BirminghamLive has teamed up with the Halifax and Free Radio to get Birmingham talking about why we love our homes and what they truly mean to us. Every home has a unique story to tell - and we want to hear yours. Tell us your story and you could be in with a chance of winning £500 thanks to the Halifax.

When you’re thinking about your home, you should include the outside space in your plans.

Call it a man cave or a she-shed, you can make it totally your own.

Super sheds these days are more likely to have wifi and luxurious sofas than be a dumping ground for whatever you don’t want in the house. These are serious spaces where you can flex your interior design muscle and put your own creative stamp on it.

Here are some ideas on how to transform yours into an effective room, whatever you want to use it for - just like movie fan Paul Slim who's can seat 20 people in his cinematic shed to watch films. You can read his story below.

If life is chaotic and you need a space to call your own, then it's time to claim a shed for yourself.

If you've inherited a shed with your new home that looks like it's been there for many years, it might not even be watertight.

So don't forget to check that and its stability – you don't want your shed to take off with the first gust of wind with all your Beyonce memorabilia or Villa programmes you inherited.

Limited only by your imagination, and possibly budget, this shed is calling out to be saved from storing just spiders (unless that’s your thing of course!) and rusting spades – it needs to be transformed into your personal space and made the centrepiece of your garden.

It’s also the perfect place to relax, indulge your obsession or be totally creative.

You could dedicate it to your favourite team, making it the best place to watch the match uninterrupted – and you get to ban away fans!

It's your shed, it's your space, so you decide and you make the rules.

Once you've claimed or created the space, it's time to get practical and then creative.

Researching a theme for your shed will help you choose your colour scheme, paint choice and accessories, ensuring a cohesive look. Your design should be as individual as you are – but in case you’re a dedicated follower of fashion, you should know that the Pantone Colour of the Year is a mesmerising Ultra Violet.

Metallics are still very popular, with an intriguing 'rainbow metallic' joining the copper, rose gold and gold group. This statement metallic looks like spilt oil and is available in a variety of products that would work well in your shed, including glasses and cocktail shakers. Shed party, anyone?

One of this year's emerging trends is a calming, natural look with the emphasis on textures such as rattan and wicker, mixed with strong earth tones. This look would fit perfectly within a shed designed to be a relaxing, chill-out space.

Your neighbours will be looking at your masterpiece from their kitchen window, so make the transformation completely unique to you, both inside and out. They will be jealous.

Now, get in there and enjoy.

Mega movie fan Paul Slim from Stourbridge has a state-of-the art cinema in his shed

I used to have the living room and dining room knocked through to create a cinema room in the house. When my fiancée Nic moved in she wanted to get the house looking and feeling more like a home, so we explored all options and the cinema shed came out as the best and most exciting idea.

I generally watch a movie on Sunday nights with my friends, which has been a tradition since the 90s – but I don’t get to spend as much time in it as I would like… or as much time as everyone assumes I would. My mum also has movie nights here with her friends.

The shed wasn’t cheap, costing about £15,000 to build. It’s got a massive television, surround sound system and six sofas – enough for more than 20 people to sit in – as well as games consoles, hot and cold drinks, movie memorabilia and snacks. If the house isn’t an option and you have the space, then a shed is definitely the way to go.

The best thing about home is knowing my shed is my space there if I need it and I can relax in it any time.


Tell us why you love your home and you could win £500!

How to enter: Tell us what you love about the place you call home and you could be in with the chance of winning £500, and be featured in our weekly Halifax Love Your Home round up. Perhaps you also have a unique outside space that’s special to you - just like Paul’s movie night shed. If so, we want to hear all about it. Simply visit birminghammail.co.uk/halifaxcomp where you will be required to submit up to 200 words alongside a photo on ‘what home means to you’ by 23.59 on Sunday 24 June 2018. You will also find our full terms and conditions by clicking here.

Halifax is a division of Bank of Scotland plc. Registered in Scotland No. SC327000. Registered Office: The Mound, Edinburgh EH1 1YZ.