 We all need a special place to escape from reality from time to time. Some people find going to the movies, taking a long-awaited vacation, or a walk in the park, the perfect outlet to unwind and get away. Although these activities are all great solutions, there’s nothing like having a refuge in your own backyard. I recently came across the perfect phrase in an advertisement from Sun Mountain Lodge, “The key to happiness is feeding your soul a regular dose of nature.” This phase is what sanctuary gardens are all about! A sanctuary garden helps to focus in on your surroundings and relaxes your mind to find a more meaningful awareness. Are you ready to get started? To create your sanctuary garden, here are my top six essentials: 1. Identify Your Desire Identify why you have the desire to create a Sanctuary Garden. Now is the fun part, get out your markers and flip chart, and write your thoughts on paper. If you are a list maker, you’ll need to step out of your comfort zone and randomly jot down ideas in no particular order. Mind-mapping is my favorite way of getting thoughts on paper.  2. Find Your Space We are drawn to gardens because it creates a sense of connection to the ground beneath us and mother earth. To find your sanctuary garden space, stand and pause in several different locations. The selected space should be where you feel most comfortable and a sense of belonging. This is a bit hard to explain, but you’ll know when you’ve found the perfect spot! 3. Create an Entrance By creating an entrance to your sanctuary space, you create an invisible portal to leave your busy life and responsibilities behind. An entrance may be created by a stack of stones, a garden entry sign (with your garden’s name), an overhead arbor, crushed stone path, or fragrant plant to name a few. 4. Provide a Place to Sit As a child, I loved to create secret outdoor rooms in the woods by my house. I would use fir branches as brooms to delineate the floor areas and sit for hours on the tree limbs above. Although you may not have a tall tree, or the desire to climb one, a chair, bench, or stump will do! By providing a place to sit, it reminds you to sit and relax and enjoy the natural surroundings. 5. Add Water It is incredible to me how quickly the sound of running water creates calmness and clarity. Water is one of the most important essentials for Sanctuary gardens. However, it is not necessary to build a pond or waterfall or fancy fountain. Hand watering plants can create the same effect. Another idea is to place a dish rock in your garden to collect rainwater, or snuggle in a tabletop water fountain near your sitting area.  6. Choose a Color Palette Choose colors that make you feel fabulous rather than what you think will look good. Are you more comfortable with purples and greens, or hints of blues? One easy test is to bring home several paint chip samples from the hardware store like Home Depot. Spread the samples out over a table and see what type of joy or feelings they provoke. Here are a couple of ideas to get you started.  Calming and Inviting Colors  Refreshing and Cool Colors To learn more about colors for outdoor spaces, see Setting the Mood.
About BauerCombs Landscape Architects BauerCombs is an award-winning landscape architecture firm that specializes in designing sensory gardens in the greater Seattle, Bellevue, Eastside areas, and across the United States. With our signature sensory design methods, we create captivating landscapes that bring life to outdoor spaces through the artistic balance of color and patterns, scent, touch, taste, and sound. Our work has been published in several magazines and continues to grow in reputation for creating healthy outdoor environments for people and communities. To learn more about BauerCombs and our design tips, we invite you to download our free ebook. Author: Susan Combs Bauer, Landscape Architect, Copyright © 2019 BauerCombs & Associates, Inc. www.bauercombs.com (425) 496-7772  Sensory gardens are intimate spaces designed to help people experience and enjoy outdoor environments to the fullest. These type of gardens provide peaceful escapes and a sense of well-being from day-to-day stress and challenges. When selecting landscape features for your sensory garden, the best place to start is with the five senses. 1. Sight The first impression of a landscape is how it looks. It only takes a moment to get your first impression. Initially, we scan our surroundings for overall color, composition, patterns, and shapes. By adding certain colors, we can create increased energy, calmness, cheerfulness, or sense of comfort. We all know that advertising companies use color to trigger emotions for increased sales. So, why not use the power of color to create a preferred feeling or mood for our outdoor living spaces? With just a few adjustments, it’s simple to create the perfect outdoor space for your desired mood and ambiance. For further reading about color, see our blog Setting the Mood. 2. Sound Sound is often overlooked or goes unnoticed in landscape design. Is there a particular sound you are looking for, or an absence of sound? These are good questions to consider when incorporating sound elements into your landscape. Some people enjoy absolute quite while others prefer the sound of trickling water, songbirds, or soft music in the background. 3. Scent Incorporating fragrant plants throughout the landscape creates an uplifting effect. Scent and fragrances are closely linked to our memories and can positively awaken our senses. Try placing fragrant flowering plants near entrances and under bedroom windows to experience a sweet whiff of flowers on a warm summer evening. 