Episode 5 - Wales Shepherd Huts
For our 5th challenge, we jumped in our vans and travelled to rural Wales - to the Llyn Peninsula. An incredible 5hr drive through the mountain tops of Snowdonia, to reach our destination, just passed The Rivals mountains, where our privately owned, luxury glamping site Brook Cottage Shepherd Huts were located.
Shepherd’s Hut week was a truly wonderful experience. We had made it to half way in the competition and I felt like I was building confidence and was starting to get further and further away from the quiet and unconfident person I was on week 1. However, this week was really quite a challenge. Not only because the square footage of the design was small but because the budget was also slashed! In times of less money - you have to get creative!
The Rivals Mountains, Llyn Peninsula.
We each got a different hut and design brief. I was given the Poacher’s Hut named Angharad, with the brief of rustic chic. The hut should echo the glorious landscape surrounding the retreat, specifically The Rivals mountains.
As always, I set about making cads of how I wanted the design to look. We were tasked with creating a bed, specifically out of marine ply, that would also provide storage for the hut as they were small - smaller than the measurements would have you believe in fact!
I felt that the design should really be connected to the outside. We painted mountain scapes on the walls and the ceiling was navy to evoke thoughts of the night sky. I added a sound box of birdsong which activated as soon as you entered the hut, which was meant to feel calming and as though you were outdoors.
The initial idea was to create a partition wall out of birch trees to separate the bed from the dining area but once I was in the space, it just felt too small to divide it further.
I tried to create bean bag rocks to use as stepping stones to get into bed or as extra seating. I repurposed an old door for the dining table which was fixed with brackets to the bottom of the bed to enable it to be folded down when not in use to create some extra space. I covered it with a perspex top so there would be a flat surface to eat from.
I made poachers nets to hang in the kitchen and repurposed old branches as curtain poles - like I said, when money is tight - get creative!
I finally managed to include some of my taxidermy for this design. It was a poacher’s cabin so I included a magpie, which is a really common poacher bird. If there was anywhere in the series I could include it, it was here! The judges didn’t love it but it’s a skill I have that nobody else on the show has so why not!?
We were also required to create a bespoke piece of art to display inside or outside the hut. I decided to try something I hadn’t done before - make a name plate for the hut out of resin. Fran and I collected wild flowers from the edge of the roadside to include in our huts and I used some of them for this project. Every penny counts!
For my custom made print this week, I really wanted to personalise it for the hut and the retreat as a whole. I hoped to incorporate personal characteristics of the site itself and its surrounding quirks. Because the retreat is a fantastic place for artists to visit and observe local nature, I included some art elements too. There is a chicken coop on the property and also a wildflower garden. Pickle the cat can be spotted roaming around the grounds too.
The finished Shepher'd’s Huts wallpaper.
One of my favourite elements of the hut was the corregated iron sheets for the shower enclosure, the fire surround and the outdoor bath area. I loved the rustic look it gave and it was quite practical too! The reclaimed galvanised tub outside was a really fun element, even if Alan did call me a a witch with a cauldron!! He he he…… I thought it was more Soho Farmhouse than Hocus Pocus but nevermind!!
Final pictures below! Let me know what you think!
