Garden renovation after house refurbishment

If you have recently been through the process of house refurbishment, you may well be counting the cost of the damage to your garden. During building works the garden is often used as a storage, assembly and dumping ground for the contractors. Even if you ask them to be mindful of the garden, the chances are that house refurbishment work will have a negative impact on the health and appearance of your garden.

Once you have completed your house renovation, the inner space will look wonderful, exactly the way you had hoped - but what about your outdoor spaces? Very often clients come to us when their house refurbishment is drawing to a close and they beginning to realise that the garden which they once loved now looks less wonderful.

Often this is because building works inside the house spill out into the garden. Once lush lawns can die back if they are covered by building materials and tools and are subjected to heavier than usual foot traffic. Plants may become squashed when storage space for materials is at a premium. It may also be the case that the beautiful interiors which you have created only serve to emphasise the fact that the garden is a little tired and in need of a refurbishment itself. This is where we at Hampstead Garden Design can help.

One such client in north London asked us to redesign and renovate their garden after extensive refurbishment of their grade II listed home. Whilst the garden had once been carefully maintained, the planting had become overgrown during the house renovation, and they realised that the paving surfaces were dated and had fallen into disrepair. This was not helped by the fact that their building contractor had needed to use the garden for storage of waste and materials... In short, the garden badly needed to be redesigned and refreshed.

The clients wanted to redesign the garden to be more of a space that reflected their current and future needs, whilst still retaining its essence and quiet beauty. They

wanted a place for entertaining friends outdoors, combined with areas to sit quietly and relax. They also wanted to include a luscious green lawn and full and flowing planting beds. This was particularly important as the property is in a conservation area, where soft landscaping and planting are protected.

Working with local planners and conservation bodies, we redesigned the garden to create a space which would work for our clients into the future. We created new patio seating areas for entertaining, paved with traditional natural sandstone which complemented the period property. The remodelling of the house had allowed the removal of an old outbuilding and this created the perfect space for a new, tucked away seating area. Many of the existing shrubs and trees were retained, including a beautiful mature wisteria. These were sensitively pruned and included in the new planting design.

The finished garden is refreshed and updated, whilst still being very much in keeping with the traditional style of the property and is now ready for our clients to enjoy for many years to come.

Hampstead Garden Design often work with interior designers and architects to complete the property renovation and develop the outdoor space to complement the work carried out indoors. If you are planning a renovation project or your garden has suffered following your interior refurbishment, do get in touch for an informal chat about how we can help you to renovate your outdoor space.