4. Touch When you were a child, you most likely heard the phrase “don’t touch that!” Beyond curiosity, I’m not sure what gives us the uncontrollable urge to touch and feel, but touch can add a rich dimension to your landscape. Texture and touch can be added to the landscape through the use of plants, pebbles, artwork, giant boulders, smooth glass, metal, and more. 5. Taste Incorporate edibles into your landscape. It may takes a bit of effort, but the outcome is delicious! Many people get stuck in a rut growing edibles in the traditional neat and tidy rows. Try intermixing tasty herbs, berries, and vegetables in raised planting beds along pathways and outdoor dining areas. There is nothing more satisfying than harvesting home-grown edibles! Balancing the 5 Sensory Design ElementsBalancing sensory design elements is a powerful tool that can transform your garden into a peaceful and therapeutic escape. It is not necessary to awaken the five senses all at the same time, but if you do, achieving the right balance does take some finesse. Please keep in mind that the art and science of sensory design may be complex depending on who your audience is such as, people with special needs or memory loss. If you are not sure where to start, BauerCombs Landscape Architects would love to help. Give us a call at (425) 496-7772 or schedule a 20-minute phone visit with us. Our studio is located in beautiful North Bend, Washington (a hiker's haven just outside the metropolitan areas of Seattle, Bellevue, and Issaquah). About BauerCombs
BauerCombs is an award-winning landscape architecture firm that specializes in designing sensory gardens in the greater Seattle area and across the United States. With our signature sensory design methods, we create captivating landscapes that bring life to outdoor spaces through the artistic balance of sight, color, scent, touch, taste, and sound. Our work has been published in several magazines and continues to grow in reputation for creating healthy outdoor environments for people and communities. To learn more about BauerCombs and our design tips, we invite you to download our free ebook. Author: Susan Combs Bauer, Landscape Architect, Copyright © 2019 BauerCombs & Associates, Inc. www.bauercombs.com (425) 496-7772  We are delighted to announce that BauerCombs Landscape Architecture won the Best of Houzz in Customer Service for the second year in a row! Thank you for all your positive reviews, interest, questions, and conversations from the greater Seattle, Bellevue, and Eastside areas. We invite you to visit our Houzz profile and read our 5-Star reviews.
For those of you not familiar with Houzz, it is a homeowner’s guide to view project photos from top landscape architects, architects, and interior designers across the United States and Canada. In a nutshell, Houzz.com is one of the best sources for design inspiration and advice for everything a homeowner may want. Spring is just around the corner, if you’re thinking about maximizing your property to full potential and enjoyment, call us, or go to our Getting Started page. Why hire a Landscape Architect? Landscape architects:
Our design studio is based in beautiful North Bend, WA. BauerCombs is an award-winning landscape architecture firm that focuses on creating fun and entertaining landscapes in the greater Seattle area and across the United States. With our signature sensory design methods, we create captivating landscapes that bring life to outdoor spaces through the artistic balance of sight, color, scent, touch, taste, and sound. Our work has been published in several magazines and continues to grow in reputation for creating healthy outdoor environments for people and communities. For further reading, download our book Luxury Landscapes Defined Author: Susan Combs Bauer, Landscape Architect, Copyright © 2019 BauerCombs & Associates, Inc. www.bauercombs.com (425) 496-7772  Finding the perfect garden accessory for your landscape is a great way to personalize your outdoor space, and it's fun! Accessory options will most likely depend on how much you want to spend and can range anywhere from a single planter to an extravagant resort-style water feature. The best selections all comes down to what kind of feeling you want to create. Scroll down to see a few of our favorite things that you may enjoy in your garden (shown above are glass ball stakes created by Winfield Designs). Outdoor Lighting |
| 5 Key Concepts for Educational Landscapes:
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Here are a few more related blogs on our website that you may be interested in:
Add Outdoor Musical Instruments to your Community Park
Four Simple Design Tips for Kid-Friendly Gardens
Awakening Outdoor Spaces through Sensory Design
About BauerCombs
BauerCombs Landscape Architects serves the greater Puget Sound, Seattle, Eastside, and Cle Elum areas. We specialize in designing community parks and trails, senior living landscapes, and private estates. As a Northwest leader in sensory landscape design, our captivating landscapes bring refreshing life to outdoor spaces through the artistic balance of sight, color, scent, touch, taste, and sound.
We are excited to say that our landscape work has been published in several magazines and continues to grow in reputation for creating healthy outdoor living environments for people and communities.
Author: Susan Combs Bauer, Landscape Architect, Copyright © 2018 BauerCombs & Associates, Inc. www.bauercombs.com (425) 496-7772
Add Outdoor Musical Instruments to your Community Park
Four Simple Design Tips for Kid-Friendly Gardens
Awakening Outdoor Spaces through Sensory Design
About BauerCombs
BauerCombs Landscape Architects serves the greater Puget Sound, Seattle, Eastside, and Cle Elum areas. We specialize in designing community parks and trails, senior living landscapes, and private estates. As a Northwest leader in sensory landscape design, our captivating landscapes bring refreshing life to outdoor spaces through the artistic balance of sight, color, scent, touch, taste, and sound.
