This garden was initially designed and built by another company several years ago. Since then, elements of the garden have weathered and stained; some rotted. The client found Karl, called him in to advise on how to revitalise everything, and make some additions to make way for a new pool cover. Restoring and maintaining Ipe hardwood decking with Owatrol There are several areas of Ipe decking here.  One of them, next to the pool, was fitted with little to no

Accoya Decking Installed with Precision Brief The clients knew they wanted a decking terrace and gave Karl the following instructions. We want the decking to be made from timber.  This timber must look and feel as natural as possible. Imagine stepping into your garden barefoot, to be greeted with warm smooth undulating decking. Karl came up with some creative concepts to get this natural timber texture in the form of decking. After researching and developing his ideas with James Latham

Brief Replacing a composite deck in London. Their existing composite decking had been fitted under 2 years ago by their builder. It was already failing to the point where it needed replacing promptly. Situated immediately outside the back doors this had to be remedied in order to use the garden at all. They decided to call an expert and found Karl. He advised that replacing the existing composite and installing a new one would be the best option. This isn’t

From the outset, this garden needed… a bit of a face lift. The monstrosity of a storage hanger inherited with the property took up over half of the garden. At first the clients thought this would be great for storage. It ended up just accumulating rubbish and becoming an eye sore. Brief The clients had recently completed their new extension. The builders also built a porcelain patio to immediately step out on to. We knew the patio would stay but

Brief Composite Decking Warrantied for 25-years. Initially the clients wanted more spaces in their garden to entertain. Their children are now young adults and want to have their friends over. Ultimately it would be nice to have a completely separate space so everyone can enjoy the garden at the same time. Design The entire garden is set on a moderate slope so Karl thought the best approach would to carve into the lawn and build a decking structure. This can

Low maintenance garden in Amersham. This garden looked very much like your stereotypical new build garden. The vast majority grass and a small flagstone patio. Other than that, an existing raised planter and path. Simple but a bit mundane and regular maintenance is needed at least through the summer months. Client Brief The number 1 priority here is making this garden low to no maintenance. The clients also wanted somewhere to sit to get the most of the sun, perhaps

Charred Timber garden rooms in London A creative Architect, an exciting garden and a charred timber garden room in London. Michaelis Boyd Architects were thinking well outside the box for this garden room. Their clients wanted a one of a kind studio situated within their garden. The space would be used for gym workouts and a home office. Karl was eager to help bring this project to life with handcrafted charred timber cladding. Designing a Garden room When designing a

Making a mess into a Garden It’s neither the first or last time Karl has encountered the mess that’s been left behind from the builders. In this instance, the client had recently gone through extensive renovation and extension works on their newly acquired property. They had extended into what was the rear garden which resulted in no garden space. The front  of the property was the only space to create a garden. At almost 3m higher than the adjacent road

Transforming a side garden in Chesham Bois. Small side gardens are often ignored, unloved and awkward. We turned this side garden into something beautiful. You can see the small side garden from inside of the home, it adds to the living space as a live vignette. It’s a piece of garden art that will be ever-changing… Client Brief Their main concern was damp. The building is set into a slope and has historic damp issues. The clients changed the window

Garden landscaping in Tring. The best thing to do after your extension is to get your garden designed and professionally landscaped. The clients have recently completed an extension, contemporary white K render and western red cedar cladding being prominent features. They didn’t have a garden though… Client Brief Their main objective was to create a new garden decking terrace that would have suitable steps to get to the rest of the garden. A new lawn, a new fence and to

Client Brief Cladding design trends 2021. The clients had chosen to have a substantial extension at the front of their home. This extension would create a new gable end to match the existing; It brought about balance and a symmetry to the property. One of the key goals, they wanted their home to stand out from the rest. Initially, they came across charred timber cladding and thought that this would suit their wants. However, Karl brought some new and never

Every garden that we design is just as important as the last or indeed the next, no matter what size, simple or complex… Our passion is in your garden. Even when it comes to designing gardens within budget. Located on a hill this property didn’t have any garden views until recently. The neighbours kindly removed several substantial trees, this resulted in beautiful views of the Chiltern Hills. Client Brief There was an existing raised pine deck that desperately needed replacing.

Garden Design and Landscaping Amersham. A substantial property with half an acre of garden. This Amersham garden needed a complete design for both the front and back gardens. A blank canvas, an exciting project. Client Brief Increase the usability of the garden Bring colour to the front and rear garden More planting in all locations Garden clearance and unsightly material Feasibility study for the whole garden plan A compositing solution Arboriculture advice The client’s brief although sensible was also a

How to choose plants for a high street shop front How to choose plants for a high street shop front. Choosing the right plants for a shop has to be in line with their brand, their message and they have to reflect what the shop is all about. Some plants are structural, some formal, some say Architectural, there’s colour, foliage, leaves, grasses and colour… You could argue over what is right for hours… Life is far too short so I’d

Two landscaped gardens in High Wycombe. Their first garden challenge was a steep garden in High Wycombe that needed a raised decking terrace to the rear of their property with a staircase leading to a second platform to their hot tub… This was in 2014… They moved into a new build property in 2017 and with a blank canvas to landscape they called us again. As usual, Karl promptly arranged a site meeting so he could measure everything and discuss