When to hire a designer?
When starting the process of a landscape renovation, some clients come with a vision of what they want to see in their yards, or they have a few basic needs they want met that can be outlined with the construction estimator and project manager – these clients can typically bypass the designer step of the process. For others, the space seems unusable because of slope, light, size, etc., and they simply don’t know how they can just “make it better.” Then there are those individuals that have a large scale vision and want their home to be a canvas of creativity. These latter two types of clients are those that we recommend employ the use of a landscape designer.
How can you determine which one you are? It may seem pretty self explanatory if you are in the first or last type of client. For those in the middle, it may be less clear. A consult with our estimator might clarify which way to go once you start hashing out the details of what you want bid and find out you didn’t know how many options there were!
To help guide yourself in this process, here are some basic questions to ask yourself in advance of meeting with the estimator, and if need, the designer:
What are the primary uses of this space?
Common uses are outdoor dining, hot tubs, fire pits and places, child play areas, gardens. Do you need a covered area? The way you want to use your space is going to be paramount to what we do with it. Form follows function.
How many people will be in the space at a time?
This is critical to the layout and how many of the previously mentioned uses you try to squeeze into the space. Also, what is the age range of those people?
Walk around you yard during your most free parts of the day (afterwork, weekends?) and decided where do you want to be in the space.
This is usually relative to sunlight, best views, temperature. We want to put your money into the place you’ll spend the most time.
Asking yourself these questions before involving a designer will go a long way in determining if you need one. Maybe you can clarify things for yourself and maybe you realize you have many uses, limited space, but love to entertain family gatherings! Now you need help. If you decide that you would like to contract a designer on your project, please reach out! Click here for tips on preparing for your initial design consultation.
