The above property is a single storey 1960's "bungalow" located down a side lane off Church Lane, Kirkella, East Yorkshire.
Originally an architect-designed building, the property is currently undergoing a major remodel and is being extended.
The finish is to be typical of a lot of contemporary properties I am fortunate enough to design the gardens for and is to be a white rendered "box" style with grey aluminium bi-fold doors / windows and a grey fibreglass flat roof.
The properties owners are a very busy couple with two businesses and several children and so the Garden Design Brief was to produce a finished garden that is very easy to care for, is suitable for a growing family, is relaxing, is good for holding parties/entertaining guests and looks very contemporary to match the style of the building renovation.
The dominant feature of the design is to be a very large artificial grass lawn. The Client's son is a very keen footballer and the existing lawn slopes and has muddy patches. The plan, therefore, is to "skirt lift"/remove the lower vegetation of the surrounding evergreen planting (to gain more lawn space), level off the proposed lawn and install a quality artificial lawn that will look good all-year-round and provide all weather usage.
The families existing, large trampoline is to be "sunken" flush with the proposed lawn and a small set of timber play equipment is to be installed in the far corner (which may be removed at a later date).
The facade of the property is to be predominantly glazed with large "picture windows" and bi-fold doors and will have numerous access points to the surrounding grounds. The main terrace/patio is to be constructed using "flame finished" granite pavers and the perimeter of the building is to have a 300mm wide gravel strip surround (to avoid cutting pavers around down-pipe gullies etc) to maintain a crisp, contemporary look.
The proposed lawn areas natural topography is approximately one metre above the proposed paved areas and, therefore, white rendered concrete block retaining walls are to be constructed to match the property.
The space outside the proposed kitchen is currently an unused "dead space" so the Client's plan is to install a hot tub in this area (which they have already purchased and is on site). Around the hot tub is to be a grey composite deck (artificial) which would be pleasant to walk on in bare feet, has good anti-slip properties and is easy to maintain. I also proposed that an "outside kitchen" was built in this area and the Client loved this idea.
The extension being built at the rear of the property is to house a "boot room" and utility area. The family intend to use this entrance as their everyday access to the property. Contemporary "linear" block paved footpaths are to link this entrance to other parts of the garden.
As mentioned previously, the property lies at the end of long lane. The existing driveway/car-parking area in front of the garage does not easily allow vehicle turning once another car is parked and so the Client's idea is to create a large driveway area in the unused area between the new extension and the existing outside office/garage. This hard-standing is to be surface with "resin-bonded gravel" to provide a very attractive, all-year-round multi-use surface. This large expanse of surfacing is to be visually "broken up" with bands of charcoal coloured narrow block pavers that form a grid pattern over the site and also edge the existing tarmac driveway (which is to be re-surfaced).
This garden site is bordered by the rear fences of many adjacent neighbour's gardens and these are in various stages of dis-repair. It is proposed that a two metre high, contemporary, horizontal paled, bespoke timber fence is erected around the whole perimeter of the site to compliment the garden/property and that matching pedestrian garden gates are constructed to control access to the more private parts of the garden.
This design was commissioned in February of 2015 and was handed over completed to The Client in April. The construction of the property is still ongoing with the landscape works due to commence on site this Summer.
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