A Selby woman has redesigned her back garden shed into her own private mini church so she can have a place to retreat for peace and quiet.
Judith Cornwall, 52, was inspired to revamp her shed after she realised early on in the pandemic that she missed attending St Mary’s Church in Selby.
She completed her ‘church’, which she refers to as her ‘idyllic garden church project’ on Thursday, August 26.
Judith has uploaded a video of her church and how she plans to develop her project on her YouTube channel, ‘Medlar Cottage Urban Living’.
Judith said, “To me it looks so pretty, and exactly how I imagined it would look, I had a very clear mental image in my head. I am super pleased with it – if I could rent it out for weddings it would look spectacular.”
She has decorated the church with dried flowers and hop vines which she purchased online and hung across the ceiling, complete with an altar at the back in which she placed a crucifix.
There is a patterned carpet at the bottom covering the floorboards, and chairs acting as the pews.
She said: “Before it was just used to store junk and general rubbish – I’ve had several different ideas of what to do with it, such as a replica vintage room, or a Harry Potter themed room, but had been daunted by how much needed taking out.
“I feel at home at church, I’ve missed the people and it’s somewhere I go to pray, I often don’t want to leave when I am there. Having faith during the pandemic has given me comfort and hope, and spending time in nature is therapeutic for the mind, body and soul.”
Judith has home-schooled her children, aged 14 and 16, for a year and a half throughout the pandemic, and now she has her own space to enjoy some peace and quiet.
Now that her children are back at school, she plans to spend more time in her church ‘off-grid’, with no internet to distract her or electricity, even having a solar panel for the lights, passing her time crafting and reading.
She said: “I hope this inspires people to still strive for what they want amongst the doom and gloom of the virus.”
(York Press)
