Garden Design
Designing Outdoor Living Spaces
The gardens that get used every week are not the most expensive ones. They are the ones where somebody thought carefully about where you would sit at seven o'clock in the evening.
Start with the sun, not the house
Track where light falls at the times you would actually be outside. Morning coffee and evening dinner rarely want the same corner, and the terrace directly outside the back door is frequently the wrong place for both.
Zone with surface, not with fences
Changing material is the most elegant way to say 'this is a different room'. Porcelain for dining, composite for lounging, resin or gravel for movement between them. No walls required.
Get the dimensions right
Most terraces are built too small. These are the working minimums we design to.
- Six-person dining terrace — 4.0m x 3.5m minimum
- Lounge seating zone — 3.5m x 3.5m
- Circulation path around furniture — 700mm
- Step riser — 150mm, tread 350mm minimum
Shelter extends the season
In Cumbria, a garden without shelter is a garden used ten days a year. A pergola, a solid overhang or even a well-placed hedge can double the usable season more cheaply than any surface upgrade.
Finish with light
An outdoor room without lighting closes at four o'clock in November. With lighting, it becomes the view from your kitchen all winter.
Common questions
Ready to talk it through in person?
We will walk your garden, take levels and talk honestly about what will work — no pressure, no sales pitch.
Prefer to browse first?Request our complimentary brochure