As Amanda Holden shares luxury garden room, a look at the rise of smart garden offices

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Amanda Holden has revealed her new luxury garden room in her extravagant Surrey home – as the latest to join in the rising trend of smart garden offices and high-end outhouses.

The Britain's Got Talent judge, 51, shared a post of her enjoying 'snuggles and bubbles' in the new stylish feature, which can be seen built on decking at the back of the garden, made aesthetically of wood and glass.

The luxury room is complete with a bar and comfy bar stalls, an even comfier seating area, a fireplace, and presumably other amenities out of sight, not to mention the hot tub tucked away behind it.

Read more: Want to create a garden office? 10 sheds to transform into your work space

"Thankyou @intothegardenroom for making bubbles and snuggles in the back garden even better," Holden captioned the post.

"Perfect for a sneaky afternoon disco nap too! #BoughtAndPaidFor #SupportingLocalBusiness."

Holden divides her time between her Surrey mansion, and a property in the Cotswolds, with her husband Chris Hughes and their daughters Lexi, 16, and Hollie, 10.

The architectural designer of the lavish garden shed, Into the Garden Room, commented, "Hi Amanda, We loved working with you to bring your vision for a stylish and rustic garden room to life - here’s to bubbles and snuggles for many years to come."

Many celeb pals loved the new addition to her home, with Rylan writing, "STUN", Saira Khan with "Love it", Alesha Dixon with a string of emojis, Vanessa Feltz with "That is the perfect idyll" and so on.

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But people aren't just after a room for a drink and a lounge – there are many reasons for the rise in luxury sheds. Posting on Instagram, Into the Garden Room says its creations also include "a gym around a tree, ‘hobby room’ for an old train collection set, a pottery studio complete with a kiln and pottery turntable, a cinema room, a garden room with a covered hot tub, snooker room, yoga studio and countless teenage dens and private garden room bars".

But what led to this rise in the high-end garden space? As with everything else, the pandemic has had a huge influence.

"People began looking at their homes with different eyes, fitting more activities into the same space than ever before, whether it was finding a place to work, exercise, socialise, or even carve out all-important time away from whoever they were living with for 'me time', hobbies, or other interests," Paul Ransom, co-founder of the company behind Holden's lavish hide-out, previously told Yahoo Finance UK.

Read more: Work from home, exercise, meditate: the never ending appeal of garden rooms

While there's much variety in the type of luxury garden room, including those fit for 'snuggles and bubbles', it seems the need for somewhere quiet to work after months of lockdown restrictions and working from home was what first made the trend more popular mainstream. People just weren't able to perform their best at work in their newly busy living rooms, bedrooms and kitchens.

The home office garden shed, aka the 'shoffice', grew in popularity as a serious solution sought after by many, and a big financial commitment, that those who were lucky enough to be able to make, desperately wanted to.

Read more: 12 cheap ways to update your garden for under £30

Watch: Man turns his garden into a proper SAUNA for less than £500

Smart Garden Rooms, Offices & Studios experienced its best-ever month in April 2021 when it achieved £750,000 of sales, more than double its monthly average, The Guardian reported last year. Managing director Matt Moss told the publication, "People don’t spend £20,000 on a garden room on a whim, thinking I might be able to work from home going forward. People are committed to this."

“Our level of enquiries amazes us every single day; that it is so consistent,” he said, adding, that “shoffices” usually do not require planning permission.

Would you be keen for a garden office pod or luxury garden room of some sort?

3 luxury outdoor buildings to transform into your work space

Farmer's Cottage 7 Seater Rotating Garden Pod | £7,999 from John Lewis & Partners

Crane Garden Buildings 3 x 3m Garden Studio, FSC-Certified | £9,999 from John Lewis

Shire Danbury 12x10 Toughened Wooden Cabin | £2,950 from B&Q