Hobby Thread - August 1, 2026 [TRex]

Welcome hobbyists! Pull up a chair and sit a spell with the Horde in this little corner of the interweb. This is the mighty, mighty officially sanctioned Ace of Spades Hobby Thread. For this week, the Wheel of Hobbies (TM) is feeling lucky and decided on a hobby shed theme for this Hobby Thread.

A what? A shed theme?

The backyard shed is not unique to England, but it is an uncommonly large part of British culture. Grok says "the sheer numbers, the affectionate cultural mythology around them, media attention, competitions, and the specific stereotype of the solitary (often male) shed-dweller" make it unique. "It is treated as a recognizable part of national identity in a way that is less common elsewhere."

Why? Grok says:

1) Housing and garden patterns - Dense terraced housing and relatively small private gardens (especially in towns and suburbs) made a compact outbuilding practical. Unlike larger American yards with detached garages, British gardens often had just enough space for a modest shed at the end of the plot.

2) Gardening and allotment culture - Britain has a long, intense tradition of gardening. Sheds naturally developed as places to store tools, pot plants, and escape the weather while still being close to the garden.

3) Weather - Frequent rain makes an outdoor but covered retreat useful year-round - something less necessary in sunnier climates.

4) Post-war DIY boom and class culture - After World War II there was a surge in home ownership, DIY, and self-reliance. The shed became the affordable workshop for ordinary people. It also fitted a certain British preference for understated, private hobbies over more ostentatious leisure.

5) Cultural psychology of retreat - The word "shed" itself has Anglo-Saxon roots linked to shade, separation, or a place of quiet. Commentators often describe it as a modern equivalent of the hermit's cell or cave - a small, controllable space of solitude and concentration amid busy family or working life.

6) Media and humor - British comedy, literature, and journalism have long celebrated (and gently mocked) the shed, reinforcing the tradition.

As the intro says, sheds are not limited to England. Sheds are also not limited to structures where you store your yard tools and outdoor furniture. For many, they are a usable living space that just happens to be separate from a main house.

Do you have a hobby shed? How do you use it? Is it a workshop? potting shed? craft shed? bar? gaming room? Did you build it?

If you don't have a hobby shed, what kind of shed would you have?

I wasn't planning on greenhouse content but many of the interweb sites on garden sheds seem to also include small greenhouses. Are greenhouses of interest to the Horde?

What are you hobbying?

Sheds may not be everyone's favorite but give the content a chance before you judge. Any hobbying space is in scope, so jump in with your basement, spare room or garage project space. In any event, the thread is not limited to to the theme. Anything (legal) you are hobbying is welcome. Even if the theme does not speak to you, you might learn something or be entertained. If not, find something else or offer something else relating to hobbying. If all of that fails, just check in and say hello.

As per usual Hobby Thread etiquette, keep this thread limited to hobbying. Leave politics and religion to threads elsewhere (unless your hobby is building or restoring churches). Pants? Nope. As always, puns are welcome and encouraged.

Play nice and do not be rude. Do not be a troll and do not feed the trolls.

Otty won Shed of the Year for 2026!

Backstory:

Otty's Hobby Shed 2.0 is a wargaming shed built by Chris Otterburn and his friends in 2024. After the pandemic we would regularly convene in his original hobby shed to play wargames. Ranging from Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game, to World War 2 Bolt Action, Warhammer 40k, Star Wars Legion and many more.

As time went on Chris realised we had begun to outgrow shed 1.0 and he set about planning to build a new shed - one that would not only be big enough to play the scale of games we'd dreamt of but also provide comfort and surroundings so we could enjoy meeting up to its fullest. Around this time one of our friends Scott Forrest had been undertaking his own real-life battle with cancer and when Chris started the Shed 2.0 build on his own we all started to help out in getting the shed completed so Scott could get to hang out and play. Sadly, as the shed neared completion, Scott was too unwell to visit and passed away in November 2024.

Since then the shed has become a place where we go to hang out, play games, have fun and remember our friend! We continue to play wargames, drink copious amounts of tea, laugh at the ridiculous misfortune when rolling dice. Alongside that we have grown our miniature and terrain collections. Recreating the forest moon of Endor for Star Wars, the desert battles and the battle of Foy from World War 2.

Impressive DIY project!

I know what you're thinking: "Who won Shed of the year in 2025 in the Workshop/Studio category?" Glad you asked. Mike Robinson lives in London but doesn't have much space. He built this tiny workshop on his back patio that opens and unfolds for use.

I'm impressed by people that make the most out of small spaces. As a dinosaur, I prefer more elbow room and space to spread out, but I am impressed.

Every three year old needs a garage of their own:

Now THIS is a backyard shed...

Don't want to build a pub in your backyard yourself? No worries. Just order one and have it delivered (if you live in New Zealand). The company is called My Little Pub.

Pick from several options, design and customize, and they deliver the pub on the back of a truck to your backyard. Think of it like delivering a nicer shipping container. The best part? If you move, you can take your pub with you!

Disclaimer: Ace of Spades does not endorse any specific tiny pub provider.

Origin stories like the Tyrrell Formula One team have built the lore and legend around great things coming from sheds. In this case, Ken Tyrrell bought a military surplus building and put it in his family's lumberyard. He successfully ran his racing team for years out of the small building. The shed was recently dismantled and moved to preserve it.

The story of the Tyrrell shed that began a Formula 1 championship-winning dynasty

I put this in a recent ONT, but re-posting here in case you missed it in light of the craftsmanship involved.

A tour of a bucket list tank museum visit qualifies for hobby thread material:

Did you miss the Hobby Thread last week? We did a Las Vegas travel theme. The comments may be closed, but you can re-live the content.

Notable comments from last week:

Words of wisdom:

"Because despite all our troubles, when things are grim out in that wide round world of ours, that's when it's really important to have a good hobby." Posted by: tankascribe at June 22, 2024 07:41 PM (HWxAD).

Reminder: if you put links in the comments, use a URL shortener and describe what you're linking to. Failing to do either or both makes you barrel-eligible. Don't make people click to find out what you're linking.

Send thoughts, suggestions and photos of your hobbying to moronhobbies at protonmail dot com. Or just email to say hello. Do mighty things.