Garden Design Lookbook | Bristol Designer GHS Spaces

Lookbook

I've designed this page as a Lookbook showing the process behind projects which I've been a part of, as well as trying to give more recognition to the fact that it's not just designers, but makers and labourers too, who shape the spaces we use and often love.

Weeping Japanese maple in a terracotta urn seen through terrace doors

Roof terrace seating with terracotta jar, euphorbia and grasses in spring sun

Acer and ferns in terracotta pots framed by terrace doors

Five aged terracotta pots freshly filled with compost on a timber deck

Planting a rooftop terrace with pittosporum hedging above London rooftops

Terracotta pots planted with tree fern, euphorbia and hellebore on a roof terrace

Filling a watering can on site during a garden installation

Japanese maple and pine waiting in a service lift before rooftop planting

Carrying a large yew into a lift on the way to a rooftop garden

Hand-planting a rooftop trough with grasses, sage and evergreen shrubs

Terrace walkway lined with variegated pieris in flower and terracotta pots

Terracotta bowl of Brunnera in flower against a London rooftop view

Setting the formwork for the cast concrete worktop beside the oven

Steel reinforcement laid into the worktop mould before pouring

The finished cast concrete worktop curing beside the pizza oven

Existing pizza oven and clipped evergreens before the outdoor kitchen build

On site with blockwork stacked ready for the outdoor kitchen structure

Blockwork piers and template setting out the curved worktop

This lookbook isn't just my own work and inspiration I've seen in the world, it's also shaped by the people I've been lucky enough to build alongside. The projects highlighted in blue were collaborations, and I've credited the talented individuals and companies behind them.

Urban Meadows

Setting reclaimed stone steps into a blockwork retaining structure

Urban Meadows

Terraced garden mid-build with mixer, barrows and block retaining walls

Urban Meadows

Sandstone step blocks on a pallet with mallet, pins and hammer drill

Urban Meadows

Landscaper resting on a stone slab loaded onto a barrow, cap raised to camera

Gravel path winding through a wildflower meadow of yarrow and lupins towards pines

Alpine tarn among granite boulders and tussock beneath open hills

Stone slabs stepping across a fern-lined creek bed in native bush

Sandstone stepped path with mortared flag joints climbing through native bush

Greenhouse beside a Kolkwitzia in full pink flower with terracotta pots

Ox-eye daisies and lady's bedstraw above a limestone wall in open meadow

Fixing charred timber rails to the terrace frame with galvanised brackets

Looking up to the raised terrace mid-build with scaffold and new framing

Slatted black timber balustrade completed along the raised terrace

Two mugs of tea resting on a freshly cut deck joist during the build

Blackened timber balustrade on a planted London terrace with potted ficus and cordyline

Interior looking out through ficus and rubber plants to a planted balcony

Orange bistro table and chairs on a balcony with strawberries in a steel trough

Three dustpans and brushes lined up against a concrete wall in dappled light

Rooftop terrace decking and glass balustrade above London slate roofs

Groundworks underway with block retaining edge and excavated clay subsoil

New border of lavender, achillea and veronica planted along a fresh fence line

Stachys and helichrysum in pots set out across freshly spread compost and grit

Rosemary, stachys and euphorbia establishing in a sand-mulched dry border

Excavator setting coral stone boulders alongside the villa in Barbados

Coral stone stepping path beside newly planted areca palms

Freshly planted philodendron against a white rendered wall

Newly planted frangipani and shrubs in a white-walled Barbados garden

Multi-stem neem underplanted with philodendron in a raised bed

Philodendron laid out ready for planting in dark tropical soil

Yellow-flowered Galphimia held over prepared planting soil

Setting out planting positions on the coral stone terrace under coconut palms

Hardwood post braced and set in concrete during pergola construction

Purpleheart post braced against coral stone during pergola build

Detail of timber bracing holding a purpleheart post plumb in its footing

Fountain grass and rain lily establishing along a drip line

Coral stone stepping path through fountain grass beside white walls

Coral stone retaining wall with hardwood post set into gravel paving

Coral stepping stone laid out on membrane before gravel is spread

Gravel courtyard framed by hardwood screen and pergola beam

Layered tropical planting of alocasia, Persian shield and ferns

Ivy-clad brick wall and weathered clay tile roof of an old barn

Large stone paving with grass joints leading past planting to the villa entrance

Purpleheart pergola frame standing over gravel between coral stone boulders

Dense philodendron groundcover filling a bed along a rendered wall

Fountain grass in flower beside pale stone steps and paving

Young climbers trained on tensioned wires against a rendered wall in raking light

White-flowered oxalis established at the base of a multi-stem tree

Coconut palms above a white boundary wall with young climbers planted along its base

Laying weed membrane between pergola posts with the sea beyond

Hardwood pergola arches over a gravel walkway beside the white villa

White gravel path curving between coral stone boulders under a new pergola frame

Coral stone retaining edge with new white gravel path and freshly planted bed

White gravel path curving through dark soil beside coral stone and a young tree

Dowelled purpleheart joint detail at the head of a pergola post

Finished purpleheart pergola frame looking out to palms and the ridge beyond

Purple pentas in full flower spilling over a coral stone paved edge in a tropical planting scheme

Granite boulder half-buried in rough grass and dock leaves at a woodland edge

Frost-touched London town garden with clipped yew forms and a young multi-stem tree

Urban Meadows

Green roof of wildflower and sedum turf overlooking a planted London garden

Ula Maria

Stone paving set out on sand with a builder's square checking the corner

Ula Maria

Setting red brick slips on edge against a stone border with a measuring square

Ula Maria

Magnolia petals fallen across stone paving and a fine red brick inlay

Ula Maria

Stepped brick paving with mind-your-own-business joints beside a newly planted shade bed

Ula Maria

Reclaimed brick terrace with a woven red brick panel against an old stock brick wall

Urban Meadows

Potted perennials set out for planting among limestone rocks and geraniums

Urban Meadows

New shade bed of ferns and multi-stem tree beside a mid-century garden pavilion

Urban Meadows

Sweeping the poured concrete poolside terrace beside newly planted ferns and rocks

Urban Meadows

Freshly sawn hardwood decking boards stacked, showing grain and warm tones

Urban Meadows

Steel edging set out with string lines over compacted hardcore against a brick wall

Urban Meadows

Rootballed yew trees loaded onto a lorry ready for delivery

Urban Meadows

Split-face stone stepping slabs set through a freshly mulched planting bed

Urban Meadows

Newly planted shade border of grasses and perennials beneath a multi-stem tree

Urban Meadows

Completed London garden with clipped hedging, olive tree and stone-clad raised pool

Urban Meadows

Setting out the herringbone brick pattern with a square and string lines

Urban Meadows

Reclaimed brick herringbone paving being laid to string lines on sand

Urban Meadows

Planting a multi-stem strawberry tree in fruit against a slatted cedar fence

Urban Meadows

Setting a stone slab into a London courtyard of gravel, brick paving and a steel fire table