How to turn your humble garden shed into an at-home gin bar with a little help from Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen

The Changing Rooms star is encouraging the nation to fight off the cobwebs, find a new place for the lawnmower, and install sleek lights, bespoke glass holders, and ice buckets for the perfect night in at home.

Laurence was given a timber shed to transform from woeful wood to an exquisitely elegant bar, which now features a fully stocked gin bar, LED lighting and sumptuous seating.

The design, commissioned by Craft Gin Club, the UK’s biggest gin subscription club, has been released with the original blueprints so Brits can bring the designer’s vision to life in their own gardens.

In a video tour, Laurence shows off his one-of-a-kind gin bar, sharing his inspiration and the importance of having a designated space at home to entertain guests.

He said: “There are a dozen and one uses for an old shed - a pottery studio, a dance space, painting studio or perhaps a spectral portal through to Narnia.

“When you are making yourself a gin-otorium as I like to call it, it’s all about the decadence - a slightly sexy, slightly nightclubby sensation that you and I recognise as that first sip of gin and tonic.

“For the bar, I have created a new style which I’ve called ginoiserie. It’s about colour, finish, luxury and texture.

“It’s about indulgence and joy and somewhere where you can drink gin. My gin bar is a celebration of all that is luxe and indulgent.”

Inside, the 6ft x 4ft shed comes to life with pops of blues and yellow mosaic tiling, Laurence’s bespoke wallpaper, a large banana plant, astroturf floor and eye-catching optics holding a range of craft gins from independent distillers across the globe.

Outside, four yellow hanging Chinese lanterns, decking with two green velvet bar stools and plump patterned cushions finish the look for guests to relax and enjoy.

When asked which celebrity punter Laurence would most enjoy sitting down for a drink with, he revealed: “The only celebrity I'd like to have a drink with in my gin shed would be Mrs Llewelyn-Bowen.

“My favourite tipple is basically gin in a vase, no tonic.

“A typical 'out out' night for me would be going to an incredibly glamorous dinner party for the A-List celebrities and minor royalty, and then to be desperate to get home to my gin bar.”

Jon Hulme, Co-Founder of Craft Gin Club said: “Over the past year, our homes have become our sanctuaries and investing in them has increasingly become a priority for many.

“During this time, our members have been enjoying the perfect G&T from the comfort of their own homes, and with the “new normal” encouraging a preference for multi-functional living spaces.

“Laurence’s design has taken the humble shed and made it something altogether much more wonderful.

“We taste over 500 gins each year, with only 12 making the cut for our monthly boxes, so it’s great to really get to show them off. I hope my invite is in the post for a gin at Chez Bowen.”

Laurence Llewellyn-Bowen added: “The heart of this scheme is in the colours. The thirst quenching dark blue sings against the incredibly dense green patterns all of which I have created myself. The yellow mosaic tiles really set the whole thing sparkling, almost like a squeeze of lemon.

“There is enough lime in the green of the patterns to really inspire you to want that perfect gin and tonic and I have assembled a series of accessories which really gives the shed that sense of a cabinet of curiosities.

“As you can imagine as the hours tick by on a Friday afternoon, my thoughts are with my gin shed.

"I am literally longing to obey the call of the wild - or the call of the gin - and spend some time at the end of my garden.

“The advantages are very plain. For a start, I don’t have to queue for the loo and I’m hardly going to short measure myself am I?

"So for anyone who tells you that the world is your oyster, it’s not! It’s all about the world being your gin and tonic. Cheers!”

The full furnished bar and a 12-month craft gin club subscription is available to win as part of a competition giveaway, open for entries from 26th August, 12pm BST. Visit @craftginclub for more details on how to enter.

Download the design blueprints to recreate the gin bar in your own garden at http://www.craftginclub.co.uk/ginnedmagazine.