The Pauline Manor Bread Shed Is Finally Here
If you’ve been following along with Pauline Manor Bakery for the past couple of years, you’ve watched this little bakery grow in ways I never could have predicted. What started with a few loaves of sourdough baked in my kitchen has slowly turned into weekly bake days, special orders, dry baking mixes, honey from my own hives, and a calendar that often revolves around who is picking up bread and when.
The pickup system has worked so well that, for a long time, I never questioned it. Customers selected a pickup time, I made sure everything was packed and ready to go, and during the pickup window, I was there to greet everyone as they arrived. It gave me the chance to meet so many wonderful people, and I truly enjoyed putting faces to the names that popped up on my HotPlate orders each week.
As the bakery continued to grow, though, I realized I could make the experience even better. Because I personally handed every order to every customer, pickup windows had to stay fairly limited. The Pauline Manor Bread Shed changes that completely. Customers who preorder will simply choose their pickup day, then stop by anytime during that day’s pickup hours to collect their order.
On days the Bread Shed is open, though, you won’t have to preorder at all. You’ll also be able to stop by, browse the shelves, and shop whatever happens to be fresh that day, whether that’s sourdough bread, baked treats, dry baking mixes, honey from my own hives, homemade gifts, or a few seasonal surprises. It gives customers far more flexibility while allowing me to spend more time baking, gardening, tending the bees, and creating new things for Pauline Manor.
After months of planning, preparing the site, and waiting for delivery day, the building itself is finally here. Every time I look out the back door and see it sitting beneath the trees, I still have one of those moments where I think, I can’t believe we actually did this.
If you stepped inside today, though, you probably wouldn’t be nearly as impressed. Right now it’s just an empty shell. There aren’t shelves, displays, or baskets of fresh bread waiting for customers. In fact, there isn’t even a single shelf yet, and that’s honestly my favorite part because now I get to build the space I’ve been imagining for months.
The plan is to add built-in shelving between the wall studs, creating plenty of room for fresh sourdough, Pauline Manor baking mixes, honey from my own hives, seasonal baked goods, and, eventually, some of the handmade products I’ve been working on over the past year. I want every inch of the Bread Shed to feel thoughtful and inviting, proving that a small space can still have plenty of personality.
For me, this little building represents much more than a new pickup location. It’s a reminder of how much life has changed over the past few years. When I started baking sourdough, I never imagined I’d someday need a dedicated space for customer pickups, let alone that Pauline Manor would grow to include bees, honey, baking mixes, handmade goods, and so many other projects that simply happened one opportunity at a time.
There is still plenty to do before opening day, but for the first time, I can finally see it all coming together. I can’t wait to share the build-out over the next few months, and I hope you’ll enjoy watching this little empty building slowly become the Bread Shed I’ve been dreaming about.
