Your Garden Made Perfect

[covetingthepreciousthings]

Anyone watch this tonight?

Just catching up now, it's the same show as "Your Home Made Perfect" but you guessed it.. a garden makeover this time!

It will be on iplayer to catch up on!

The first design would have been nicer with planting in the middle gravel section.
Where was the outdoor office in the final design?
I thought both designs were pretty rubbish for the daughter.

Ha me too @GarethSouthgatesWaistcoat. Your approach sounds identical to mine. I know I should have more hardscaping to make my garden less open and interesting. But I can’t bring myself to concrete any of it over. I spend the whole time cursing these ‘outdoor rooms’ With heaps of concrete. Really, how often do they use them? The poor wildlife suffer All year for a few days of bbqs in uk!!

I didn't like the £2000 budget one. I didn't like the colour and felt the wood would get wrecked in the rain. And as for bringing all those ornaments in and out when it's raining or windy 🙄
But they seemed happy.
I preferred the first garden design.
I'm glad they went for a different material for the pathways, which is what the extra money went on I think.

If I'd spent 30k on that I'd be wanting my money back. Dire. Sorry, probably a lot of work and planning gone into it but not for me.

Garden twins! I'd like a bit more hardscaping too but the cost is painful when you compare how many plants it would buy 😂 I don't even have a path! The plants always win and I don't even spend much on those really.

I've put a big wooden arch in the middle of the lawn and tried to bring the flowerbeds in from the fence at either side. It looks utterly rubbish at the moment as none of the evergreen climbers and shrubs either side have established. I'm going to work on that this year and maybe paint it so the winter version is more appealing.

Next plan is to edge the whole lawn with metal border roll as my edges always look scruffing despite regular mowing and clipping. That's about the extent of it for this year - focus will be on taming my existing plants and general upkeep!

I get very jealous of my neighbours who in the same space have decking, a patio, lawn, diverse-ish planting and two lots of tasteful, inviting patio furniture. Their garden always looks super neat and tidy while still appearing green. The downside is that the doer-uppers before them ripped out a beautiful established garden belonging to an elderly lady (now deceased) in order to do all that. Sometimes I think I'd like the same or some sort of compromise but I don't really want decking (rats, rotting). I already have a patio albeit a bit old and small. I looked into extending it and it was £££!

Garden rooms look nice in principle but so many people take their constructions too far and don't consider the impact on neighbours (night time lighting, daytime shade, noise)! I think it got worse last spring/summer as people were furloughed and went OTT in their gardens

Omg my goal this year is to put an arch and trellis either side etc half way down the lawn...as my attempt at adding height and rooms etc. Top tip?

Sorry that was for Quarks69!

BowlerHatPowerHat I didn't think they offered much for the daughter either! I'm not sure she'll really care about a swing seat in a couple of years. Presumably it was something she'd specifically asked for. I thought they could've made her a little semi-screened area with seating for her friends and some kind of teen-friendly decor. A design working with the whole space probably could've incorporated something.

What happens if a couple don't like either design? Do they get axed from the show before filming? Do they get to demand a third/fourth design?

I liked the second design, the delight on the woman’s face was palpable when it was finished. I think it was low maintenance in that he chose plants that do not require much attention. But really there is no such thing as a low maintenance garden, nature always finds a way.

I thought the first design was a boring cliche for an accessible garden and would not have been low maintenance at all with all the weeds that would grow through the gravel.

The £2k garden, loved the Iroko decking and pull down table. I have never understood bars in a garden, what is the point. Does anyone have one and actually use it?

I have a very rudimentary gin bar, it's more just pallet shelving than anything and decorations

Made it last year and my god, it is being christened big style this summer if we can!!!

What happens if a couple don't like either design? Do they get axed from the show before filming? Do they get to demand a third/fourth design?

I'm sure this happened on the house version of the show, and they still showed the final result and I think the architect still had to go walk round and pretend they liked the new "design".

@TitusPullo

I liked the second design, the delight on the woman’s face was palpable when it was finished. I think it was low maintenance in that he chose plants that do not require much attention. But really there is no such thing as a low maintenance garden, nature always finds a way.

I thought the first design was a boring cliche for an accessible garden and would not have been low maintenance at all with all the weeds that would grow through the gravel.

