Life Outdoors is full of Color

These days spending time outdoors is not what it used to be .  It is about entertainment, lifestyle, and enjoying a space to get away from the daily grind.  Far gone are the days of swapping out annuals with changing seasons. Landscape design/build is about creating a space for you and your family to enjoy the beautiful and vibrant outdoors.  Today outdoor entertaining has the potential to be the ultimate in luxury and convenience. A meal can be prepared, served and cleaned up without leaving the comfort of your own yard. Literally. With the latest products on the market for outdoor entertaining, there is no need to take a single step inside your home.

Modern backyard landscape design takes the traditional, simple lawn and extends the enjoyable living space of your home into the natural appeal of the outdoors. Today’s outdoor living spaces incorporate all the elements of indoor living to create a true outdoor space that is enjoyable throughout the year. The most important thing to remember when designing your outdoor living space is to blend the look and feel of your home’s interior into the exterior.

Relaxing – You’ll want to have an area where you and your guests can simply sit back, relax and enjoy the beauty of the outdoors.  Firepits and fireplaces are a great way to bring a group of friends together.  There is something nostalgic and comfortable about gathering around a warm fire that seems to brings people together.

Outdoor Kitchen - An outdoor space for cooking is important when you’re entertaining. Pizza ovens, outdoor refrigerators, sinks, built-in grills, and counter-top space are options you should consider.

Dining -A comfortable and convenient place to eat is a must when planning your outdoor entertainment area.  A beautiful patio space is perfect for a dining table and chairs to entertain your family and guests.

Moving Outdoors.

Here is what you need to know about outdoor living: It used to be called sitting on the patio, grilling burgers or shooting hoops in the driveway.

Not anymore.

Today’s outdoor trends include everything from adding full kitchens or sports courts to choosing native plants instead of high-maintenance grasses.

A new survey from the American Society of Landscape Architects shows an increasing interest in outdoor living. And even though the national economy has taken a bite out of the level of luxury homeowners might aim for in the backyard, it’s still a popular place to spend a large part of the budget for a new home or remodel.

People are spending more money on creating an outdoor living space – from a resale perspective it truly adds more value than a media room.

Most popular this year with homeowners: seating and dining areas, grills, fire pits and fireplaces, low-maintenance landscaping, decorative water elements, drip-irrigation systems and structures such as arbors, according to the survey. Countertops, grills and things such as benches and fire pits are also in demand.

With this beautiful Fall weather we are having in the Houston area who wouldn’t want a perfect outdoor setting to sit and soak it all up?

ConsiderIT Done….Stewart Land Designs

Just Add Water.

Water is soothing. Water is life. Water is necessary.

Adding a water feature to your garden should be at the top of your “wish list” when deciding what elements to place in your outdoor living area.  Having a water feature in your garden not only serves an aesthetic purpose, it helps to create an environment that is relaxing and peaceful, but most importantly, it provides a interest to the wildlife including birds, frog and butterflies.  Water Features can be designed in a variety of form and fashions, and can range from a large pond to a petite bubbling urn. 

Regardless of the size of the garden space and almost irrespective of budget, a water feature can fit into any landscape. The potential for enjoyment is enormous, and adds antoher element of life to your outdoor living space.

Consider Adding Water today.

Boosting Home Values by 35%

According to a study published in the Journal of Environmental Horticulture.  After evaluating 75 homes, the study (in Lubbock, TX) concluded that every dollar invested in landscaping returns $1.35 – or a 35 percent return on investment.  The same study found that having a high-quality landscape compared to an average one increases the sales price of the home by 5.7 percent. 

So hown can you translate this 35 percent increase in value into an increase in your bottom line? 

• Add color to the front porch by planting attractive containers with mums or pansies.
• Make sure plants are in proportion to the home, and not overgrown. In new subdivisions, an investment in trees and shrubs can help make a home stand apart.
• Eliminate all weeds. Every. Single. One.
• Add outdoor interest with hardscapes – Paver patios, Pergolas, Retaining walls, Swing arbors or Water Features.

Why wait any longer? 

ConsiderItGreen today.

What is Your Yard Saying to You?

It’s been a long day.  Your mind is in disarray, your body is pushing burn out mode, and you simply need a haven of rest to beckon to you.  Soothing sounds of water trickling ever so subtly, bursts of color and butterflies abound, an intimate fire crackling, and a cool refreshing drink in hand.  Aahhh…

Well…maybe not quite the scenario for everyone, but most folks can relate to needing a spot to unwind every now and then.  The wonderful news is all of this can be made possible with a little planning and effort – right in your very own backyard. 

When you look out into your yard what it is it saying to you? 

“Come on out, there’s lots of work to be done. I need trimming, mowing, and weeds pulled.”

or does it say,

“Welcome, enter into bliss, and let the cares of your day drift away.”

Your outdoor living area should become a place of rest and peace, an extension of your home, and a serene surrounding which invites you to relax and unwind.

Consider it Done with Stewart Land Designs

Landscaping: The Original Green Industry

While a load of other industries are claiming to be green and brainstorming ways to embrace the green wave, the landscaping industry gurus are simply sticking to the passion and drive of taking care of our environment, as we’ve done since the beginning.  Consumers are wanting to be green, and they are wanting to hire green contractors and service providers, but in all  honesty, most of them have no clue what green really means.  Sadly, the green marketing fad has swept in and taken over just about every industry niche imaginable, with companies simply jumping on the bandwagon without having a true passion for what they are promoting.  Our duty as a landscape professional is to effectively communicate the benefits of healthy managed landscape to our consumer.  We must be knowledgeable, first and foremost, in every aspect of sustaining our green promotion so that our consumer is correctly guided in the management process of their landscape. 

Our goal at Stewart Land Designs is to EDUCATE our client and EXECUTE the plan so that our client can ENGAGE in a truly Green EXPERIENCE

Consider It Green – Consider It Done

Consider It Green

Green:

According to Wikipedia – Culturally, green has broad and sometimes contradictory meanings. In some cultures, green symbolizes hope and growth, while in others, it is associated with death, sickness or envy. The most common associations, however, are found in its ties to nature. Green is also associated with regeneration, fertility and rebirth for its connections to nature. Recent political groups have taken on the color as symbol of environmental protection and social justice, and consider themselves part of the Green movement, some naming themselves Green parties. This has led to similar campaigns in advertising, as companies have sold green, or environmentally friendly, products

Have you Considered Green ?