A bra-fitting boutique at the bottom of a garden and a backyard hair and wig salon which helps cancer patients are among the Kent finalists in Cuprinol's Shed of the Year 2021.

This year's fiercely contested competition has seen a whopping 331 entrants - more than double the number the previous year - with just 22 people making the final.

Joanna van Blommestein, from Faversham, has made the final after turning her summerhouse into a bra-fitting boutique.

The 36-year-old runs Bra Boss of Kent from the eye-catching outhouse at her home in Priory Row, enjoying a 30-second commute to work every morning.

She’s now hoping to be crowned winner in the Cabin and Summerhouse category when voting closes on July 12.

“Luckily, when we bought the house the summerhouse was already here in the garden, but obviously wasn’t a bra boutique,” Joanna said.

“I repainted it, but friends and family helped me source furniture, and my friend, who is a plumber, did copper piping for the bras to hang on.

“It was mostly me but my friends and family helped out a lot as well.”

Joanna qualified as a bra fitter in 2010 and worked for industry giants such as Gossard and Panache, with her job as an area manager involving lots of travelling and time away from home.

But she eventually took the plunge and went out on her own after realising there was a gap in the market for maternity, sports and post-surgery bras, particularly for women who had undergone mastectomies.

In 2019 she converted the summerhouse into a boutique where women come for bra-fitting.

She was forced to close during the lockdowns but since April has welcomed more than 300 customers, many of whom have said the secluded location makes them feel more comfortable.

“A lot of ladies do say the reason they’ve booked is because it’s relaxed, quiet, no queues or feeling anxious,” she added.

“It can be quite busy in a big department store and especially with bra-fitting, which is quite personal.”

Joanna is just one of the 22 finalists shortlisted across categories including Budget, Pub and Entertainment, Cabin and Summerhouse, and Unexpected and Unique.

Asked why she thinks her ‘shed’ made the final, she said: “The reason it stands out is because it’s a nice place for people to get help and is not just a shed you would sit in. It’s a service that’s helping women."

Sevenoaks-based Shobie Lee, 62, is another finalist from Kent who runs a hair and wig salon specialising in clients who have experienced hair loss, such as from chemotherapy.

After 37 years of being in the industry, she decided retirement was not for her and wanted to continue working part-time.

Her husband asked her that if she wanted to work from home, he would build her a shed.

She set-up her business, Shobie's Hair and Wig Shed, in 2018 and has seen increasing demand for her service.

"I’m committed to it but it’s a retirement thing," she said. "However, I am getting more and more full-time because I didn’t realise there were so many women who needed this support.

"I am actually shocked there aren’t many places they can go to."

Five years ago she went on a course and learnt she could easily access wigs.

Thankfully, she was able to carry on working with her cancer patients after Sevenoaks Council agreed to it.

"It’s quiet and when they drive up they don’t see anybody other than a beautiful shed," she added.

To vote in Cuprinol's Shed of the Year 2021, click here.

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