COLUMNIST: LYNN HILL
There is an old saying that “a picture is worth a thousand words”. Trying to communicate what you like in words can be so tricky. You may want a cottage garden, for example. The image you have in your head may be miles away from the image in the mind of the designer. So before meeting them, select a couple of photographs of things you like. It does not have to be a full-blown garden, even just elements that speak of your taste will be valuable to help communicate your style and to ensure that you are both on the same page.
This includes everything you want for your garden. This may be morning coffee in the sun and evenings dining with friends, things you want to ‘do’ in your garden. Then there are the practicalities, these could be trampolines for children, washing lines, wheelie bins or storage. Identify any problem areas making note of things you want to keep and things you most definitely want rid of!
Creating the brief for a design is like collecting the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. Speaking your mind at the outset will be vital in order to inform the brief and the planning. Being realistic and honest about your budget is helpful too. Gardens can vary hugely in their costs and it is important that it is designed to reflect the resources you want to allocate. Talking about money may not always feel comfortable, but being clear about budgets and how we will work to them, is such an important element in the success of a project.
There is a huge amount of trust involved when engaging a garden designer and it is important that you feel comfortable enough to let them do their job. Try not to shy away from being frank, this will help them to understand you. They need to know what you like and do not like, what will work for you and what will not.
When I work with clients, there is a lot of ‘getting to know you’, establishing desires and expectations, and working out priorities and practicalities at the front end of the design process. What you do not want, is for there to be chopping and changing once the design is done and the building work starts. Here lies the way of compromised garden spaces, that run the risk of not flowing together well. It can even lead to increased financial costs, if work has to be undone or changed. It is much easier to change things on paper compared to on the ground.
Good communication and clear expectations between designer and client, cemented into the design stage, cannot be overemphasised. This is the cornerstone of good practice.
A good garden designer will keep you in the loop with regular updates to help you to visualise your new garden. Once the vision is on paper, sit back and trust them to bring this to reality. We are a team: client and designer. A partnership destined on the journey of creating the most wonderful of gardens - tailored exclusively for you.
Designer and Lynn Hill Garden Design, Lynn loves creating wonderful green spaces. She has been honoured with many awards and has contributed to Chelsea Flower Show, Hampton Court Flower Show, and worked with the BBC as design consultant for 'Beechgrove'.
Green spaces can be sanctuaries that nourish us, inspire us, and even heal us. Lynn encourages us to view our gardens as an extension of our home and embrace the benefits they bring to our health and wellbeing.
A member of the Scottish Ecological Design Association and the Chartered Institute of Horticulture, Lynn has a 1st Class Honours Degree in Community Education from Edinburgh University, and a HNC with Distinction in Garden Design. Her professional memberships include the Society of Garden Designers and Associate Designer with the British Association of Landscape Industries.
You can follow Lynn on Instagram for more chat or find lots of professional garden design inspiration on her website.