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Garden designer Oliver from Borrowed Space teams up with Urban Escapes (www.urbanescapes.co.uk) to create some fabulous contemporary gardens

Simply calming
A modern clean layout in your outside space not only produces
a visually stunning garden, it can create a space which feels calming and acts as a retreat from our busy lives. Contemporary gardens may appear to have simple layouts but a well designed space should cleverly incorporate the needs of modern living; creating areas to entertain, relax, eat and socialise.

The minimalism of the space gives a feeling of control and order while planting pockets and materials give interest and reflect the natural changes and season of an exterior space. A beautiful garden can therefore enrich your life by providing order and tranquillity to a busy lifestyle.

Stylish
An expression of style in the exterior space around your house could be the thing that sets you apart from the ordinary. Using a professionally qualified designer and experienced landscape team, Borrowed Space and Urban Escapes combine the best of the design and build world to create a unique ‘designer’ space that looks fabulous but also works on a practical level.

Modern or minimalist spaces don’t just need to be white; colour can play an important part as well. Incorporating your favourite colours through planting or painted walls can give the garden a personal touch and turn a show garden into a personal space that reflects your own style.

As a designer Oliver always makes sure he is up to date with latest garden trends. One of the highlights of the year being shows such as the Chelsea Flower Show to see what the designers are doing and keeping an eye out for new and exiting plants that are coming onto the market.

If you would like a fabulously fashionable garden then check out their websites or give Oliver a call on 07773 764 212 www.urbanescapes.co.uk, www.borrowedspace.co.uk

Elements
A garden design, like a well-painted painting should have a focal point and points of interest. A sleek waterfall adds new dimensions to the garden in light, movement and sound. Water is a beautifully calming and ever-changing material and employing a designer means that you don’t end up with a do-it yourself pebble fountain, which can often look anything but sleek!

It’s not just water features and focal points that need to be thought about in a stylish garden – all of the materials used should come together and work as a whole like the instruments of an orchestra.

Garden rooms
How great would it be to have your office overlooking your garden or have a gym at the end of the garden away from the kids? Well, another stylish design solution to come out of the collaboration is a range of garden rooms. They are fully insulated with their own heating, lighting and sockets.

They can be installed with large, double-glazed, bi-fold doors to open out onto your garden and can be adapted to many uses. The finish is a high-end and they come with beautiful features such as the down lighting as standard. Garden rooms are made bespoke to your requirements so they can fit them to the space and size that suits you.

If you would like to add an extra room to your house without the mess and planning restrictions of an extension then have a look at the website www.urbanescapestudios.co.uk or call Grant on 07816 647 399.

Garden designer and landscaper Oliver Borrow welcomes the revival of the proper English garden

With a revival in ‘Englishness’, traditional gardens are experiencing a renaissance. Modern gardens may become the old fashioned: slick lines and minimalistic planting still look stylish but can it warm the heart like a beautiful flowering border full of colour and perfume? Read the rest of this article »

Garden designer and landscaper Oliver Borrow writes about how to make the most of your outside space…

Good design – gives you more
Now is the of time year you should be getting ready so that you have a fabulous and useable space when the warmer weather comes.
Whether you prefer cool contemporary or traditional charm you need to make sure the garden works for you and looks right in the context of its surroundings. Decide what you want to get from your garden. Having a well-designed and easy-to-use space will improve your life no end and will give you an extra room that, unlike another bedroom in the house, can be used for more than one purpose. Read the rest of this article »

Garden designer Oliver Borrow investigates the advantages of garden rooms

There may be a chill in the air but there is one way to enjoy the garden and keep warm: in a heated garden room. These stylish looking rooms are fully insulated to a higher specification than some new-build houses and come with heating installed as standard. Recessed lighting and plug sockets allow you to use them at any time of day, even after those winter nights have drawn in.
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Garden designer Oliver Borrow plants some bulbs & adds some autumn colour

Grab your spade and trowel and head outside now – or give me a call to organise it for you – to get your garden prepared for victory. It may seem as if the garden and Mother Nature are preparing for their long sleep, shedding their clothes and leaves ready to get into their wintery bed, but underneath the soil things are still going on. Read the rest of this article »

Garden designer Oliver Borrow on enjoying your outside space throughout autumn

The summer party season may be coming to an end, but there are still lots of opportunities to enjoy your outside space. The autumn colour this year is promising to be stunning with a hot summer and some autumn rain to stop the leaves falling early. Where better to experience it than out in the comfort of your own garden in the golden evening light? Read the rest of this article »

Garden designer Oliver Borrow creates a stylish family garden from a client’s brief

I am just adding the finishing touches to one of my latest projects; it has gone really well. A sensible budget and friendly clients with their own great style but also open to ideas has given me the perfect blend to create a sleek and stylish family garden. Read the rest of this article »

Garden designer Oliver Borrow explores Leonardslee before it closes to the public

Leonardslee in West Sussex, one of the country’s great ornamental woodland gardens has closed its gates to the public after being purchased as a private residence. Read the rest of this article »

Now is the time to enjoy your outside space, says garden designer Oliver Borrow

The nights are getting longer and warmer, and now is the time to be making most of your outside space. There is nothing better than sitting back and enjoying the flowers and plants that are now bursting into bloom for the summer months. It is a time to relax in the evenings after a day’s work with a big glass of crisp white wine and admire the garden. Read the rest of this article »

Garden designer and horticulturalist Oliver Borrow adds a room to our outside space and gets busy de-weeding

I have recently teamed up with another local businessman who I discovered offering a fabulous product: garden rooms.

I have often thought that I need an extra room in my home; personally I have wanted a larger office which is separate from the house and, being a garden designer, what better place to have an office than in the garden? It would enable me to have a highly insulated, heated room with lighting and all the mod cons looking out through large, double glazed bi-fold doors onto a beautiful garden.
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