tools without residual current device (RCD) protection – 26%
Storing of unsecured tins of chemicals such as weed and pest killer or paint – 38%
Leaving the sharp edges of garden tool uncovered – 58%
Source: YouGov survey for the Electrical Safety Council
It is also important to keep a check on the condition of the mains supply of electricity to your shed, has it become damaged? If you have recently moved into a property where there is already electricity supplied to a shed or out-building have you had it checked? Insurances could be invalid if electrical work is not been checked regularly.
To safe guard yourself and your property against electrical faults Taylors Garden Buildings recommends the services of Langhale Electrical who offer a range of electricial services, predominantly in East Anglia although they have undertaken work across the country. All of their work is certificated and building control is notified on your behalf. Free advice is only a phone call away, 01508 481629 or for further information visit www.langhale-electrical.co.uk
Why shop with Taylors Garden Buildings?
We think there are loads of reasons why you would choose us; these are just a few……..
Extensive experience built up from over 50 years of trading in not only retailing but also manufacturer and fitting, take advantage of our knowledge and back up services and trust in the knowledge you are dealing with an experienced, secure retailer both traditionally and online.
Consistently the best prices around for garden sheds and garden buildings throughout the UK with a price match service and a product range that is ever increasing and that is at the forefront of our sector.
We specialise in the manufacturer of high end, high quality garden buildings from a humble garden shed to a vast garden studio range. Due to the enormous ranges of sheds we have our manufacturing capability is reserved for bespoke garden sheds and buildings, please contact us for a quote.
We are an environmentally friendly and debt free privately owned company.
Unlike many online retailers, we actually exist in the real world and are therefore fully accountable, you can be assured you are being looked after by a professional company with years of trading behind them.
A vast range of products from Garden sheds to Log cabins with many accessories for your garden such as bird tables, bbq’s and outdoor toys.
Full customer service back up via telephone, fax, email, including our installation advice service, if required for the larger buildings we provide a contact number for immediate assistance with your installation during the weekends.
A wide range of payment styles and terms including BACS, credit card and purchase orders and of course for larger or longer wait items; we only take a 25% deposit.
All our range comes with at least a 12 month guarantee.
We only supply and install QUALITY products. We source garden sheds and log cabins from not only the UK but in Europe and Russia and go to great lengths to ensure their quality and longevity.
