Art technician wins ‘Shed of the Year’ after getting ‘carried away’ when building his wife a ‘ghost-town chic’ hideaway entirely from ‘old junk’

An art technician has won the Curpinol ‘Shed of the Year’ competition after designing a ghost town-style garden shed.

Wayne Dawber, 50, from Crewe in Cheshire, also won an award for the most unusual and unique barn at the annual awards ceremony through a public vote.

His creation is anything but your average garden shed: Wayne collects ‘old junk’, including vintage signs, magazines and old product labels, to decorate his creation.

Wayne named his shed ‘Wrinkly, Rusty And Retro’ and originally built it so his wife Ruth could read in it while looking out at the garden.

He said it felt “amazing” to win, adding: “Apart from an egg and spoon race in primary school, this is the first time I’ve won anything.”

Wayne’s barn is built entirely from reclaimed and scrap materials, including corrugated steel, and features vintage signage and murals.

“I collected everything in the building from hard-to-find containers, junk shops, demolition sites and farms that were being cleared out,” he explains.

“I’ve been collecting bits and pieces for a while. I knew that at some point they would come together somehow. I’m addicted to old junk.”

He added that the use of corrugated steel, “found objects and the murals of old magazine advertisements” make his barn unique.

“It’s not something you would normally see in a garden, I think, more like a deserted, desert highway. I like to call this style pretentious industrial, ghost town chic,” he said.

It took two weeks to build the barn and another six weeks to create the murals, which are his favorite parts of the build.

“I think the interior murals are my favorites. They’re mostly old product labels that I found appealing and scaled up,” he said.

“I think they go really well with the wood paneling. I really enjoyed giving them the patina that they have. I wanted them to have an authentic texture and age, and I think I came pretty close.”

Wayne, 50, from Crewe in Cheshire, decorated the inside of his barn with vintage signs and hand-painted murals

It took two weeks to build the shed and another six weeks to paint the murals, which are Wayne’s favorite part of the build

He said the highlight of his shed was the addition of an “old bell, public address system and industrial light” to the front, but admitted he wanted to add more murals.

Wayne added: ‘It was tempting to continue, but I wanted to create a balance between the painted surfaces and the raw materials of the structure.

“I built the shed for my wife, Ruth. She wanted a place to store her garden tools and a quiet place to sit out of the elements to read and look at the garden. I got a bit upset.”

Winning the ‘unique’ category is a testament to his individuality, he explained. He said: ‘The general public also voted me as the winner in the ‘Unexpected/Unique’ category, which I still can’t quite believe.

‘That strangers find me worthwhile means a lot to me, because it means they actually like what I’ve made. As an artist/designer trying to make things work, it’s an affirmation that maybe I’m good at what I do.

‘Also, the fact that I am at the top of the ‘Unexpected/Unique’ category also fits in with how I think about my individuality.’

Wayne, who also won the Unexpected/Unique category, said it felt “amazing” to come first in the competition

The shed, called Wrinkly, Rusty And Retro, is made entirely from reclaimed and scrap materials, including corrugated steel

The walls are decorated with brightly colored vintage plates, while the ceiling looks like a patchwork of patterned paper

Wayne’s shed, where he keeps his garden tools, is also equipped with a vintage red leather chair and a high table

Wayne thanked his friends and family for their support, ‘no matter how biased they may be’, and expressed his thanks to Andrew Wilcox, the competition’s founder and head judge, and Marianne Shillingford, creative director and colour expert at Cuprinol.

Mr Wilcox, who has organised the Shed of the Year competition for 18 years, said: ‘As we approach the competition’s 20th anniversary, it’s amazing to see the incredible new heights our entrants reach each year.

‘At the height of and just after the pandemic we saw the resurgence of the pub shed and people getting inventive with their outdoor workspaces. This year we have seen a real trend to push the boundaries with upcycling and being bold with structures.

‘Wayne has entered two different sheds into the competition before, so I guess what they say is true: third time’s the charm! “Wrinkly, Rusty And Retro” is a great representation of the hottest trends we saw this year, with ultimate artistic finesse.’

Wayne is the first winner of Shed of the Year to receive an overnight stay in nature as part of his prize. He also receives £1,000 cash and £250 worth of Cuprinol products.