Unique She Shed Ceiling with a Fun Family History

The She Shed Chronicles – Part 3

I have enjoyed sharing about getting my She Shed and getting it all decorated exactly as I wanted. However, I haven’t shown you the best part. I want to share the unique she shed ceiling with a fun family history that came along with it.

Even now, as I convert the she shed into an office space, the unique ceiling is still perfect with lots of memories attached.

Family History

To fully understand and appreciate the she shed ceiling, you have to know a little bit of Jay’s family history. His dad grew up on a farm in Greenville, Texas. Every morning before school and then again before bedtime, he had to go out to the milk barn and milk the cows.

At some point in his teenage years, their family sold the farm and moved. The interesting thing about this story is that they sold it to Jay’s mom’s family. At the time, his parents were not dating, and I am not even sure that they really knew each other.

Childhood Memories

Jay has a lot of childhood memories out at his grandmother’s home (and at the barn). As a child, he would help his grandfather feed the cows, work with the horses, and move hay bales from the hayloft in the top of the barn to the truck. There was no easy access to the loft, but they would climb a very tall ladder that was built onto the side of the barn and get to work.

One of his favorite memories of the barn is the time that he and his brothers secretly climbed up on top of the barn and used the back side of the roof as a slide. They thought they were clever in not getting caught. However, when they went inside, the evidence was there. The nails had shredded the pockets on their jeans. They were busted, and his mom was not very happy!

A Trip to the Barn

After Jay’s grandparents passed away, the farm was sold. The house had been demolished, but the barn and milk barn still remained. The barn was in pretty bad shape, and it was pretty obvious that it would be demolished as well.

We drove by one day and saw that it was for sale again, so I contacted the company who had it at the time. I explained to them the connection to the barn and asked if we could go out there. To my surprise, he told me that they were looking for someone to tear it all down, so we could go out there and take whatever we wanted.

This is what we came home with:

• An Old Milk Can – Just to think about Jay’s dad using this can when he milked the cows each morning gives me a warm feeling. We had it powder coated and gave it to his dad as a gift one year for Fathers’ Day.

• Metal Siding from the Barn
• An Old Barn Door
• Many miscellaneous items (old medicine bottles, spoons, dishes, an old clock, and more)

The She Shed Ceiling

Even though it is a small space (160 square feet), it has high ceilings, which I love. I love natural light and open spaces, so I wanted to leave the natural wood of the high ceilings open, almost as a focal point. 

Insulation

I changed my mind and decided I needed insulation. I had a very good reason for making the change and covering the ceiling and walls – Texas weather! Although I had a window unit that provided heat and air, it was not enough without having insulation in the walls and ceiling.

We thought about getting Batt insulation because I was on a tight budget (self-made because of my frugalness). Jay had another idea. A friend of ours had a spray foam insulation company, so he contacted them. They did such a good job of insulating everything, which made the temperatures bearable.

The Fun Stuff

Barn’s Metal Siding

I loved the way the insulation made the space feel temperature wise, but I did not like the looks of it.  I guess you could say it had a very “modern look” that I did not care for.😂 

It had to be covered, but I was at a loss as to what I wanted. Then we remembered the metal siding from the old family barn. It sounded like a great way to cover the ceiling!

One Spring Break, Jay and I decided we would tackle the she shed ceiling, by ourselves. What a chore! 

My main concern was the struggle we would have with just the two of us putting it up. Jay can pretty much do anything, but he needed help putting up a ceiling, and I knew my strengths and weaknesses. Let’s just say that I got a work out that week! We actually did nice work together though.

The Old Barn Door

We still had the barn door that I wanted to use in some fun way. Jay had the idea of putting it on the ceiling also, right below the metal. I couldn’t picture it, but it sounded like a great idea, so we did it.

There is no telling how much that barn door weighed. We had to resort to all sorts of makeshift contraptions to get that thing up there! He also had to add extra supports to make sure it stayed up there. It was the right spot for it!

Once he hung my chandelier (off of the barn door of course), the ceiling had the finished look I wanted. I call it Feminine Rustic!

Now when I walk through those double doors into my she shed, all of the elements of the ceiling are some of the best things to me. Because I know the back story, it makes my little space feel like home. It is a great thing!

Added She Shed Accessories

Whether you have a small space for a home office, garden shed, craft room, man cave, or other cozy spaces, it needs to show your personality. You may not have old family barn materials, but you can make it your own. Here are some of the other things I have added to my new office space.

Here are links that will take you directly to the items. You can get them in different colors and sizes.

• Rug
• Lamp
• Pillow Covers
• Blanket/Throw
• Keurig Coffee Maker
• Coffee Sign

Join Us

I hope you will join our email community. Each week I share posts of faith, food, family ideas, and more about the She Shed. If you would like to receive these directly to your inbox, please join below. You will also receive 5 of the EASIEST candy recipes I have ever found.

If you read the post, Getting the Perfect Backyard She Shed, then you know I had a she shed/playhouse as a child. I used it for all sorts of fun stuff back then. Many days we made it into a restaurant. Other times it was my reading nook.

When I am in my she shed, those childhood memories are always with me. Now I get to see glimpses of Jay’s childhood when I look at the ceiling. I am usually asking myself if these metal pieces might possibly be the ones that shredded his pockets that day.

Fun family memories!

Related Post

My Initial She Shed Vision, Ideas, and Plans

Until next week…

disclosure: Amazon affiliate links are used on this page. Thank you for supporting Home with Grace and Joy. When you purchase an item, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. See my full disclosure and privacy policy on the website. 

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Matthew 6:21