The Professional Designer’s Guide to Garden Furnishings | Book Review

By Land8: Landscape Architects Network on April 25, 2014 No Comments / 3005 views

A review of The professional designer’s guide to garden furnishings by Vanessa Gardner Nagel It is often forgotten or overlooked by the garden designers and landscape architects, that the furniture in the garden is just as important as plants. It helps to create a welcoming space for relaxation, play or socialising, enhances the garden’s style and character, and brings out the plants’ natural beauty. Without it the garden is unfinished, sorely lacking in style and usability. With the current accessibility of the wide range of garden furniture and accessories, there is no excuse for a designer to omit this essential part of the project. “The professional designer’s guide to garden furnishings” is an excellent manual for anyone involved in designing outdoor spaces, covering practically every style and material possible.

The Professional Designer’s Guide to Garden Furnishings

Overview

The Professional Designer’s Guide to Garden Furnishings boo cover.

The author, Vanessa Gardner Nagel, starts with an overview of the furniture’s history, reaching as far back as Ancient Egypt, but not forgetting about the contemporary furniture. She advises the reader on the best way to read the existing landscape and architecture, and lists the important factors that need to be considered while choosing the elements of the outdoor furniture – the surroundings, scale, proportion and comfort. Then she moves on to describe a multitude of design styles; their knowledge allows the designer to suitably link the furniture to the surrounding architecture. The knowledge of the preconceived styles will prevent the designer from choosing furniture clashing with the overall garden design. From Asian, through Naturalistic, to Woodland – the particularities of every style are described, the characteristic materials, typical plants, colours and furnishings are listed.

Inside the book; photo credit Marta Ratajszczak

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The large part of the book is dedicated to a thorough overview of every single material which might be used in garden furniture: stone, glass, wicker and multitude of others, each described in detail, coming with a useful checklist and information such as fabrication, standards, maintenance and sustainability. Finally, the author provides some very interesting information on trade standards and connections, freight and installation, as well as a list of her trusted design centres. All this comes enriched by the abundance of very good illustrations, practical tables and logical page layout. Other book reviews you may be interested in:

Is it for you? The book is priceless for any garden designer, who is interested in going beyond the basic “plants and paths” design. It helps to understand the importance of the furniture in the outdoor space, learn the available options and implement the knowledge in the everyday work. The clear layout of the pages, informative tables and beautiful illustrations make it a perfect manual for any garden designer, either experienced, or just beginning his or her career.

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About the author: Vanessa Gardner Nagel A garden designer, author and lecturer with a rich background in interior design. A boss of her own company and a part of the national board if the Association of Professional Landscape Designers. Publisher: Timber Press, Inc. Type: Hardcover Page length: 308 pages Review by Marta Ratajszczak Return to Homepage