Steps:
- Begin by defining your personal landscape style. Collect photos of gardens and yards that you like either in a physical binder or using sites like Pinterest.
- Consider which plants and hardscape materials can be reused or recycled.
- Sometimes the best way to add to a design is by subtracting elements that deter from the design like misplaced trees
Pro Tip: This Old House landscape contractor Jenn Nawada recommends collecting at least 20 images to reveal your true style: “First figure out your style. Go online, start a binder, start a folder, Pinterest, start a board, or take pictures of things when you do a drive-by somewhere.” She says that even with just 20 photos, a designer can quickly identify the common threads that define your aesthetic preferences.
One powerful technique for finding your landscape style: pin all your collected images on a bulletin board and look for recurring themes. As one This Old House Magazine feature noted, a client did exactly this and discovered that every photo she’d pinned up included cobblestones—a material she’d never consciously considered before. Those recurring features are the ones that should drive your design.
