What costs are You Really Paying For in Garden Design?

When you hire a garden designer, it can be easy to think you’re paying for a finished plan.

A drawing. A layout. A neat document you can hand to a landscaper.

But that’s only the visible part.

You’re paying for the thinking and experience that makes that plan work.

You’re Not Paying for Lines on Paper or pretty pictures

Design fees aren’t a stopwatch.

They aren’t based on just how long something takes.

They reflect:

• Skill built over years

• Judgment that avoids expensive mistakes

• Experience that finds the right solution faster

• A process that considers beauty, function, and how a space will feel

The drawings are just where that expertise becomes visible.

You’re also Paying for the Invisible Work

Most design work happens behind closed doors.

It looks like:

• Exploring options that never make it onto the page

• Developing ideas, questioning them, and discarding them

• Testing levels, flow, sightlines, and “how you’ll actually use it”

• Thinking through buildability and budgets before anything gets built

Design doesn’t switch off at 5pm.

It follows you around. Because your garden isn’t a “nice picture” project.

It’s a real space with real constraints and real passion goes behind it.

Every Project Is Priced Bespoke

There isn’t a “one fee covers all” approach.

Every garden has its own mix of variables:

• Scale and complexity

• Access and levels

• Existing features to retain or remove

• Planting ambition

• Whether you need visuals, phasing, or full construction details

So I price each project based on what it genuinely needs.

Not a generic package that fits nobody properly.

Clear Costs Upfront, Step by Step

Even though every project is bespoke, I keep the process clear.

I always provide an upfront cost proposal.

And I encourage a staged, step-by-step process, so:

• You only pay for each stage as you go

• You can pause after any stage if timing or budget changes

• You stay in control, without committing to everything on day one

It keeps things collaborative.

And it keeps things sensible.

You’re Paying for Confidence

A good design gives you:

• Clarity on the big moves first

• Fewer costly changes later

• A garden that works practically, not just visually

• A space that still makes sense in five and ten years

• 
  

You’re not paying for drawings.

You’re paying for decisions you can trust.

Design is a strange job to be honest . It’s invisible… until one day you’re standing in the finished garden and it feels obvious.

That “obvious” feeling?

That’s what you paid for =)

David

Owner of Studio Stour