How to Prepare for a Outdoor Living Design Consultation
When it comes to having your dream outdoor living space designed and built, the initial onsite landscape design consultation is an essential part of the process. The initial meeting is the time to share your wants and your needs so that your ideal living area can be brought from vision to reality.
Your time is valuable and you want to get the most value out of that meeting. We want you to be fully prepared to meet and plan your new patio, landscape, or deck in Maryland. Here are 5 tips to help you get the most from your patio and landscape design consultation.
Think About How You Want to Use the Space
Your outdoor space is an extension of your home. The patio, deck, or landscape project that you are building is all about you and your family. Plan for your landscape design consultation by spending time thinking about how you plan to use your outdoor space once it’s completed. Everything from who you will be there, the number of people that you intend to entertain in the space, and how you plan to spend your time there will influence the priorities of the space and make a difference in the final design.
What is the purpose of this space? Is this a tranquil place to relax? Or, an entertainment destination with music, games, grilling and more? Maybe both? Either way, go into your consultation knowing your answer.
How many people does this space need to be able to entertain, how old are they, and what are they going to be doing?
What amenities and features do I want?
Which features will help extending the season of my space and allow me to enjoy spending the most time outside each year?
Consider Accessories, Features, and Plant Material
To expand upon the landscape design consultation tip above, one of the very important aspects of your landscape design to consider is the features/amenities and the plant material that can help make the space more aesthetically beautiful as well as enjoyable. The truth is these elements are more than the “finishing touch.” They’re the type of features that either make you want to spend time in your space, or not.
The most common elements of outdoor living spaces are:
What features do you want to include in your backyard patio and landscape?
Patio
Deck
Outdoor Kitchen
Pergola / Pavilion
Softscape Plantings
Find a Design Style that Suits You
If you prefer natural, free-flowing, or classic design you will be attracted to curves, natural stone textures, and earthy tones. Maybe you are you someone who prefers a modern or contemporary look? If so, you probably like smooth textures, sharp right angles, and gray tones.
The outside is an extension of the house. However, you do not need to match the backyard to the inside or to the font walkway. Allowing each area, inside and outside, have its own personality and character will produce a rich variety and make the home’s overall design feel bigger and more complex - in a good way.
Use all the resources available. Use the Valley Deck & Patio Idea book to get inspiration. Look at the project gallery online. You can look at magazines or online for ideas. As you look at other projects make a list of things you like and things you do not like.
Since no two backyards are exactly the same, pull together the ideas you like. Even if you save 5 ideas that are all very different that can help. You might like one element from one design and another from a different design. Drawing inspiration from multiple sources and putting together in on brand new space of your own will make your project unique and perfect for you.
Think About Your Budget
A Natural Stone Patio with thermal finish is a fantastic addition to this home in Towson.
Valley Deck & Patio has successfully helped all customers find the ideal project that is at the intersection of wants, needs, and budget. Budget is an important factor of any patio, landscape, or deck design project. The extent of what we can achieve must be defined by your specific budget configurations. The fact is, no matter how big or small, everyone has a budget.
We understand that homeowners don’t always like talking about budget upfront and at a landscape design consultation meeting it might feel too early. Sometimes homeowners will tell us they don’t have a budget yet because they just want to know what things cost.
In good humor we will tell you that we are REALLY good at spending other peoples’ money. After all, we want you to have the ultimate backyard oasis and we want your project to be the best it can possibly be. The sky is the limit on what can be accomplished and built.
Knowing the budget helps us determine if we can include the fire feature and seat wall.
If you truly are just trying to get an idea of what things cost, give us a range - it will help a lot. Less than $50,000? $100,000-$150,000? $250,000 - $500,000? The last thing we want to do is start talking about a design with a vision and features that get you excited that costs $150,000 when you truly have a budget of half that. The other thing we want to avoid is collecting a design fee and designing a project that doesn’t match your budget goals. We can build a great space for you at your crossroads of wants, needs, and budget. We just need to prioritize what you want and we can get you there.
The design-build process is dependent on guiding you in the decision making process so you can get your dream space on your budget. For instance, we can make changes to the materials we use or perhaps adjust the size of some hardscaping to help you incorporate some of the elements that you want but at a price that is within your plans.
We feel that transparency is a two way street. So if you are working with Valley Deck & Patio you will find we are happy to be transparent with you regarding project costs. For more details on project pricing and some hypotheticals read our article on pricing examples.
Ask Your Designer Questions
We learn a lot through good questions. Here are some things we strongly reccomend you ask your designer during your initial meeting.
Who will be my primary point of contact during construction?
What is/are the warranty/warranties
Does your company hold an MHIC license?
Will your company design, build, and maintain my project?
Is that All?
This is just the start of the very fun process. Check out our online gallery. If you have not done it yet, download the Idea Book.
Ellicott City Patio Builders, Severna Park Deck Contractors, Towson Landscape Designers.
Looking to build a patio, deck, or new landscape in Severna Park, Ellicott City, or Towson? Valley Deck & Patio takes pride in top notch customer service, a true professional experience, and quality work. From start to finish you will be amazed at the outdoor living space we are able to create.
About the Author
With nearly two decades of experience, Valley Deck & Patio has grown into a full-service landscape design and construction company known for our custom work. Our talented team takes on the challenge of complex projects, and we are always ready to roll up our sleeves and exceed customer expectations.
