How do you set a brief for a garden designer?
Once you have decided to re-design your garden, where do you start with writing a brief for your garden designer? This blog post will give you the pointers you need to make sure you get the most out of the garden design process.
Before an initial consultation with your garden designer, think about how you use your garden currently, and how you dream of using it when the re-design is complete. As part of the brief for your garden designer, write down any must-have garden features you had in mind – a water feature, pergola or paved seating area for example. And are there any garden landscaping materials that you love? York stone paving, galvanised box grating or Larch decking? Add them all to your design brief.
If you want to read up on the different types of decking, read our helpful guide here.
It’s also important to include in the brief for your garden designer the things you don’t want in your garden, as this can be just as informative. Perhaps roses don’t make your heart sing and gravel sets your teeth on edge – add all the things you don’t want to your brief as well.
Are there any practicalities your garden designer needs to be aware of? For example, where do you hang your washing? Do you have a water butt to incorporate? Does your garden have access issues? A tree with a preservation order on it? A great crested newt colony in the back corner of your garden?! Add to the brief anything practical you think might be useful for your garden designer to know about.
It’s really useful for your garden designer to have an idea of the style of garden you love most – traditional; minimalist; wildlife; formal; contemporary or a mixture of a few styles! If you have a pinterest account, creating a board with all your favourite garden images is a great way for your garden designer to see what styles you like. Alternatively, go old-school and cut some pictures out of garden magazines.
You can find garden inspiration from our gallery of Cambridge gardens, designed by us, here.
Finally, think about your budget and write this down in the brief. It may be that your wish-list is too long for your budget, or that tweaks in the type of materials and plants used will enable your budget to go further. Your garden designer will be able to discuss all the options with you and come up with the right solutions to bring your dream garden to life.
You may find our guide “What does a garden designer do” helpful as you move on from the initial briefing of your garden designer to the design and build process.
As always, we are here to answer your questions and if you are looking for a garden designer in Cambridge, get in touch today!