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Man's tropical steampunk shed up for national award

Alice Cunningham
BBC News, Suffolk
Luke Deal
BBC News, Suffolk
Reporting fromIpswich
Luke Deal/BBC Ash Robertson stands in the doorway of his garden shed with one arm resting on the doorframe. He wears a Hawaiian shirt with green shorts. The shed has the look of a log cabin with a swing hanging in front of the window. Luke Deal/BBC
Ash Robertson built his garden shed from almost all second hand items

A man who built his own "steampunk shed" is hoping his labour of love will win him a national award.

Ash Robertson from Ipswich was in need of somewhere to work from home when he and his wife welcomed their second child.

He decided to build his own shed, made of almost entirely of second hand items from Facebook Marketplace.

His cabin meets tiki beach bar with steampunk vibe, blending Victorian and modern elments - has been nominated as a finalist in the Shed of the Year awards.

Luke Deal/BBC Mr Robertson smiles at the camera inside his shed. He is bald and has a beard. Sunglasses rest on top of his head. Luke Deal/BBC
Mr Robertson said he was proud his work had been nominated in the Shed of the Year awards

Inspiration for the shed's exterior came when Mr Robertson found a wooden window for sale on social media.

This dictated the rest of the build and Mr Robertson made use of cheap cuts of logs from a sawmill.

The shed's wooden door originally had a square top, but when Mr Robertson opened the door it would hit the ceiling because he had not accounted for the thickness of the plasterboard.

Luke Deal/BBC A view of one side of the shed. A log furnace rests on the wall with a chair, cabinet and shelves dotted around it. Luke Deal/BBC
Inside the shed Mr Robertson has included Tiki bar elements along with steampunk Victorian ones

He explained: "I thought what am I going to do?

"I went inside... [and thought] let's have a beer and watch some tele and The Hobbit was on.

"I thought that's it, I'll cut the top into a curved shape like a hobbit house, so that just happened as a result of watching the film."

Luke Deal/BBC Another view of the exterior of the shed that looks like a log cabin. A swing rests in front of a wooden-framed window.Luke Deal/BBC
The exterior of the building looks like a log cabin and includes a large swing

'Who are you?'

Inside Mr Robertson has tiki elements including multi-coloured lamps, fish nets across the roof and more, mixed with Victorian styles of furniture and items.

He said he was most proud of the immersive interior which he described as "tropical steampunk".

"People can walk through the threshold and I say, first of all do you still feel like you're in Ipswich?

"Do you feel like it's 2025? No I feel like it's 1880, something like that. Where in the world do you think you are? What's happening? Who are you?

"It triggers this creative part of the mind that we all have... that perhaps some of us, certainly adults, as we get older you don't write stories like you do when you were a kid. It's such a shame."

Luke Deal/BBC Another part of inside the shed. A brown leather chair rests in the corner with a guitar next to it. Above it a shelf that lines the wall and includes games and books on it. Luke Deal/BBC
Mr Robertson has included a pull down screen in the shed to watch movies and there are other discreetly placed modern elements

The shed has been named Redondo Trading, inspired by Redondo Beach in California in the United States where Mr Robertson and his wife went on their honeymoon and where the tiki style bar originated from.

The shed is a finalist in the cabin/summerhouse category of the Shed of the Year awards and people can vote online for their favourite.

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