The £2k garden, loved the Iroko decking and pull down table. I have never understood bars in a garden, what is the point. Does anyone have one and actually use it?

I was thinking that about bars. If it was warm enough to have friends round to sit outside, I would have drinks chilled in the fridge. I also wouldn’t be using glasses stores outside as they would need washing up first as they’d be grimy

Well, for the large garden, I didn't particularly like either design. The first was bland and the second was too industrial for me. I liked the basic design with the long ramp but not the containers made of pipes or the dark fences.

The little yard - I liked the long part, with the fold-up table, but not the bar, there wasn't really space to have friends round so it seemed a bit pointless. I think I would have tried to squeeze in some sort of sofa or reclining chair instead.

Controversial maybe but I like all of Tom's designs, even the 65k wildlife one. That one really suffered by not being established. Yes it looked a bit rubbish but I think it will be fab in a few year.

I really hope they do a revisit. Ideally they would have done the gardens 2 years ago a d included the revisit in the show (and cut out all the repetition) but I know that's not how TV production works.

@ExponentiallyDepleted - I agree, the bar took up the only proper useable space of the yard. I would have had a built in bench area with some planting and another fold down table.

Yes, a revisit would be great, see how plants have matured, the owners have adapted the spaces etc.

@Level75

Controversial maybe but I like all of Tom's designs, even the 65k wildlife one. That one really suffered by not being established. Yes it looked a bit rubbish but I think it will be fab in a few year.

I really hope they do a revisit. Ideally they would have done the gardens 2 years ago a d included the revisit in the show (and cut out all the repetition) but I know that's not how TV production works.

I know Tom has said on his Instagram that he hopes they will do a revisit, but if they don't he said he will revisit himself and take some pictures this summer.

I really liked his designs, it was last feature in the show last night, so he won't be back again, though he did seem to hint that there would be a series 2..

I liked the 2nd garden design, it was more of a 'garden and less of a 'outside room' like the 1st one.

However - I didn't realise they had a dog - how does it get down the grid-ramp? Dogs hate them.
I liked the swing-seat arch, but would have had a more comfortable seat!
I wondered why they dug out the garden bit to lower the level, then put in a ramp? Why not fill it up (with the super-cheap ground-up toilets? Where were they last week - to fill up the empty pool) and make it more accessible that way?

The Yarden I quite liked, although I really wouldn't bother with trying to make a garden in 11m. I think I could find a better use for £2K! Nice bar, though.

You would have needed a LOT of ground up toilets to fill that pool!

I have never understood bars in a garden, what is the point. Does anyone have one and actually use it

I know someone who has a huge shed/summerhouse that's like a mini pub. The front opens right out on summer but is used all year round. Has proper beer pumps in. Big telly etc. She also has 3 sons in their late teens so they love it. Handy during lockdown.
Not sure I'd want to live next door though!

I've never understood those uncovered outdoor kitchens with cupboards in. Would you leave cooking stuff in them knowing they'll end up full of slugs and spiders.

I understand having a special BBQ but why would you be arsed cooking on a normal grill a few metres away from your actual kitchen.

I find all the kitchens really disappointing. The young couple seemed happy. I hated the colour, I’m not a fan of hot colours though. Wouldn’t that wood go crappy with rain etc? Certainly wouldn’t be leaving glasses etc out there but I guess for a party space, it’ll work.
The 30k one, I didn’t like either design. The first was too bare and the second was ugly (to me). Not much thought for the daughter, the dog or a husband who doesn’t want to garden.
I think I’ve said it before on here, I’d expect something really pristine and polished for 30k, or 20k or 10k...

Gardens not kitchens.

Why is everyone on this thread so grumpy?! Surely not ALL the choices made are so terrible.

If you want garden centre plants and suburban planting, then not sure this is the right thread for you! Just hope the designers and house owners aren’t reading this. You would just curl up in a corner and cry!

It would take you 10 mins to take your box of outdoor kitchen gear out and 'dress it' when you wanted to use the space. You dont leave the glasses out all the time!

Their Yarden backed on to an alley, so I can totally see that people could get a drink then spread out a bit more in the alley. When we can mingle again, obviously. Until then, they have a little area of cheer to remind them of better, funner times.

Where is a regular person meant to get plants if not the garden centre @Quarks69 - not all of us mere mortals can afford to employ Tom Massey to design our gardens