We are excited to say that our landscape work has been published in several magazines and continues to grow in reputation for creating healthy outdoor living environments for people and communities.
Author: Susan Combs Bauer, Landscape Architect, Copyright © 2018 BauerCombs & Associates, Inc. www.bauercombs.com (425) 496-7772
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A fun day judging ‘Arts in the Garden’ hosted by Bellevue Botanical Gardens. The above photo is our landscape architect, Susan Combs Bauer, with her pal Ciscoe Morris, gardener and horticulturist guru extraordinaire. In addition to judging beautiful artworks from local northwest artisans, the gardens, woodland paths, and hydrangeas were amazing!
Over 30 artist displayed outdoor garden treasures for sale throughout the botanical gardens. The event also featured local musicians (Joe Fina Four, The Monroe Tiny Jazz Orchestra, Cascade Flute Circle, Sammamish Youth Chamber Orchestra, and Ca Gaze) providing visitors with entertaining music.
For those of you not familiar with the Bellevue Botanical Garden, it is a well-loved public garden located at 12001 Main Street in Bellevue, WA. The fifty-three-acre garden opened in 1992 and has beautiful grounds and meandering trails through a woodland backdrop. The Botanical Garden is also well known for its educational seminars in horticulture and good gardening practices.
The Top 5 Picks
Choosing from over 30 incredibly talented artists is undoubtedly a difficult task! Every artist's works were intriguing and skillfully creative. But without further ado, here are the top five.
Over 30 artist displayed outdoor garden treasures for sale throughout the botanical gardens. The event also featured local musicians (Joe Fina Four, The Monroe Tiny Jazz Orchestra, Cascade Flute Circle, Sammamish Youth Chamber Orchestra, and Ca Gaze) providing visitors with entertaining music.
For those of you not familiar with the Bellevue Botanical Garden, it is a well-loved public garden located at 12001 Main Street in Bellevue, WA. The fifty-three-acre garden opened in 1992 and has beautiful grounds and meandering trails through a woodland backdrop. The Botanical Garden is also well known for its educational seminars in horticulture and good gardening practices.
The Top 5 Picks
Choosing from over 30 incredibly talented artists is undoubtedly a difficult task! Every artist's works were intriguing and skillfully creative. But without further ado, here are the top five.
#5 Metal leaf and glass ball garden stake. Winfield Designs, Whidbey Island. Johnathan and Jandellyn Ward.
#4 Outdoor ceramic garden art. Madrugada Pottery, Ellensburg. Elizabeth Lee.
#3 Handblown glass garden art. Jesse Kelly Glass, Seattle. Jesse Kelly.
#2 Steel garden sculpture. Bob Prowda, Preston.
#1 Drum roll please, the top favorite: Copper and glass garden sprinkler. Hoppy’s Garden Art, Bothell. Steve Hopkins.
Close up of #1. This beautiful art piece is best shown in action. My video didn’t do it justice, so here is an excellent video created by Steve Hopkins (see below).
All in all, a fun day at Arts in the Garden! I encourage you all to attend the August event next year. And if you’re lucky, the famous Cisco Morris will be there giving garden tours; he indeed is the ultimate #1 pick for the entire event!
About BauerCombs
BauerCombs Landscape Architects serves the greater Puget Sound, Seattle, and Eastside areas. We specialize in luxury landscapes for private residences, resorts, and senior living campuses. As a Northwest leader in sensory landscape design, our captivating landscapes bring refreshing life to outdoor spaces through the artistic balance of sight, color, scent, touch, taste, and sound.
We are excited to say that our landscape work has been published in several magazines and continues to grow in reputation for creating healthy outdoor living environments for people and communities.
Author: Susan Combs Bauer, Landscape Architect, Copyright © 2018 BauerCombs & Associates, Inc. www.bauercombs.com (425) 496-7772
About BauerCombs
BauerCombs Landscape Architects serves the greater Puget Sound, Seattle, and Eastside areas. We specialize in luxury landscapes for private residences, resorts, and senior living campuses. As a Northwest leader in sensory landscape design, our captivating landscapes bring refreshing life to outdoor spaces through the artistic balance of sight, color, scent, touch, taste, and sound.
We are excited to say that our landscape work has been published in several magazines and continues to grow in reputation for creating healthy outdoor living environments for people and communities.
Author: Susan Combs Bauer, Landscape Architect, Copyright © 2018 BauerCombs & Associates, Inc. www.bauercombs.com (425) 496-7772
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Susan Combs Bauer, Landscape Architect www.bauercombs.com
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