Make your mark with a coloured garden office
Cedar cladding has become a hallmark of contemporary style garden office design, but it is not to everyone's taste or budget. There are some super coloured garden offices on the market. Ranging in colour from the soft tones of the New England look, to striking black finishes. This page looks at different coloured office designs, which may inspire your project.
Over the last few years black and dark grey exterior finishes, have become a popular contemporary alternative. We have to say are very taken with this striking alternative. Door and window frames are often colour matched with the cladding colour. Using one shade on all exterior elements can be very effective.
Black and dark grey finishes are offered by several companies. Often cladding such as Thermowood or Larch is stained or painted. Some companies apply black stain to Cedar, and others are adopting the use of composite claddings.
There is a palette of options for softer colour exterior finishes. Soft greys, greens and blues are always popular options that mix well with the natural colours of the garden. They look particularly good in winter when a burst of colour is always welcome.
The colour combined with the cladding profile you choose can have a big impact on the style of the building. For instance, mixing soft pastel tones with featheredge weatherboarding will create a building reminiscent of the houses of New England. Timeless Garden Rooms are known for creating this style of office building.
Painted cladding does not have to equal lots of maintenance
Some people fear that a painted garden office equals lots of ongoing maintenance. This isn't always the case. Many companies will initially paint the cladding in their factory so that it is applied in optimum conditions. They have chosen finishes which last for several years without repainting. Depending on the exposure, you would expect to repaint roughly every five years. Some companies offer to return and apply a top up coat for you, if you don't want to do it yourself.
Several companies now make use of manmade, pre-coloured claddings which don't require ongoing maintenance. They are pigmented during their manufacture and will maintain their original colour without painting. There are several different materials to choose from.
Cement based fibre boards are a popular option, particularly when building close to a boundary fence as they also have a low fire rating. The boards have a wood grain texture and are available in a range of colours. Executive Garden Rooms often finish their garden offices using cement based cladding.
Composite wood is becoming popular. It is a mix of real wood fibres mixed with resins to create a hard, plastic type finish. Some ranges have a wood grain surface, while others have a modern brushed finish. We have seen samples from various manufacturers and would say composite wood comes in varying qualities, so ask to see samples. It comes in several 'wood' colours and light and dark greys.
Companies such as Booths Garden Studios make use of colour coated steel sheet claddings which they mix with uPVC trims. Their buildings come with the prefix QC, this standing for a quarter century. The timeframe they estimate their buildings will be maintenance free.
Many bespoke garden office companies offer the option of powder coated aluminium cladding. This comes in a palette of RAL colours, so can be colour matched with the doors and trims used on the building. Swift Garden Rooms often mix sections of grey powder coated sheets with blocks of timber cladding, to great effect.
Coloured render finishes are becoming more and more popular in garden office design. Modern resin based renders are used, that repels water, but lets the structure breathe. They come pre-pigmented so don't need repainting and are available in a wide palette of colours. From slick whites finishes as used on this Garden Spaces building, to dark greys and blacks. Some people opt for a real pop of colour such as orange! Often, rendered finishes are mixed with timber claddings, making a feature of the mix of materials.
Examples:
Use the buttons to filter the images by finish:
- All
- Painted Wood Claddings
- Pre-coloured Manmade Claddings
- Coloured Render
Talk with a
Garden Office
Expert
Has this page given you ideas for your garden office project? Well, the next stage is to talk to a few garden office experts who specialise in creating personalised garden workspaces. They will work closely with you to turn your vision into a reality.