Everything You Need To Know About Contemporary Garden Design
At Knightingale Landscapes, we know all about contemporary garden design, and that your outdoor space deserves the best and should be an environment you adore. This is the core value of all of our work and pushes us to deliver the highest standards of workmanship for our clients across Nottinghamshire.
We offer a range of landscaping and design services to help bring your dream garden to life and are experts in the work we do. Using our decades of experience and passion for landscaping, we are sharing this guide to contemporary garden design so you can make the best decision for your landscape.
If you are looking to renovate your outdoor space and create an environment the whole family will enjoy, then you may want to know more about contemporary garden design.
What Is Contemporary Garden Design?
Contemporary garden design refers to modern trends in landscaping and the way homeowners want their gardens to look today. Several areas of contemporary garden design make the trend what it is, including:
Minimalism
Minimalism has been a trend for a long time and is a timeless theme for interior and exterior design. The purpose of this trend is less is more – when incorporating minimalist garden design, each feature or plant is intentional and purposeful to create an environment that looks great.
Clean Lines and Geometry
Modern gardens often employ straight lines and geometric shapes for a sleek, organised look which offsets the minimalist decor perfectly.
Innovative Materials
While contemporary garden design may be simple, it is not boring and encourages creativity to create unique, sleek focal points. This is why innovative materials, such as concrete, stainless steel, and composite materials, are such a pivotal part of contemporary gardens.
These innovative materials will be combined with greenery for a contrast between natural and industrial elements for a truly distinctive design.
Functionality Meets Design
Contemporary gardens are the perfect blend of functionality and style, allowing people to not just enjoy their outdoor spaces but make the most out of them too.
Modern gardens are designed for entertaining, relaxing and even working based on the structures included. Each purpose often has a separate zone and homeowners can create their own layout that perfectly complements their lifestyle.
Features To Include In Contemporary Design
Now that you understand the themes of contemporary garden design, it is time to consider how this can be implemented into your own landscape.
Various features can help transform your garden into a contemporary oasis including:
Structured Planting
Planting plays a crucial role in all forms of gardens, including contemporary garden design. What sets contemporary planting apart from other trends is the types of plants used.
To create a modern garden, opt for bold, architectural plants like ornamental grasses, bamboo, or succulents. To add structure to the space and keep it organised, use clipped hedges, topiary, and block planting in simple, repeated patterns for a minimalist yet effective layout.
Contemporary garden design is supposed to look great all year round, without ongoing efforts as modern homeowners are busy. This is why evergreen plants are an essential part of modern gardens.
Sleek Hardscaping
Hardscaping forms the foundation of a contemporary garden design. To create a modern garden, use materials like polished concrete, black limestone paving, and composite decking for paving, patios and other hardscaped areas.
These sleek materials offer clean aesthetics while being durable and low-maintenance, which fits in well with the modern routine.
Carefully choosing your materials, and opting for dark neutral colours, can create the perfect contrast to any soft landscaping elements that may be present, while also enhancing the texture of the garden.
As well as carefully choosing the colour and materials, hardscaping is a great tool to incorporate contemporary angles and geometry which is such a significant trend for modern gardens. Angular paving can be used to define patios and pathways, or even create raised beds for multi-level interest.
Tasteful Outdoor Lighting
The perfect combination of functionality and style is outdoor lighting, which is why this should be incorporated across your contemporary garden design. Tasteful lighting such as soft spotlights, to highlight key features and garden structures, or LED striplights on stairs and raised areas can pull the whole garden design together, allowing you to enjoy the space all day and night long.
Another key element of contemporary garden design is sustainability, so solar-powered and energy-efficient lighting is required across the landscape to illuminate the space after dark.
Streamlined Outdoor Furniture
Much like with your hardscaping, carefully considering your outdoor furniture can make your contemporary garden design. To fit in with the minimalist trend, only add furniture that you truly love and that you will use such as outdoor dining sets or a couple of sofas to fit your family.
Modern gardens rely on sleek, neutral colours so choose metal, wood, or rattan furniture and accessorise with monochromatic cushions. Do not overstuff the chairs or add too many decorative items, as a few potted plants with a unified theme will have more of an impact than multiple statues and accessories.
How To Design Your New Contemporary Garden
With a clear focus on what you want to incorporate into your new contemporary garden design, it is time to begin making changes to your outdoor space. Working with professionals, like our team at Knightingale Landscapes, is the best way to renovate your garden as we can handle everything you need.
Before you can begin incorporating contemporary garden design into your landscape, you first need to assess your current space and define your goals.
Assessing The Space
Every successful garden design project begins with a site consultation, which is why we offer this at the beginning of all our services. This is a chance for you to assess your current garden, noting the size, shape and available surface area you have which will then inform the future decisions for your new garden design.
Defining Your Goals
Once you know the limitations of your space, you can begin to plan the new design. As contemporary garden design is all about functionality and minimal features, defining the purpose of your garden is vital.
Are you looking to create a fun family garden or a quiet tranquil environment? The purpose of your garden will inform all the elements you buy and how the design will take shape. You can also create a multi-purpose environment if your garden is big enough by having separate zones.
Incorporating The Design
The better you plan, the more effective your contemporary garden design will be. You can request professional help, such as from our team at Knightingale Landscapes to plan your new garden and get the renovation started.
Conclusion
Contemporary garden design is a stunning combination of modern trends, sleek materials, and functionality to help modern homeowners create an outdoor environment they love.
At Knightingale Landscapes, we believe that every garden deserves the best and provide a range of services to help realise your vision. Our designers and landscapers are ready to take on your next project and implement contemporary garden design to suit your unique landscape.
Contact Us Today
If you are ready to transform your garden, contact the team today to get started.
