- Improve the view from your window with top tips from some of the UK's best gardeners
- Christine Wilkie recommends creating focal points with evergreens
- Sian Zbrozyna shares how to frame a view with clever planting
- Kate Eyre shares tips on making the most of the view in small gardens
- Amir Schlezinger recommends using hedges to focus the eyes on certain areas of the garden
Our recent Room With A View survey revealed that a good view is vital to Britain’s homeowners. In fact, 81% of people feel uplifted when they see a beautiful view and over half of 45 year olds surveyed would consider buying a house simply based on its surrounding views. It’s therefore clear that the view of the garden is pretty important to us Brits.
One of the best ways to improve the view from your home is to create a beautiful garden, something many of the people we surveyed are already doing. The results show that, on average, each UK homeowner spent 154 hours working in their garden this summer. With people spending so much time gardening, we decided to ask some of the UK’s best garden designers for their tips to create the best view possible.
Christine Wilkie: Christine Wilkie Garden Design
Christine from Christine Wilkie Garden Design shows us how to make the most of the fantastic view bi-fold doors provide.
“The latest bi-folding doors make it even easier to bring the outdoors in, while extending your living area into a garden room. A good layout, planting scheme and focal points become even more important when they are visible from the house, so it’s important to make every detail count.
“Creating a seamless transition into the garden is also a good idea. Choose materials that complement your interior styling. For example, pick flooring that can also be used outdoors to create a patio or dining terrace. Be sure to check that it’s frost-proof, non-slip and fit for purpose.
“Create vistas and focal points with plants and ornaments that can be enjoyed inside and out. Evergreen plants with strong architectural qualities work really well. Outdoor lighting extends use of the garden into the evening. Use stylish lighting for dramatic effect, or to highlight a garden feature, tree or specimen plant.”
Sian Zbrozyna: Paperback Garden Design
Sian at Paperback Garden Design in Leeds shares her thoughts on maximising both restricted and expansive views.
“If you have large windows and an expansive view then make the most of it by letting in as much light as possible to create a connection between the home and the outside. Not all views are open – some may be restricted due to overviews from neighbouring windows or gardens. Views in this case can be focused or directed into particular areas; along paths, to specimen plants or sculptural focal points.
“Views can be framed by planting or by removing planting! Sculptures, such as this steel frame sculpture we designed, can be incorporated into the garden design to enhance long distance views.”
Kate Eyre: Kate Eyre Garden Design
Kate at Kate Eyre Garden Design provides an insight into how to gain an all year round view with clever planting and explains why it’s so important to plan a garden around the line of vision.
“With a great move towards opening up spaces and the addition of fantastic walls of glass, what you are often sadly faced with is a forgotten garden. So it is crucial to consider your vistas out into the garden, your lines of vision and what you will see when you first walk into the room or when you are relaxing.
“A well designed garden will always have an evergreen framework on to which the deciduous plants and the perennials are then applied, so throughout the seasons you will always have something attractive and interesting to focus on. It could be a beautiful shaped evergreen tree or shrub in the winter months, or a fantastic display of brightly coloured tulips in the spring.
“In a small garden it is good to have a clear viewpoint, for example an evergreen tree, a water feature or even a brightly coloured plant in a beautiful pot, which is situated in the line of vision. The key things to remember are the lines of vision through the internal space to outside, and to ensure there is something fabulous to focus on through the changing seasons.”
Amir Schlezinger: MyLandscapes
London based garden designer Amir at MyLandscapes shares why he believes hedges are crucial to a stunning view.
“A hedge provides a static, nearly unchanging permanent line that is the perfect milieu to accentuate focal points in the garden. Running along an edge towards a tree, or across the horizon in front of a sculpture, a hedge has the ability to make a space appear wider or longer, while leading the eye towards the desired subject. When those vertical and horizontal elements come together to create arches and viewing apertures, hedging ascertains its meaning creating a foreground that is as important as the background.
“Hedges can also be used to add an element of sculpture to the garden, creating a strong focal point. Yew, Box and Japanese holly provide some of the best evergreen natural materials from which to sculpt a long lasting living piece of art.”
For more information on Origin's bespoke bi-folding doors, contact your local installer today.
