The thought of hunkering down in a shepherd’s hut is especially appealing at this time of the year. Here in Dorset, we have had the first frosts this week, and waking up to a pale pink sunrise and listening to the gentle crunch of glistening grass underfoot can feel nostalgic. Evoking that bucolic scene, familiar from novels such as Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy, is something that shepherd’s huts are made for.
A shepherd’s hut needs to feel lovely and cosy, somewhere to hunker down when the frost nips at your toes. A wood burner is true to the heritage; picture the lone shepherd on the downs with his small pot belly stove getting a good fug up when it’s cats and dogs outside. Note small, you don’t need many kilowatts of heat in a shepherd’s hut. Any more than 4 or 5kw and the door and windows will soon be opened. One to two kilowatts is plenty, so our electric traditional cast iron radiator would serve you well. As it has a thermostat, which includes a frost setting, it’s easy to maintain a comfortable temperature throughout the year. We do fit electric underfloor matting, and more contemporary radiators sometimes too, so there is always a way to create that really cosy space you are dreaming of.
All our huts and cabins are built like a modern timber frame house, with a vapour barrier, breather membrane (it’s important to get the structure and layers right for it to breathe and perform properly) and Thermafleece sheep’s wool insulation sourced from the Lake District.
We recently dressed our showroom shepherd’s hut for the festive season, adding some rich tones of red and gold, layering up cushions and blankets. How would you dress your shepherd’s hut for the cosy months?
Plankbridge hut owner Gwennie, and her husband, are artists and makers in Northumberland. We asked Gwennie to share how she dresses her Snug shepherd’s hut for the festivities…
‘I hang strings of brightly coloured origami star garlands across the windows, bring in greenery to dress the beams, and hang a hurricane lantern from the hook on the central beam. And lots of candles, of course.
As the hut is used as a guest room for the family coming to stay over Christmas, and the hut is situated at the edge of a wood, I always light the path to the hut with small lanterns and add two big lanterns on metal poles by the hut door. On a starry night, the hut glows with a magical welcome.’
- Read Gwennie’s festive blog here
- Read our blog ‘How to hygge your hut’
Are you thinking ahead to next year and dreaming of your very own cosy retreat? We would love to hear from you and discuss your ideas enquiries@plankbridge.com
