Yep, we had a shipping container dropped in our back yard almost three years ago and have loved every single second of having it there. We are a family of 5 and even though our semi-detached home is on the larger side, we still lacked a good home office space. (And with three kids there was really nowhere quiet to work EVER!) Since we live in The Junction a shipping container is a nice nod to the areas history and I feel like she fits right in.
I love how she's tucked away at the back of the yard. Yes, I said she. We originally envisioned her facing the house along the back fence. However, the tree roots would have made it difficult to properly place footings so sideways she went. I actually prefer this look now, it gave us a larger rear deck space and extra privacy when you are actually in the shipping container. We are fortunate that we have a rear laneway so that's how the shipping container was delivered. It was a tight squeeze but she slid right on to the poured concrete fittings.
We have a large workspace, tv and couch. That's basically it! You can see from the floor plan that the square footage is not a lot to work with but it's a great use of space for us. Thanks to Toronto company Giant Containers, the container was insulated with spray foam, wired, drywalled and has an electric heater that we have set up on a smart thermostat. I think since one long wall is all windows, it actually feels much wider than 8 feet. To work around city by-laws and not need a permit, a 20 foot long container was cut down to 13 feet in length. A storage shed was added to the back end of the container and covered in black steel so it blends right in.
How lovely is our neighbours pergola? The vine has small white flowers most of the summer and with the twinkly lights it's perfection. Also, even though these are crummy iphone photos, how nice is it to see green? This is NOT what our backyard looks like in February, sigh.
Having the extra office space has been wonderful. What surprised us is how much we use the space as a family. Movie nights in the backyard, a quiet place for homework or a not so quiet space for playing the guitar!
We are SOLD on re-using old shipping containers for studios, storage, cottages and whatever else you can dream up. Speaking of dreaming, this is what I'm dreaming of right now. Not sure we have the room for it, but if we did.....