Tackling A New Skill

The best thing for me about being a garden designer is not only the drawing side of the job which I thoroughly enjoy (but which can be quite lonely at times), but the 'doing' part of the work.

I have always been a 'hands on' designer. I love to do every aspect of the build from laying paving,driving diggers,building a dry stone wall to catching rabbits the cat has brought into my daughter's bedroom! All of course cannot be done without the expert help of my work colleague Michael who is a great teacher and thankfully has the patience of a saint.

Being a creative sort ,I like to change my mind a lot.Some will propbably say it's because I'm a woman! But I put it down to being on the job - well , I think so anyway.
I have learnt so much.I want to tackle plumbing next and electrics.God help the world!

I have done a fair bit of plumbing when building ponds and lakes.There doesn't seem to be too many women designers who do 'water'. Now that Charlie Dimmock is not gracing our small screens water in gardens is not so important,yet most gardens have a water feature of some sort.

I realise there is much to be learnt and everyday something new crops up which I have to have a go at. 'Doing it' to me is the only way to learn.It is all very well thinking something looks good on paper but until you try to build it yourself you never know if it will work.

Just ask Michael.I have driven him mad the last few weeks changing my mind about a brick path he has been laying.On second thoughts,better not ask him! We have come to the final stages now of the build and .....I won!

I will post pictures of the path soon to show before and after and in between!