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JUNE ONLINE EXTRA: The Magic Touch - Image

Features - Design/Installation 7/1/2008 JUNE ONLINE EXTRA: The Magic Touch

A landscape designer from Louisiana prefers designing by hand.

For the past 24 years Alan Mumford has done all of his landscape designs by hand and he doesn’t intend to change his process any time soon. While he considered investing in a design software program a few years ago, the authenticity of hand-drawn designs is just too good to pass up.

“We still prefer the great old-fashion way of designing by hand and presenting in watercolor,” says the owner of Landscape Images, Jefferson, La. “For residential design, it still works well and has that personal touch of a hand-made, artistic rendering, which is hard to beat.”

To kick off the design process, Mumford visits a client’s property to get an idea of what they’re looking for. If the job entails just a simple planting, Mumford will “fast track” the process and sketch the design onsite. With his 25 years of experience, the drawing takes about an hour and a half. For more elaborate projects, or projects with any hardscape elements, Mumford will take property measurements during this first visit then go back to the office, put them to scale and create the design. Designing an average front or a backyard takes about four hours from start to finish. Front and backyard designs or designs that center on structures like swimming pools take about eight hours from conceptual to presentation form.

The final presentation takes place at Mumford’s office, during which he can take clients into his show yard where they can see the plant material in their design firsthand. “We get great client response when we can show them the plant material in their plan during the presentation,” he says. “Graphically, the ink, pencil and watercolor really pop out, as much as a design on paper can.”

Mumford charges by the hour for the design process, as well as an additional charge for the first visit to the client’s property. Revisions aren’t really a huge issue for Mumford and his designers, which he credits to their decades of experience.

“Usually if we listen well enough during the first consultation, we’ll only have some minor revisions from the architect,” he says. “I’m sure a CAD program would make this process quicker, but I still think it’s worth having the authentic feel of a hand-drawn design.”

By: Emily Mullins
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A landscape designer from Louisiana prefers designing by hand.

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