Portfolio

Eaglescliffe, Stockton On Tees

A challenge to say the least! This garden sits on a steep slope that looks to out to the beautiful North Yorkshire Countryside and our brief from the client was to find a way of getting access from the house up to top of the garden - without the use of steps.

The retaining wall with steps that was altered and I set about finding an alternative means of access. I looked at creating a circular path that would lead up to a seating area made of reclaimed black cobbles that would sit. This would provide an area to relax and take in the wonderful views.

To keep the circular theme, the path was flanked with borders of Buxus and Hebe balls with a lawn linking the borders to the newly planted wild flower and woodland area.

To the top right side of the garden a growing garden was installed with raised beds.

Through out the design, I chose colours that would compliment the newly furbished and modern looking interior and exterior of the house - mainly black and white.

Basement and Beyond, Hampstead, London

For this Hampstead project we worked alongside the Big Basement Company in London to turn this unkempt garden into a place where the family can relax.

The client and architect brief was to provide the following:

After seeing the type of tile that would be used for the kitchen floor we selected a natural stone that was similar in colour. The same stone was also used on the steps, the copingstones for the large raised beds and the shaded patio area.

Home and Garden Together, Seaham, Co.Durham

A large flowing expanse of lawn was laid flanked with borders packed with colour and year round interest to compliment the wonderful surrounding area of this property.

Black limestone paving was chosen to tie in with the black roof tiles and set out in straight lines to link with the internal layout of the house.

Sand Stone and Sleepers, Hartlepool

Treated garden sleepers and a winding sand stone path were used to overcome the previously awkward levels and odd size steps.

A Contempory Feel, Fulham, West London

A rather tired looking garden that was completely transformed by installing Ipe decking, rendered raised planting beds, Western Red Cedar cladding and an artificial lawn framed with black limestone.

Setts and Circles, Hartlepool

For this garden I was asked to remove what there was of a lawn, all the overgrown shrubs and replace with a virtually maintenance free garden. Although the client wanted me to smarten up the existing pond he didn't want the to have it pulled up and completely rebuilt - not an easy task!

Ipe Decking and Western Red Cedar Screen

The Rolls Royce of decking - Ipe - was used for this garden in Seaham.  So as not to spoil the fantastic look of the timber, a system is used whereby the screws are fixed into the sides of the boards.  

Raised Deck, Middlesbrough

The clients provided me with a brief to see if the raised deck could be made safer as it was disintegrating at an alarming rate to such an extent that the clients right foot had actually gone through one section of the deck. The brief also included removing the rather boring leylandii, stepping stones and red gravel they inherited when they moved into the house and replace with some shrub borders, extended lawn, a patio and a summer house to the far left corner.

On closer inspection it was clear that the deck was a disaster in the waiting, an example indeed of how not to construct a raised deck. The problem being that the end of the garden sloped down a depth of 2.4 metres over a distance of 5.0 metres. The people that had installed it used a fraction of the required supporting poles to hold the structure in place and then made the frame out of untreated timber. After dismantling and disposing all of the rotting timber we set about sinking telegraph poles and concrete deep into the ground and rebuilding the frame. The custom made steps allowed safe access from the upper deck down to the lower deck that would provide an area for the ping-pong table.

The raised beds were designed to grow vegetables without the effort of having to bend over when tendering the plants.

Yarm, Stockton On Tees

A feature less new build house and garden. The existing lawn that had been laid on bricks and rubble - never a good idea - was replaced with a correctly laid one, a new larger patio laid to the rear of the house and a number of seating areas included.

Jungle Garden, Hartlepool

A rather unusual garden request was made to me from the owners of a newly built house in Hartlepool. The family had purchased a copy of the Moai Statues on Easter Island that they called 'Ed' and wanted the garden to be designed around it . As the Moai Statues of Rapa Nui are on a treeless island it would have been easy to replicate their natural surroundings. However the family wanted the statue to be set into a Jungle Garden: not an easy task given the strong cold winds this part of Hartlepool has to deal with.