Magnificent York stone steps in Wandsworth or how to improve your front drive

I know it is difficult to get excited by steps but once you see really beautiful ones (or were you to own them yourself) you begin to appreciate the difference they make to a property.  To get them right you have to have a very skilled builder (who is cutting very thick, difficult and expensive

Cobbles in a Clapham garden – how to grout the cobbles!! Who’d be a builder?!

How to grout the cobbles! This is a totally back breaking job even for the most energetic, strong, resilient builder.  Bending over, scraping down in minute detail, brushing out old detritus, adding in new, then forcing into spaces with small tool and then brushing over – then repeating the excercise!  I have to take my

Burntwood Lane, Wandsworth front drive walling – days in the life of Del the builder

We’ve had a terrible time!  Guess why?  Well the weather of course.  Del, our builder, has had to be pulled off his work all of last week because he couldn’t render or point but let me tell you where he has got to in the week before.  He finished the back barbeque area and has

Burntwood Lane, Wandsworth back yard – more days in the life of Del the Builder

Here we have built the rear wall for the new raised beds using 450 x 225 x 100 mm concrete blocks.  Front and side walling 450 x 225 x 225 mm hollow blocks to include side walls for the water feature.   The height of the retaining walls will therefore be x 2 blocks with coping

Burntwood Lane, Wandsworth back yard – days in the life of Del the Builder

Del the Builder is our builder at Townscapes Landscape Contractors which is run by my husband, Peter Garland.  If you commission me to design your garden you might well therefore want him to organise the build in which case you will have our builder, Del, doing the build!  He has been with us for 20

Burntwood Lane, Wandsworth back yard – days in the life of Del the Builder

  Del the Builder is our builder at Townscapes Landscape Contractors which is run by my husband, Peter Garland.  If you commission me to design your garden you might well therefore want him to organise the build in which case you will have our builder, Del, doing the build!  He has been with us for