Archive for diy – Page 2

Landscape Design in a Day

It's amazing how much food you can grow in a 4x8 raised bed.

Carol Lindsay loves to create unique, practical and affordable landscape designs using her collaborative Landscape Design in a Day process.

Three years into my career as an independent landscape designer I wanted to create a simpler and more accessible process of affordable landscape design for smaller properties.  The result is Landscape Design in a Day, which works like this:

Step 1:  Using the Design in a Day kit, you answer a few questions and measure your site, saving time and money.

Step 2:  Your designer looks over your work and studies your landscape drawing and photos.

Step 3:  Your designer then interviews you over the phone, using email to further prepare for the design day.

Step 4:  Together, you and the designer create a design tailored to your needs.  Usually the design is created at your kitchen table.  At the end of the design day, you have your design and can start working on your dream landscape right away.  And you helped make it possible.

Landscape Design in a Days are typically $2495, occasionally $1895.  This includes the base drawing kit, flow design, hardscape plan and planting plan for the front or the back of a smaller property.  Most of my clients will install or have the new landscape installed in phases so designing just a front or back works well.

When I created Landscape Design In A Day, LDIAD, I expected to be working with people who wanted to keep it all hands-on. It turns out only about 50% of my clients are DIYers. DIYers like LDIAD because they are ready to roll up their sleeves and do the prep for their design process.  They save money and become more aware of their properties possibilities and they fine tune their wish list by completing the LDIAD kit.  Best of all the design is finished within 10-14 days so our clients are ready to get started.

Not a DIYer?  This process works for clients who want a collaborative design process,  want to save time and money but want the new landscape installed by professionals. These clients typically do their measuring and pre-design work but once the design is completed, they hire one of my fully vetted and talented landscape professionals to handle the installation.

Don’t want to measure and draw your base map? A few clients hire us to do this step as well.  That is an option. The price for preparing the base map ranges from $500 – $1000 for a typical LDIAD property.

LDIAD will provide a to scale landscape design drawing with hardscape materials and plantings.  A plant list with plant name, quantity and size to purchase is included.

First we focus on creating the perfect property flow and layout.  Clients and designer work together and finalize the preferred layout.  Next we focus on creating a planting plan.

Once you have your design you can DIY, use my referred professionals or some other professional that you prefer. That is a benefit to using an independent designer rather than a designer who works solely for an installation company where you are stuck in house only. I’m always available to consult, or refer you to services you need if I don’t have the answer myself.

Post design services are flexible:  Some clients hire me to handle all the details, some work completely on their own and some bring me in to guide plant placement and coach them on planting techniques so they can be more successful as DIY.

Here’s a link to my contact form.  Once I have your contact form I’ll look up your property and be better able to tell you about costs and the benefits of my design service.

Palmore Curb Appeal Garden Design

 

Drought Tolerant Planting for Updated Garden Curb Appeal

Palmore front yard after landscape update.Carrie is a real estate agent and understands the importance of curb appeal.  She wanted some for her own home.  She hoped for colorful easy care plants, low water needs and a good winter look as well as the other seasons.

Palmore home in need of landscape curb appeal update.

Before Landscape Design in a Day

The low rock wall next to the driveway was supposed to add interest to the front entry area, instead it blocked the flow to the front door,  it had to go!

Keeping some existing mature plants helped keep costs down and made the new landscape look mature right away.  We were able to use them beautifully.

By the end of our design day we were both happy and exhausted.

Palmore front yard landscape update.We added a Crape Myrtle,  (Lagerstromia ‘Natchez’)  which has 4 season beauty; beautiful bark in winter, nice leaves in spring, summer flowers and hot fall color. Ornamental fountain grasses were combined with my favorite Echinacea (Coneflower) ‘Kim’s Knee Hi Red’,  Heather,  dwarf creeping ferns, and several evergreen ground covers.

We kept the Japanese Maple, weeping blue conifer, two gold Mexican Orange shrubs,  Hellebores and Daphne.

Planting day for drought tolerant & other Portland area plants.

Planting day

“I’ve worked with Carol Lindsay and Landscape Design in a Day before on my back yard and it was a great experience.  When it was time to take on my front yard I knew we were in good hands.  There was no way I was going to hire someone else.  I’m so happy I invested in this plan – the fact that I can divvy up the sections and work on it in pieces makes it perfect for me.   I highly recommend working with a professional to get a plan.”  Carrie Palmore 

Update your curb appeal with drought tolerant Portland plantings and all season plants! Start the process by filling out our contact form.

Sheri loves the views from inside her home

flower shot of itoh peony

Rain does not spoil this ‘Itoh Peony’ flower

My client, Sheri Mead, sent me this note from Camas, Washington.  What she had to say points out several important garden design concepts:

“Hi Carol,

I thought of you this morning as I got to the bottom of my stairs, turned the corner and was greeted with a happy, bright pink display of peonies in full bloom.

Spring rain does not spoil this flower.  I thought back on how much time and effort you put into envisioning the garden from the inside of the house, anticipating what would be showcased at various angles.”

Confetti Willow

Easy care ‘Confetti’ willow in the perfect shade of pink

Sheri’s note points to design principles that can make your gardening experience more enjoyable and give you the results that you crave:

  • Envision the view of your garden-to-be from inside your home.  What views of which plants would make you smile?  This is the way your designer thinks.
  • Use plants to bring the outside into your home.  The pink and white plant color scheme of Sheri’s flower garden matched her favorite room in the house, the master bedroom and sitting area.
  • Choose long-lasting varieties to extend your viewing pleasure.  Note Sheri’s reference to the special rain resistant variety of peony Carol selected.  Remember the possibilities of variegated foliage as in the willow.  We used sun tolerant white hydrangea with Salix Integra Hakuro Nishiki ‘Confetti’ willow shrubs and peonies for 6 months of color and winter interest from red willow stems.
Too cute pink and white ball hydrangea

Colors for Sheri – Hydrangea Paniculata ‘Pink Diamond’

Her Landscape Design in a Day included several planting compositions intended for viewing from inside the home.  Once we completed her design, the clients were very hands on.  I ordered plants and on site I coached her brother Rick on how to plant them properly.  Rick also built an arbor room using a design we “borrowed” from my portfolio.

As Sheri said, “Mission accomplished!”

 

Curb Appeal Before and After

These clients are the ultimate DIYer’s, remodeling their home and not afraid to tackle the landscape.  Their home had no curb appeal, no path or front porch and their single story home was dwarfed by a huge conifer with apparent structural problems.  The Chambers were planning to fix their home up and sell it.

This house needs curb appeal!

This house needs curb appeal!

 

The house had cute bones so we added a porch and two paths which gave us a chance to place softening plants.  The low front fence complemented the cottage style of the house and integrated yard and home.

Regarding our Landscape Design-in-a-Day process with Carol Lindsay:

“We had a great time doing the yard and we did definitely enjoy it.  The yard was a huge selling point as we had great curb appeal…. we sold after only 7 days on the market for over asking price. 

After design photo (close up)

“The yard was a huge selling point as we had great curb appeal…we sold after only 7 days on the market for over asking price.”

So we definitely did something right!  Thanks so much for your help in making it beautiful. We will keep you in mind with our new house and definitely as a referral.”
Thanks, Lila   Camas, Washington

When they moved we did another Design-in-a-Day for their new backyard.  Which they of course are installing themselves.

 

Amazing curb appeal by DIYer's

After Landscape Design in a Day and my clients hard work.