PORTFOLIO
As you can imagine, with over 35 years experience, there’s not a lot I don’t know about gardening, soft & hard landscaping and ground working.
My experience is wide and varied from regular garden maintenance to commercial projects with £100K+ budgets. I started my career as a nurseryman which taught me a lot about plant cultivation & maintenance. I then moved in to hard landscaping and am responsible for quite a few of the playgrounds in Warwickshire. I was lucky to have worked with Warwickshire Wildlife Trust on projects for habitat creation and environmental management. It was great working on these projects which encompassed many aspects including the planting of native trees & plants, the construction of platforms, bridges & boardwalks, flood prevention techniques and stream erosion management.
During this time I began to appreciate more how both commercial and domestic landscaping can have impacts on the environment and how simple changes in design could benefit rather than hamper wildlife. I have also worked on many, many domestic landscaping projects with spends ranging from £1k to £80K+. I am always happy to help my prospective clients; taking their ideas and helping them arrive at a design that meets their requirements, both financially and in practice.
If you think my skills meet your requirements then please do not hesitate to contact me.
Thanks for taking the time to visit this site which will be updated regularly with pictures taken of the works I complete. Hopefully this will demonstrate my capabilities and have you getting in touch for an estimate.
Kind Regards
Nick Lewis
GARDEN PATH
The clients remit was to create a garden path out of a mismatch of materials they already had.
SMALL PATIO
A small patio area using Indian sandstone.
MULTI-LEVEL GARDEN
The client had a long list of requirements but after consultation the main ones were to give them a seating area and retain a large lawned area for their four children to play on. They were more than happy with the end result.
POLISHED INDIAN SANDSTONE
The clients remit for a front garden paved with blocks and polished indian sandstone was beautifully achieved.
COMPLETE GARDEN TRANSFORMATION
This job demonstrates the work involved in meeting the clients remit of transforming a neglected and unusable back garden into a clean, usable, low maintenance, child friendly terrace garden. The terracing was laid with deck and slabs to break up the amount of decking being used. And, as ever, there was the requirement for somewhere to house the children's garden toys.
A NEW PATIO READY FOR SPRING AND SUMMER
The clients were let down by previous landscapers but they now got the patio they wanted.
Natasha gave us 5 starts and said “I was starting to lose the will to live when I couldn't find a reliable person to complete a patio for us, then I found nick! From start to finish he has done everything he has said he would do and when. He never stopped working!! The patio looks amazing and I know I have other jobs that I will be asking nick to complete!! Thanks nick.”
It’s always satisfying when the client is happy.
A PATIO AND FOOTPATH
The clients knew exactly what they wanted. They had all the materials but just didn’t have the time to install the patio and lay the footpath so they call us. Hey presto they now have this stage of their gardens development completed and can now add their planting and furnishings and enjoy their outside space.
MIXING THE OLD WITH THE NEW
The clients had a conservatory removed and wanted to fill the gap left whilst retaining the existing patio. The existing patio was jet washed and re-pointed with some of the existing paving needing to be re-laid. The new patio was laid where the conservatory had been. Once all the work was completed the patio areas tie in very nicely together. To me it gives the feeling of a rug being laid on a carpet. I like the effect of using differing paving as it gives the feeling of differing rooms without the need for walls. Using the same material in varying colours or mixing completely different materials is an excellent way to define areas of your garden.
A NEW DECK AND ADJOINING PATIO
The client needed to make the most of the space in their garden so it was out with the old flower bed and in with a new deck and patio. They sit nicely together in the corner of the garden ready or the trampoline or a table and chair together with a chilled bottle of something nice. Actually, we think there is room for both so everyone is happy.
CHILDRENS PLAY AREA
One of our clients was so happy with the patio and new feather edge board fence we delivered them and the tree pruning we completed that they returned with a further requirement for a children’s play area with a swing set, slide and sandpit. The clients had 7 telegraph poles, a sketch and knew they wanted the area laying with artificial turf. Now they have their new play area and they love it but more importantly their wee ones love it too.
