Design Philosophy

“Make your home, your vacation home!”

For most of us our home is our single largest investment. It is also the place where we spend most of our non working hours. We raise our children here, enjoy holidays with our friends and family, and many of us may even retire here. Did you know that today the average family makes only one home purchase in their life? Compare this to years ago when families moved from apartment, to starter home and then finally to their “real home”.

Did you know that the three most frequent requests when discussing landscape design are:

1. low maintenance
2. lots of color
3. keep within the budget.

I don’t know about you but I think we can do a little better than that. If you are going to make an investment in your home and property, why settle for just landscaping when you can go for the dream? Why not “make your home, your vacation home”?

Don’t spend your money on a timeshare that never quite measures up to the “hype” and is never available when you and the kids are. Or waste it on a second home that is so far away that you barely use it and wind up renting it out, if you can. Why spend countless hours in traffic or dealing with the hassles of flying just to be surrounded by large crowds of people you don’t even know? Why not take that same money and invest it in your own home.

Wouldn’t you rather spend your time relaxing with friends and family at your own personal retreat? Swimming in your pool, hanging out in your hot tub or relaxing by your fireplace? Enjoying great food and drinks made in your outdoor kitchen after practicing your “short game” on your own putting green or catching up with good friends while you play a round of “bocce” on your bocce ball court? And do all of this without ever leaving your own backyard? C’mon.

A master plan is the least expensive and most important part of any landscape project.

As designers, our goal has been, and always will be, to create special places that our clients will not only enjoy for many, many years but will also be a sound investment, increasing the value of their home and property. As a client of Jody Shilan Designs, you can be assured that the plan we create will reflect your dreams and desires. It will be considerate of both your current needs and future goals, while maintaining your working budget. And it will be designed in such a way as to be installed in stages or phases over time, dependant only on your priorities. Our greatest passion is creating outdoor spaces that bring families and friends closer together. Never content with being status quo, our designs reflect the uniqueness of each property, the style of the surrounding architecture and the individuality of the client. Respecting these three values allows us to create your perfect design.

The most meaningful compliment I ever received was from client who said “Jody, because of your work, we now spend more time at home with our friends and family, which has brought all of us so much closer together.”

I can’t think of anything more rewarding than that!