Vialii Review of 2013
Happy new year to all our lovely readers. As we move forward into 2014, we take a moment to have a review of 2013 and some of the highlights for Vialii and the trends that we saw…
A lovely visit to the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh in 2013
The year of the garden room
2013 saw our clients wholeheartedly embrace the outdoor room. From designer offices to simpler summerhouses we had several clients wanting to introduce outdoor living areas into their gardens. One of our favourites was this custom built garden pod which provided shelter from the rain and prevailing wind whilst still making you feel part of the garden. And with two more garden rooms already lined up for 2014 this trend doesn’t look like it’s going away…
The garden “pod” is a great focal point in this garden as well as somewhere to shelter from the weather
The year “Lulu’s Garden” launched
Our very own Lulu started up her own gardening blog for our sister company Vialii Garden Services in 2013. She puts us at VGD to shame with her regular, fun and educational blogs on all aspects of gardening. Click here to catch up on what’s happening in Lulu’s Garden…
Lulu launched her own blog, all about fun and interesting things to do in (or related to) the garden
The year of the Community Garden
2013 saw us being involved in two community garden projects. Our design of Provost’s Park in Bridge of Allan finally came to life in October and we completed our designs for the Jupiter Urban Wildlife Garden too. It was an honour to be involved in both projects and we look forward to spending time in both gardens in 2014.
The construction of our Provost’s Park design got underway in 2013
The year of the Vialii team
Our talented Vialii team sprouted new buds and grew well in 2013. Corrie and Gordon were joined by Neil on the maintenance side while both Connor and Kenny came on board for VGD in 2013. Jill also officially joined Michael working in the business in 2013 and with Lulu busily blogging away, Vialii became a true family business. We look forward to the team growing from strength to strength in 2014.
The Vialii team on a well earned night out
The year of upcycling
From a garden in Glasgow featuring lots of upcycled items, our own upcycled products made from old pallets to the “Upcycled Garden” for the Scottish Wildlife Trust, 2013 was the year for making the most of what you had.
Bespoke garden planters made from upcycled pallets
The year of the garden visits
Well to be honest, every year is packed full of garden visits at Vialii Towers and 2013 was no exception. From Glendoick and Branklyn to Logan and Alnwick we had our fair share of wonderful gardens in 2013, not to mention the wonderful centenary of the Chelsea Flower Show.
Lulu providing a tour of Logan Botanic Gardens
The year of artificial turf
We laid many new lawns with artificial turf last year – whilst it may not be everyone’s cup of tea, the quality these days is great and can be a wonderful solution for gardens with issues with soil and light and for those with children and/or dogs.
Artificial turf can transform an area where real grass struggles
The year of the sunshine
OK, the start of the year was pretty miserable but who cares when we get such a glorious summer?! The long, hot sunny days were wonderful for sitting enjoying gardens but also a lovely change when working outside building them too! Here’s hoping to a repeat in 2014!
An escape to the beach in the glorious summer of 2013
So, there you have it, 2013 in a nutshell (or a blog!) Here’s hoping that 2014 is as much fun.
Happy 2014 everyone.
From all at Vialii
Transformers – Gardens in Disguise! Part 3
You loved Part 1 of our Before & Afters feature. And you adored Part 2 of our garden make-overs. So we are back with the third installment in our ever popular feature on our garden transformations. Below are some of our recent projects with our clients’ favourite feature – the before and after photographs!
A city retreat, Edinburgh
Before: with the old garage removed, the garden needed to be restored
Before: with the removal of the garage, the garden badly needed tackling
After: two new patios, two water features, a dry-stane seat and new planting all combined to transform this garden into a peaceful haven in the city.
After: a garden for the clients and the wildlife to enjoy
A low maintenance garden in Stirling
Before: A waterlogged garden with no focal points
Before: a waterlogged garden with no focal points
After: A dining patio, evening patio with pergola, new veg area, standing stone water feature, wildlife friendly planting and artificial grass all transformed this garden.
After: all parts of the garden were now usable
A front garden makeover, Stirling
Before: This front garden was really difficult to access and maintain
Before: poor access and difficult to maintain
After: The garden was given a make-over with a sandstone cobble path combining with a curving gravel path and lush green planting.
After: even in a small garden journeys can be created and interest added
A contemporary courtyard garden, Larbert
Before: This back garden had terrible drainage problems and was overlooked.
a waterlogged and overlooked garden
After: A new drain along with fencing, patios, a bespoke water feature and feature shrubs transformed the space.
contemporary fencing encloses this garden whilst still exposing the historic wall
If you are interested in having your own garden designed, click here to contact us for a free design consultation.
Thanks for reading.
All at Vialii
Faking It
More and more in recent times, clients have been asking us about using artificial grass. It used to be fake grass looked just that – fake. It was more akin to the base for a Fuzzy Felt scene (Google it kids!) and was far from being the building blocks of a stylish garden. These days, there are a myriad of products in the market place ranging from the cheap and cheerful (think old style football pitches) to the luxe end of the market. Many of the qualities on offer look just like real turf – some even have thatch in them to make them look even more real!
Now, it’s not for everyone and if you have the conditions and time to care for the real thing we would always recommend that route. A beautiful real lawn is one of life’s real pleasures. Sometimes though, the fake stuff can be the right choice for you. Here are just some of the benefits…
Artificial grass is commonly mistaken for real grass
No need to cut the grass anymore! Get the lawn mower on eBay and from now on Sunday afternoons can be spent with your feet up with a nice cuppa instead of tackling the cobwebs in the shed to get the mower and strimmer out. You just need to find a way of getting out of cleaning the car instead!
No need for fertiliser, lawn weed killer, aeration, scarifying or the many other lawn treatments required to keep your grass looking green and lush. Some of these can have an adverse effect on the environment too so you are being eco-friendly by switching to the fake stuff.
Artificial turf is a great solution for pets and kids who can be prone to digging or generally getting everything, especially themselves, covered in mud from playing on grass. It is also a great solution on high traffic areas.
Cost! OK, so the initial costs are comparably higher than traditional turf, but long term you save money on mowing, treatments etc.
Fake grass can help with drainage issues although you will need to ensure a suitable base and possibly a drainage solution are installed along with the new grass.
There’s no need to water your new fake turf. A new laid traditional lawn needs a lot of TLC whilst it beds in and in hot summers with little rain (OK, we can but dream) you will need to keep your traditional lawn watered.
Before: a waterlogged lawn
After: a lawn for all weathers
Whilst most clients want to consider artificial turf as a direct replacement for a traditional lawn there can be other, more innovative ways to utilise fake grass in your garden. One of our favourite ideas was showcased in the Urban Plantaholics Kitchen Garden at the Chelsea Flower Show 2010. The garden was created for an eccentric chef who had a passion for plants but didn’t want to cook at home. A fitted kitchen became plant pots with plants growing out of kitchen drawers and appliances! A cave-like seating area was encased with artificial turf with water cascading down the front. The magical grotto created using the fake turf showed that it doesn’t need to simply be used on flat surfaces that are to be walked upon.
The Urban Plantaholics Kitchen Garden
For more information on introducing artificial turf to your own garden either as a lawn or as an innovative art installation, contact Vialii now for a free consultation.
Thanks for reading.
All at Vialii