Hello Lisa.

Welcome back to another edition of THE PENCIL CASE! As always, each issue focuses on a theme to encourage a fresh look at garden design and graphics. When you walk through a garden, do you ever wonder why you're so intrigued with it? Maybe its because that garden was successfully organized into lovely rooms. Yes! Rooms! Let's explore more!

WHAT MAKES A GARDEN ROOM?

When starting a landscape design, especially from scratch, our mind can go blank. There’s so much to consider. There are many components to a garden: plants, arbors, walkways. But first, we should step back and consider the space as a whole. 

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I challenge you to think about the three dimensional shape of an outdoor space and make it into a room. First, think about the intended use of your space. Each has its own focus such as a place to dine, a lawn to play croquet, a quiet reading nook, a beautiful area to dry laundry, or a garden to grow vegetables. Then consider how you'll wrap them up with the three garden planes: floors, walls and ceilings (just like your indoor rooms).  Once you have a good grasp on this, the rest of those garden components will fall into place.

COMPONENTS OF A GARDEN ROOM

Garden Floor

When designing your garden think about what you'd like to be standing on. Is it lawn, brick, gravel, stone, wood, or moss? What activities will take place on this surface? Eating, playing, resting, or are you just passing through? The garden floor is the first segway into defining the shape of your room.

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Garden Walls

When thinking of walls, the first thing that may come to mind is the generic floor to ceiling walls we find indoors, but how do we bring that outside? For starters, garden walls do not have to be tall. Their main purpose is to give your room a defined edge and make it feel like it's own space. This could be created by a fence, hedge, perennial border, trellis, brick wall or even the side of your house or garage. The list is as endless as our imagination.

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Garden Ceiling

In most cases your garden ceiling will simply be the sky. Though, if you'd like more enclosure to provide shade, shelter or added comfort think about how a third plane above can provide that special touch. Some typical garden ceilings include tree canopies, arbors, pergolas, tents, and umbrellas.

GARDEN ROOM INSPIRATION.

Need some inspiration to get you started? My Pinterest is filled to the brim with Garden Room ideas.

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FLOORS

Lawn

Paving

Stepping Stone Paths

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WALLS

Outdoor Walls

Trellis | Arbor | Pergola

Fences and Gates

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CEILINGS

Garden Bunting

Outdoor Lights

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Do you need more inspiration? Check out this article I wrote on How to Design an Outdoor Room on Monrovia's fabulous site.

LET'S DO THIS!

Feeling inspired? Create your own Pop-Up Garden Room to draw, design, and imagine your own unique garden room! Tag me on Instagram @paper.garden.workshop to share your fabulous ideas!

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Oh, and don't forget to jump on our design membership waiting list. It opens again next month (May 2023). We dive into one design topic each month and learn so much together (and yes, there is a cool Garden Room Garden Guide already in there).

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If you know someone that needs design inspiration, please feel free to share this newsletter. Anyone can subscribe right here. I also keep a VAULT of past issues in this secret location.

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Thanks for letting me visit your inbox! I look forward to seeing you again soon.

Happy spring,

Lisa 

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PAPER GARDEN WORKSHOP

Thank you to Mandy Orgler for designing the lovely graphics in this newsletter.