Vox populi!  The people have spoken!  Judy Ashley of Ipswich MA is the proud owner the 2011 Reeds Ferry Shed of the Year. Judy takes home the $500 grand-prize. (Note: There is no trophy. We consider “the shed” itself to be the trophy, but we are still debating the separate trophy idea after our 2010 winner was injured attempting to put their shed up on the mantel.)

Judy had her attractive Victorian Cottage installed back in May. Please know that Judy isn’t like one of those mothers on Toddlers and Tiaras, but she sensed her shed was special, and possessed a spunk and charm that would shine through to the voting public and the pageant committee, so she immediately uploaded a photo of her newborn for prize consideration.  Her hunch paid off with 39% of the vote. (160 votes total)

When we told Judy she had won the $500 she said, “Aw shucks; the honor of winning the award is enough. I don’t need the $500″. We were truly impressed, but we reminded her that even the winner of the Nobel Prize accepts a cash award of over a million dollars and there was no harm in taking the money. Begrudgingly she agreed to accept the $500, and then asked if we knew how she could enter her shed for the Nobel Prize.

Thanks Judy for choosing Reeds Ferry, supporting our contest, and having some fun with us. The same goes for all the finalist; everybody was a good sport. All the runner-ups will receive consolation prizes, which include great seats for a Bruins game, $100 restaurant certificates, and ski passes to Sunday River. There were no losers.

2nd Place -109 Votes                                    Patrick Timmins,Tyngsboro MA Patrick did a lot of customization on his shed. A great job. We especially like the light fixtures that frame the door. Mr Timmins has a definite eye for detail.

3rd Place -63 Votes                                      The Sullivans, Wilmington MA              A well kept shed in a beautifully landscaped backyard. No joke, the Sullivan’s yard looks like “Amen Corner” at Augusta National. Reeds Ferry is very proud they chose our shed to be part of it.

4th Place  -46 Votes                                     Monika Andersson, Reading MA         According to her profile pic Monika just got married. Congratulations! No doubt every newlywed could use $500, but we’ll hook them up with a consolation prize that will help with the entertainment budget.

5th Place   -34 Votes                                    Robert Sparkes, Billerica MA                  If you looked up “shed” in the dictionary this would be the picture. Bob chose a classic style with an unpretentious carriage. We appreciate the “classics”.

Reeds Ferry thanks all the contestants and voters in this year’s contest. Over 400 votes were cast! We were hoping for 23!  Frankly, we know a lot more about building a quality shed than we do about “social media”, but we really enjoyed this opportunity to be “social” with some of our customers; you folks are the best.

If you stumbled into this article and would like to enter your Reeds Ferry Shed in the 2012 “Shed of the Year” contest, click this link and upload your photo on our wall.  Thanks again, and we’ll see you in 2012!

Welcome to Reeds Ferry

I forget that when I talk about “sheds” many people don’t care what I’m saying.  For example, last year I was pointing out to a lady the construction advantages of Reeds Ferry’s double-top-plate. After about 15 minutes she screamed  “shut-up!” This reminded me that not everybody gets as excited about sheds as I do.

But today when the gentleman asked me for the meaning of “dormer” I was hyped and happy to help.  I told him, “A dormer is a structural element of a building that protrudes from the plane of a sloping roof surface. Dormers are used to create usable space in the roof of a building. Dormers with windows provide additional light and ventilation.” Then I explained the many types of dormers, followed by the history of dormers from the early 1600′s in Ireland, through the tudor period.  It was at this point he screamed, “shut-up!”

Annoying my non-existent blog audience is better than annoying actual customers, so I’ll finish my dormer demo here. Below are the two dormer types offered at Reeds Ferry.

Reeds Ferry -Grand Victorian with "Shed Dormer"

This dormer type is known, oddly enough, as a “shed dormer“. A shed-dormer is where the dormer roof line is parallel to the main roof eave line.

Reeds Ferry Shed with Gable Dormer

The style below is called a “gable dormer”, or an “A-frame dormer”.  Whichever you choose, you’ve a good looking shed with added space and visual interest. Stop in to see me at Reeds Ferry Sheds. I’ll explain the ins and outs of both styles, and you can scream “shut-up!!!”       -The Shed Ferry

Remember back in the ’70′s when you moved? You would tell the gas, phone, and electric companies; fill out a simple form at the post office, and slip a note to your milkman. Not so simple anymore!  Today if you’re a business and you move you have to edit 5-billion online locations where your old business address was mentioned. Reeds Ferry Sheds expects to have this portion of our move completed by late 2032. (an optimistic estimate)

We’d have these address changes done in half the time, but come to find out, important online sites like Yelp, Yellow Book, Flickr, Google Maps, Mantra, have no association with actual human beings. For example; the photo below is from the 2010 Yelp Christmas party. (The Shed Ferry has learned the “server” on the left was intoxicated, and later was removed from service for “harassing” the server on the right.)

