As the UK is doused in pleasantly early sunshine this year, we’re out in our gardens more to enjoy the heat and some spring gardening. And with a bit of warm weather comes the garden design itch that you just need to scratch. You might buy some new plants to add to the collection, or freshen up the fence with a lick of paint, or even get your hands on some new outdoor furniture.
Like many, the sun has brought a ray of inspiration to many homeowners and garden enthusiasts. But are you struggling to bring your vision to life, or maybe the idea of doing the work yourself seems too overwhelming? Well, that’s what a garden designer is for!
In this article, our experts explain what a garden designer is, what their day-to-day looks like, and how they can help transform your garden ideas into reality.
What Is A Garden Designer?
What is a garden designer? A garden designer is someone who creates beautiful outdoor spaces for their clients. They consider the client’s needs and the functionality of the garden, all while keeping their style and aesthetic in mind. The key skills of a garden designer are attention to detail, honesty, creativity, collaboration and passion.
If you’re in need of a garden designer, look no further than our very own founder, Raine, as she is our leading garden designer here at Raine Garden Design!
As well as being a garden designer, she is also our head consultant designer and has designed and built hundreds of outdoor projects. With over 23 years of experience in landscape and garden design, Raine has the ability to transform outdoor spaces into works of art while keeping the client and their needs in mind.
What Does a Garden Designer Do?
We’ve answered the question: ‘What is a garden designer?’ But that opens up even more questions, such as: ‘What does a garden designer do?’ Depending on the garden designer, they might specialise in a specific form of garden design, such as urban, Mediterranean, wildlife, or even formal gardens.
For example, Raine has worked on a wide variety of projects, including charming, intimate courtyards, impressive rambling estates, and she’s built five award-winning gardens for the RHS Hampton Court Palace flower show. Within her expertise, she now focuses on small, large and corporate gardens and planting.
Although all garden designers are different, they’ll always have one thing in common: a design process. The design process is how your project comes to life by bringing two-dimensional plans into reality. The design plan considers elements such as trees, paths and focal points and the shapes and movement they make to create the desired impact.
So, it’s an essential part of every garden designer’s plan. For Raine Garden Design, our design process has six key steps.
1. Client Brief
It’s easy to think that the planning and overseeing of the garden project are the most important steps in the garden design process, but you’d be wrong. The most vital part is the first step, the client brief.
This is where a wishlist is created, and we get to gain a good, in-depth understanding of you and what you want from your outdoor space. We’ll ask questions such as what your preferred design style is, who will use the space, and what the space is for. This way, we’re all on the same page on what is expected and what can be achieved.
2. Site Survey
The next step is for a surveyor to take a full and accurate topographic survey, along with an additional visit from the garden designer to inspect the site and take photos, and record details such as the view, microclimate and utilities. Once all this information is gathered, it’s time to move on to the next stage.
3. Concept Stage
This is where form is given to your ideas; a proposal is presented in an artist’s impression of the new, proposed space. This is the opportunity for the client to discuss what they like and what they want to change, now that their concept has gone from mind to page.
4. Presentation of Design
With those comments, we’ll then adapt the concept, presenting a final masterplan in full colour and drawn to scale. This will include a full axonometric 3D rendition of the design, and CAD (computer-aided design) drawings can be made available on request.
5. Payment Terms
An initial deposit will be required after the proposed quote has been made, as well as two payments for the concept phase and the completion of the project.
6. Overseeing the Garden Project
We can also offer to oversee your garden project after we have designed it. We will work together with highly professional landscaping teams, who are accredited members of the APL (The Association of Professional Landscapers) and whom we’ve known and trusted for many years.
There you have it, that should have answered the question: ‘What does a garden designer do?’ It’s a very creative role, but it also requires fantastic communication and organisation in order to meet every client brief.
How to Choose a Garden Designer
It can seem quite daunting when having to choose a garden designer, similar to any professional you entrust to make your home feel more like you. We believe the most important thing to consider is to find a designer who understands your style and can elevate your ideas.
A great example of this is a recent project we completed for a couple undergoing a house refurbishment. As part of their planning conditions set by the council, they required a detailed landscape design and planting scheme.
This is something Raine Garden Design regularly supports clients with, whether it’s accompanying a home renovation or helping meet planning requirements. But as this couple found, working with a professional garden designer offers much more than simply ticking a box. In their words:
“We can’t recommend Raine enough, we are absolutely thrilled with her garden design and can’t wait to begin work.
We first approached her because we had a planning condition requirement for a landscape design and planting scheme. But whilst that’s what we needed for the council, the design and value that she brought far outweighed our expectations.
The design process was fantastic and gave us the space to work out what we needed from our family garden now and in the future; these ideas were continually developed and resulted in a design that we couldn’t be happier with.
We’d really encourage anyone to see the benefits of getting a professional landscape design from Raine.”
These kind words and happy clients are the reason we love garden design; being able to provide people with their dream spaces is our inspiration. To learn more about our services at Raine Garden Design, get in touch at studio@rainegardendesign.co.uk or on 07702042559.
Written by Lois Ferns for Raine Garden Design.
