Models, not the male type

Today I have been making models to help me visualise my 1:200. I have constructed a cardboard 'stramp' and my 'intermingling pool' with criss-crossing bridges over. The bridge has seating steps all around, apart from at the paddling end where there is a small 'beach'.

The task was time-consuming but constructive in more ways than just the physical.  Having seen my creations 'in situ' on the base plan, I feel there is too much 'going on' around the base of my stramp and people will be tripping gaily off the bridges and bumping into those sailing off the ramp.

So I will be revising my positioning and shunting the stramp back up the hill a bit. I feel revision 3 of my contour overlay coming on. Just when I feel I am 'resolving' issues, it all changes again. But I have to say that I am really getting to know my design and my site. And not only that, but I actually like it. I would  love to visit Park Plait and have a wander around. I have added some blue tack people in my photo to add some scale - one on the high bridge and another at the top of the stramp. I think they have eaten too much dinner.

Next I need to complete my materials and plant palettes. I started to really enjoy the process when I commenced the planting palette - so much easier to generate enthusiasm over living things rather than concrete - although I'm even feeling motivated about this too.

I'm intending to plant the sides of the stramp with mounded Buxus together with my favourite Hakonechloa macra Aureola (pictured above but I think this is the green rather than yellow), using Juniperus communis Hibernica for vertical accent. I will continue this scheme to the south side of the pool, to give it some continuity. Up on the hill, lining the avenues, there will be my favourite Amelanchier lamarkii to frame the views and also up there in the Mediterranean beds I'll include some sort of evergreens too for structure. Julia suggested Arbutus and Jamie put Thuja  or Juniperus Skyrocket into the thinking pot. To the east of the stramp are my bamboo terraces and to the west side are the perennial meadow terraces, with the rain garden just edging in to the western boundary of my 1:200 portion.

My design has changed a fair amount since the 1:500 masterplan, but that, apparently, is the intention.

I'm looking forward to getting all my thoughts together and replacing the old base plan with the new design - next time I will endeavour to make my rendering less 'diagramatic'. Next Monday is 'design freeze' so I will be probably regretting these words when I come to actually do it.

I have a little inkling that Easter holidays will be a little on the manic side - having looked at the timetable and realised that 1:50 is looming over us together with all those 'details'.

Moving on...

The hanging was a pleasant surprise. More than that... I felt ecstatic. My expectations have fallen somewhat since embarking on this final year and anything over a D for the design module suddenly feels acceptable. And over the C.. well, that's why I'm celebrating. 

But, of course, no time to sit on the laurels. Or on the lavenders, and definitely not on the holly. I seem to remember in the dark, distant past that I started this degree in order to learn more about plants. We did delve into the wonderful world of growing things quite a few times but not as much as I had anticipated. Perhaps I should have read the prospectus more carefully. During the first year the penny dropped. This is about design more than plants. Once I had got my head around that, I understood. Perhaps my dear old dad will, one day, too. He still muses over the curiosity "Why do you need a degree in order to do some gardening?"

We are moving on. Design Development it is called. Now taking a section of our park and increasing the scale from 1-500 to 1-200. I realise that my park has a few complicated things in it that I will have to get my head around. There's the 'stramp'. A zig-zagging ramp, around which steps are built. So instead of the ramp being fitted around the steps, it's the other way around. Like the one at Vancouver - I'll post a picture below. It was designed by Arthur Erikson and Cornelia Oberlander and I just love it. Then there's the criss-crossing bridge. It fits into my 'interwoven paths' design really well. There's an example of a drawing by NEXT architects and Rietveld Landscape for Amsterdam - a picture of which is also below. And I had to add the grassy path, disappearing up the hillside. Don't you just want to explore and see where it takes you? I am intending to use paths that incorporate grassy bits and 'things' growing in them. 

My park is designed around the shapes made by three paths. They each represent a strand of human personality: Joyful; Soulful and Down-to-Earth. My inspirational word is REFLECTIVE - my park design is intended to reflect on the things that people need in order to make them feel fulfilled. The surfaces of paths -particularly Joyful - changes regularly in order to maintain excitement and interest. It is angular and alters direction frequently - whereas the other two are curvaceous. They are all woven together in a 'PLAIT' formation - indicating that people are a combination of different personality strands, all of which make them stronger. 

My park is called Park Plait and I need to get on with it...