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A Work From Home Studio Built to Last

As working from home becomes the new norm, the trend is here to stay. 

According to McCrindle Research, the future of work is likely to be hybrid, with 61 percent of Australians looking for a mix of working from home and in the office. 

“It’s fantastic; I wouldn’t be without it.” 

Melwood customers Heather and Patricia were well ahead of the curve. Their work-from-home studio has become a significant part of their lives, having purchased their garden room in 2002.

“It’s fantastic; I wouldn’t be without it. I go around the back; I disappear, I come back for meals,” Heather said.

The former school teachers set up their outdoor studio to pursue creative hobbies like craft, woodwork, and card-making.

Two decades on, they hold fond memories of having their Melwood installed. 

“We found them in the Yellow Pages way back in those days.

Sometimes two women dealing with companies you get a bit of a ‘what would you know?’ particularly back then and we just found that everybody was really helpful.”

They chose the Melwood Verandah 15 with cedar upgrade, measuring 5.4m long and 2.6m wide. 

They added three double-hung cedar windows, a handcrafted cedar door, and pale eucalypt roofing.

Heather says their outdoor studio is an attractive addition to their garden.

“Because of where we are, backed on to a reserve, we often have people stop and say ‘geez that’s a great looking shed what do you use it for’?

She is quick to clarify; “it’s not a shed. It’s a studio!”

The garden room has outlasted its 10-year structural warranty and is also well maintained by its owners. 

“Over the 20 years since the cabin was built, we’ve been back a few times to buy the cedar shield to re-coat it because when Doug built it, he said if you do this every couple of years, it really does keep it in good condition.

If you look at it now, you wouldn’t think that it was 20 years old,”

The North Rocks residents say they would do it all again.

“With the experience that we had, we wouldn’t hesitate. We certainly got value for money. We couldn’t have done better.”

Melwood and Cedarspan are registered and trademarked brands of the Greenspan Group, a family-owned and operated company since 1976.


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