DECKING IN BISHOPS ITCHINGTON
Sometimes projects take longer than anticipated which can have an adverse effect on our work schedule meaning we have to work over weekends to catch up. With this clients permission we worked over a weekend to get the job finished. They were pleased with the results as their feedback shows, Charlotte said “Absolutely love it!! Thank you so much Nick, you’ve done a wicked job & we’d highly recommend you”. We thank Charlotte for her comments and hope she is making the most use of the deck during these summer months.
GOLDEN GRAVEL DRIVE
OUT WITH THE OLD - IN WITH THE NEW
The client was happy with the layout but wanted everything renewing so out came the existing grass, slabs and gates and in went the new turf, sandstone paving and gates. Nice to see turf being laid and once it takes root I think you'll agree, it looks lush.
OUTSIDE SPACE WITH A VIEW
The client lives in Napton on the Hill which as the name suggest is on a Hill. The family had started the works themselves but then a back injury meant they couldn’t continue. They had plenty of outside space but none of it was really useable. They also had some of the materials already which were spread out around the garden.
The remit here was to undertake the hard landscaping to give the client a decked level outside their patio doors so that they could enjoy the amazing views. Then they wanted the steels removed and to create a second level for planting. Finally a third level at the bottom of the garden was to be made level and accessible. The third level was to be connected to the upper deck by a decked staircase with handrail which also needed to give access to the second level. Between the deck and second level the client wanted to make good the existing retaining stone wall and build it up to the skirt of the deck while between the second a third level concrete planters were to be used to complete a retaining wall that could be planted to give a waterfall of colour.
When excavating and levelling for the deck there was a requirement to dig down a meter to install the posts for the handrails, this unearthed two patio areas, one of which was about two feet down together with chain link fence that had been used in an attempt to retain the ground. Once you start excavating you never know what you are going to find. And as spring didn’t seem to want to spring it was very wet and muddy working too. We were able to reduce the waste removal from site bill by placing lots of the spare soil under the decked area, after all no one wants to pay for several skips when one will do.
After a lot of hard work the lady of the house was so happy with the end result and with summer coming should be able to enjoy some gardening and also enjoy the panoramic views from her new and large deck. The garden is now very useable and once the planting has been completed and becomes established this garden will be a really fantastic addition to her home.
LOW MAINTENANCE PARTY GARDEN
More happy clients now have the garden room they desired. They wanted to retain some of their original garden and incorporate some new additions. We added a new raised area with sleeper retaining wall for pots and tubs as well as a new large decked area with the retained brick edged circle being filled with Scottish pebbles. Very effective we think. The deck is now ready for some new garden furniture for those summer parties. We even suggested a dance mat to get those summer parties swinging.
The client, Jenny said "Nick is a lovely man and he worked very hard on our garden project, sometimes in pretty awful weather. We're very pleased with our garden transformation and appreciated Nick's dedication and experience."
COMPOSITE DECKING
Composite decking may be more expensive but if you don't want all the hassle of maintaining your wooden decking then composite decking may be for you. It doesn't need anything more than a wash with soap and water.
GOLDEN GRAVEL DRIVE, SIDE ACCESS & REAR PATIO
Sometimes our clients know exactly what they want. This gentleman wanted to lose the grass form the front aspect of the property and replace it with a golden gravel drive and paved steps with sleeper retainers. He wanted the side access and rear patio replacing with new indian sandstone pavers laid in a random pattern again with sleeper retainers and edging. Great chap to work for and he was more than happy with the results.
A GARDEN IN LEAMINGTON SPA
This was one of those big projects. The client wanted everything out and to start again with a blank sheet of paper. New fence, new gates, new deck and fixed seating with built-storage for the seating cushions, new vehicle hard standing, new lawn, etc, etc, etc. Here's just a few before and after shots. At one stage the end of the back garden had a mound of topsoil that was as tall as the fence and the width of the entire back garden. Sometimes there can be masses of materials used that you don't see as they go below ground level. A makeover like this can be costly but it will add to the value of your property and give you extra room to enjoy those warm summer evenings. These clients work hard and now they can play hard if they so choose.
REPLACE DECKING WITH A RANDOM PATTERN PATIO
This lovely lady just wanted the rotting decking replaced with a new sandstone patio. No job is to small and the results can make a real difference.
