The Two-minute Commute

This 10′ by 12′ Modern-Shed is used as a home office in the greater Seattle area.

BAINBRIDGE ISLAND — With a young daughter at home, Charles didn’t want to face a two-hour commute each day to get to the Seattle offices of the social media company where he works.

“That’s effectively four hours of my 3-year-old daughter’s life,” Charles notes. “Three years old is a pretty key age. When you think about it, four hours a day five days a week is 20 hours a week. That’s half a work week I’ve spent away from home. That’s almost an entire day of my daughter’s life.”

Charles and his wife had considered building a home office for Charles in the garage of the couple’s Bainbridge Island home in Washington.

“We realized if we did that we’d either kill a bunch of space in our house or get something we didn’t really like,” he says. “When you build in your basement or garage, you don’t get to pick how much light it’s going to get and stuff like that. We didn’t have a good spot.”

Charles, a computer engineer, had been working out of his home’s kitchen for the past year.

“That doesn’t work how you’d want it to,” he jokes. “I wasn’t able to get myself isolated. You have a kid and a wife and you want to be able to go do personal stuff. Your personal life creeps in.”

Charles had researched Modern-Shed and other similar firms in Seattle for awhile.

He and his wife settled on a 10’ by 12’ Modern-Shed that blends in seamlessly with the couple’s home.

“We wanted the Modern-Shed to look like it had always been here,” Charles says. “Our house is very Northwest contemporary. That’s why we wanted a shed like this. We had considered going the Home Depot route, but this is much nicer.”

Charles says the installation of his Modern-Shed was “flawless.”

He landscaped his garden with steps that lead to the Modern-Shed, which has a 12’ by 3’ deck surrounding it.

Charles also decorated his shed with a ceiling fan, Lego models and art that pays homage to his new hometown of Seattle and his and his wife’s Kentucky and Midwest roots.

“It’s kind of perfect in the sense that I’m isolated from the day-to-day in the house, but if somebody needs me, I’m here,” he says. “My commute instead of being two hours is two minutes.”  

Charles’ Modern-Shed fits in seamlessly with his backyard.