So… Here’s the thing… If you go to Reeds Ferry Sheds, and it feels odd that a respected company like Reeds Ferry would  be conducting business out of an empty building located on a desolate lot… Then you found our old address on the “world wide web”. We are NO LONGER on Industrial Drive; now we are on Rt 102 at 3 Tracy Lane in Hudson.

We apologize if you chased a goose, and we’re working feverishly to make all online address changes. The good news is I just received an email from Yelp that they’ve received our address change request, and if we can triple-confirm that we are who we say we are, they will consider making the change by Christmas 2019. Things are looking up… Sincerely -The Shed Ferry

The first was during the winter of 1852 when it snowed 123 straight days. I can’t tell you exactly how much snow there was because in the mid-nineteenth century snowfall was not precisely measured; instead it was estimated by comparison to a person’s horse. (Knee high, half-a-horse, etc)  Still, for generations 1852 was remembered as the only “nostril high” winter on record. (6-to-7 feet, depending on the type of horse and nostril size.)

The second is this winter, the winter of 2011. Even without a horse you can tell we’re a tad over “nostril high”. Despite these conditions me and the boys here at Reeds Ferry have been installing sheds throughout the winter… Through rain, snow, sleet we tread, to deliver on-time a quality shed… (borrowed from the US Postal Service).  Admittedly the delivery takes longer because we have to clear the area of snow in the homeowners yard before the installation can begin. The installation shown in the photo below took an extra 12 minutes. (Note, the photo has been doctored for dramatic effect)

Now we’ve made it all the way to late February. Can you smell spring in the air?!  Me either… But to my recollection there’s never been an odd-numbered year without one.  Continue spending these long winter nights dreaming of a brand new shed and we’ll see you this spring at Reeds Ferry. -Sincerely, The Shed Ferry

The Academy nominates sheds based upon uniqueness of design, quality of construction, and symmetry with the environment.  At the nomination press conference the Academy noted the Grand Victorian’s ability to seamlessly meld with the backdrop, resulting in an overall improvement of the setting.

Reeds Ferry - Shed of The Year Nominee

The Academy of Shed Arts & Construction Science was formed about a month ago by The Shed Ferry as a means of showing pretty pictures of Reeds Ferry Sheds. Current Academy membership stands at one, but the membership-committee has set a goal to double that number over the next 12 months.

The Shed of The Year will be awarded in January at the Academy’s annual banquet held at the Kowloon Restaurant in Saugus MA. Attendees are urged to make arrangements as soon as possible as seating may be limited depending on which booth we are assigned.  -The Shed Ferry

Yet despite having a blog audience of zero, the internet is like putting a note in a bottle and throwing it in the ocean; you never know who might accidentally stumble upon your ramblings. This was proven to me when 2 days after my first post I received an anonymous email. The sender was compelled to reply to my first post with a well thought out question. It read: “What does a Shed Ferry look like?”

Excellent question. The problem is I can’t answer it. That’s because I’m an apparition. Ferries, Specters, Elves, Gremlins, leprechauns, and other assorted spirits are all apparitions. From time to time we appear visible, but unfortunately we do not reflect natural light through a camera lens so I can NOT be captured on photographic film or digitized into jpg form. This is why you never get a photo Christmas card from a Ferry.

I understand the need of the public to validate my existence, so to satisfy them I arranged to have Larry, the head of Reeds service department, pose in my stead as the Shed Ferry.

Reeds Ferry Sheds -Larry as the Shed Ferry

Here’s Larry in his rented Ferry garb. People think he’s somewhat of a curmudgeon, but his loyalty to Reeds Ferry Sheds runs so deep he was more than willing to take one for the team. (Note: The wings are fake, and the leotard Larry is wearing is cliché. I don’t wear a leotard; most Ferries don’t, but it’s what people expect and demand.)

Remember, if you’d like to see the actual Shed Ferry in person simply stop into Reeds Ferry Sheds just over the Mass border on Rt 102 in Hudson New Hampshire. Walk up to the desk and ask our girl to see the Shed Ferry. But be aware she will likely give you a strange look… She doesn’t read this blog either – The Shed Ferry

Where did the Shed Ferry come from? For a while I was pitching the story that I was born in a tree trunk centuries ago, but internet search and DNA testing was making that a difficult sell.  So here’s my current story… In 1962 I was working at Reeds Ferry and installed a beautiful 10×14 cedar shed in Tewksbury MA. The homeowner had told his young daughter that a company called “Reeds Ferry” was doing the job. When she came outside and saw the finished product she said, “Look daddy! The Shed Ferry was here!” This explanation is completely plausible; it contains all the elements of good mythology. One minute an empty backyard, the next minute a shed! What could explain this phenomenon other than a magical Shed Ferry? Regardless, that’s our story and we’re sticking to it.

As the Shed Ferry I’m responsible for responding to our friends on FaceBook and occasionally blogging promotional pabulum. But because I’ve worked full-time at Reeds Ferry since 1959 I have great insight on the construction, installation, and abundant advantages of owning a Reeds Ferry Shed. If you live in New England and have any question regarding backyard storage I invite you to reach out and tap the Ferry.                Thank you. – The Shed Ferry