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With warm weather on the horizon, you may be dreaming of spring and summer days spent in your garden. Now is a great time to think about getting your garden ready for those lovely days ahead, and what better way than to transform your outside space with a summerhouse.
A garden summerhouse will instantly uplift your garden and add style to it. A summerhouse will also provide you with an extended living area that can be transformed for whatever purpose you like, whether that is a home gym, a garden office, a hobby room, or a relaxing retreat.
Before you settle on a summerhouse design, there are many things for you to consider that could affect your final decision. To help you make an informed choice, we have put together a list of 9 things to consider when buying a summerhouse.
1) Position
 v2 small.jpg "4.2 x 4.8m Morston Summerhouse in Ivory")
The first thing you will want to consider is the position of your new garden summerhouse. Would you like to see it from your home, or do you want a more secluded spot for your building? You may want your summerhouse to be the focal point of your garden, if so, why not choose to place it in a prominent position that is closer to, or visible from, your home? If you want your summerhouse to be a hidden away retreat, you may consider having it installed at the bottom of your garden or disguised amongst greenery.
 v2 small.png "2.4 x 2.4m Blakeney Summerhouse in Ash")
2) Size
You will also need to work out what size building your chosen spot can accommodate. To make the most of your space, you may want to consider a summerhouse with storage area, created with the use of a partition, or a corner summerhouse, like our Weybourne, which can neatly nestle into the corner of your garden to maximise the space.
We offer a no-obligation site visit to help you work out what size building you will need. Our friendly advisors will be happy to help measure the area and then make a recommendation for your ideal Crane Summerhouse.
3) Style
.png "2.4 x 3.0m Thornham Summerhouse in Sage")
Once you have settled on the position and size, you can move onto some of the more fun decisions, starting with what style of garden building you would like. Are you someone that is drawn to the charm of a traditional summerhouse or do you prefer the look of more modern summerhouses?
 v2 small.jpg "3.6 x 3.6m Wiveton Summerhouse in Farrow & Ball French Gray")
Thinking about the style of your home is helpful too: if you live in a new build home or a more built-up area, a sleek and stylish contemporary summerhouse may be the perfect fit, while a more traditional summerhouse design may better suit older homes or properties located in the heart of the countryside.
4) Roof type
 v2 small.jpg "3.0 x 3.6m Holkham Summerhouse in Black")
You will also want to think about what roof type you would like your new summerhouse to have. We offer many different roof types, varying from apex or pent to hipped or octagonal.
 v2.png "2.4 x 4.2m Thornham Summerhouse in Cream")
An apex roof summerhouse such as our Holkham, will stand out in your garden while also giving you extra height, whereas a pent roof summerhouse, like our Thornham, will look more subtle in your garden. Our Cley has a hipped roof, giving it an air of elegance, whereas our Wiveton and Classic Summerhouse make a statement with their octagonal roof.
 v2 small.jpg "3.0 x 3.6m Cley Summerhouse in Lizard")
Depending on where you place your building, the type of roof may also affect whether you need planning permission. As garden buildings are permitted developments, it is unlikely that you will need planning. However, there are other factors, such as living in an Area of Outstanding Beauty that may mean you should investigate it. If you are unsure whether you would need to apply, you can check by using our interactive planning permission calculator.
 v2 small - customer photo.jpg "3.0 x 3.0m Wiveton Summerhouse in Sage")
5) Aesthetics
The next consideration you may want to think about is the aesthetic design: what style windows would you like? What colour are you going to have the exterior painted in? Which roofing material are you going to choose?
You can choose the number of windows you have and where you place them, so that the design of your new Crane Summerhouse works with how you are going to use it. You can choose from plain, Georgian, or leaded windows on most of our summerhouse designs. However, some of our buildings feature floor-to-ceiling glazing, which will offer unhindered views of your garden while also allowing plenty of natural light inside.
 v2 small.jpg "2.4 x 4.2m Salthouse in Sage")
The exterior paint colour for your new summerhouse is also an important choice. Do you want your building to be painted in a colour that will blend in with your garden or do you want your new summerhouse to have more of a statement colour? Green shades will complement the greenery in your garden beautifully whereas darker or brighter colours will stand out more.
 v2 small.jpg "2.4 x 3.0m Classic Summerhouse in Cotton")
The roofing material you choose may seem like a more practical choice, but it will help to tie the whole look of your building together. Heavy duty felting is the standard roofing option on most of our summerhouses, but you could have rustic cedar shingles, or slate effect tiles for a more contemporary option.
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6) Security
For security purposes, all our summerhouses are fitted with a mortise lock to give you extra peace of mind. Whether it is office essentials, hobby supplies, gym equipment, expensive furniture, or items of sentiment, there will be many things of value inside your new summerhouse, and the mortise lock will make sure they are adequately protected.
7) Year-round use
Now that you have decided on the exterior options for your garden summerhouse, the next thing to consider is do you want your summerhouse to be a year-round building, or just purely for summer use?
If you want a space to unwind and relax in during the warmer months of the year, then one of our unlined summerhouses, like our Classic Summerhouse or National Trust Summerhouses, would be ideal. We also offer summerhouses such as our Wiveton and Cley that have insulation in just the walls and ceiling to give you the option of using it during autumn and spring too.
 v3 small.jpg "3.6 x 3.6m Wiveton Summerhouse in Lizard")
A summerhouse being used as a garden office or a hobby room will need full insulation to allow you to use it comfortably all year-round. You may also want to choose double glazing for further comfort, and electrics and a heater to supply your garden summerhouse with power, lighting, and additional warmth.
8) Interior decoration
You will also want to think about your interior decoration to make your Crane Summerhouse as homely as possible.
If you choose matchboard lining, you will have to think about whether you want a natural interior, or if would you prefer to have it painted. A natural interior will give a warm feel whereas an ivory painted interior will add extra light to the inside of your building. You can also opt for a Farrow & Ball shade to really bring the inside of your summerhouse alive. As well as the walls, we also offer you the choice of having the ceiling painted. You can choose to brighten up the interior with both the walls and ceiling painted in Internal Ivory, or you can add colour with a Farrow & Ball shade, and even pair two of them together to create your perfect colour combination.
You can then choose flooring to complement or contrast your paint choice. We offer a lacquered floor that will help to protect the timber while also giving it a nice sheen, as well as four engineered flooring colours to complete your interior look. You can give your summerhouse a contemporary feel by choosing the grey-toned shade of Copenhagen or Shade Oak, or for something darker and more rustic, you can choose Heritage Oak or Dark Oak.
9) Base
After choosing your design options, you will lastly need to think about prepping the area for your new building. You will need a level, solid base of the correct size to support your building. We would advise you to have a concrete base as they provide the best support, adding longevity to your garden summerhouse.
You can choose to surround the base fully or partially with patio slabs or paving, but we strongly suggest installing a French drain between them to help protect your building. A French drain is a small trench that you dig around your building and fill with shingle, which will allow surface water to drain away. Without this step, your new summerhouse could suffer with damp caused by rainwater bouncing off the slabs.
From traditional summerhouses to something more modern, we have many different summerhouse styles for you to choose from in our summerhouse collection, which can be personalised to your tastes with our range of exterior and interior design options. The level of customisation you can have on your building very much depends on what style you choose, so for more help and guidance on which of our summerhouses is the right building for you, please do get in touch with us.
You can speak with one of our friendly advisors by calling 01760 444229, or by visiting us at one of our UK show centres. As well as talking over your summerhouse project with one of our advisors, you will also be able to see a wide range of display buildings when you visit us, which will allow you to see the quality of our buildings for yourself.
