We recently had the pleasure of doing business with Kirsten at Gardens Alive Design. We started the process because we wanted to add to the landscaping in our yard, but since I grew up in Tucson, Arizona and my husband grew up in Syracuse, New York we had no idea what to plant.
We came to Kirsten totally lost. She spent a great deal of time finding our needs (low maintenance) and our wants (something that would look nice). She provided much needed help giving us advice on how to take care of our existing plants. After the initial consultation, Kirsten came back to us with a design, a plan on how to implement it, prices and care sheets. We have been so pleased with the end result.
Our yard has never looked better! Kirsten's services are excellent and the value is superb. Without her knowledge and designs we would have spent lots of money on plants that most likely would have died within a year and would have had to be replaced.
I cannot recommend Kirsten and Gardens Alive Design highly enough! Thank you, Kirsten!
Angela Bordonaro - Woodinville, WA
July 27, 2010
"Working with Kirsten was a wonderful experience!
She took the time to listen to my thoughts on what I wanted to accomplished in my backyard and helped guide me to make it a beautiful reality. Kirsten was very thorough and professional throughout our Design Coaching sessions and through the plant purchasing project.
She helped give me the confidence to take the project and implement it and the knowledge and resources to further develop and care for my garden. I believe this project was so successful because she took the time and care to learn about me and my family and our goals for the backyard project.
I wholeheartedly recommend Kirsten’s services.” Lorraine Gauvin
Redmond, WA - July 14, 2010
"Kirsten very effectively listened and understood my needs for the garden. She helped me formulate the challenge and then provided some excellent resources and creative solutions. She has a great knowledge and memory for plants, and I really enjoyed listening to her talk through some ideas. I felt in good hands with her, she is fun and easy to work with, and I totally recommend her to others."
Asun Muir of Duvall
July 9, 2010
"I am so happy that I hired Gardens Alive Design. Kirsten helped me develop a plan for my entire yard and presented solutions that I would have never developed on my own. She was sensitive to my budget, offered practical advice and provided me with a wealth of information way beyond the coaching sessions. Her knowledge of plants and what works is impressive. I highly recommend Kirsten."
Debby Neal of Duvall, WA - May 26, 2010
"Kirsten's Veggie Consultation was an absolute godsend! I have struggled off and on for the past several years to get a good vegetable garden going with very mixed results.
Kirsten was able to come in, survey my site, ask questions that helped me clarify my strengths and weaknesses as well as my goals, and craft a workable plan for me. She is full of terrific tips on when to work on each step, how to simplify your tasks, and important things to remember.
She taught me how to start seedlings indoors and I ended up with such an incredibly successful crop that I gave plants away to my neighbors - artichokes, cauliflower, tomatoes, broccoli!
I was amazed at how easy it was after she identified my trouble spots and provided me with a plan of action. I can't wait to start harvesting my goodies this summer!"
Kari - Woodinville, WA - May 16, 2010
“Kirsten is a consummate professional who clearly understands landscaping. She was honest and open during our introductory meeting. We look forward to working with her to create an inviting and beautiful native garden.”
Rebecca Petras February 8, 2010
”It was a pleasure working with Kirsten. Our hope was to have someone design our garden containers with something new and fresh this year. Kirsten consulted with me on what kind of plants and flowers we like, dislike, the kind of care we were willing to give to our plants, color scheme, desire for some of the plants to be placed in our flower beds in the fall for next year.
Kirsten created beautiful garden containers with very healthy plants and provided us with some unique plants that brought texture, richness and long-term color for the summer months. She has an abundance of energy, creativity, knowledge, awareness of her client's needs. She is also very organized and provides a wonderful folder with what is in each container and includes the care information.
We enjoyed working with Kirsten as she is very personable and totally focused on her clients needs and wants. We had a wonderful experience as will anyone who seeks her services. She is a pro and just getting started.”
Mary
Duvall, WA
September 17. 2009
We were delighted to have the opportunity to work with Kirsten in redesigning our front yard flower bed. She came to our attention via a silent auction and we could not have chosen a more conscience and knowledgeable garden consultant. She was interested in what we wanted in our garden and not what she wanted. We told her we wanted bright colors as continuously throughout the year as possible.
She examined the soil where we have had difficulty in getting anything to grow well and discovered poor soil underneath the 4-6 inches of top soil. She recommended we remove the soil to a depth of 8-10 inches and replace with quality compost. Next she reviewed some of the possible flower and tree selections that might meet our desires and create a colorful and balanced welcome to our home.
Shortly thereafter, we received a garden drawing in color recommending selection of plants along with proposed locations within the flower bed that showed great professional balance and color selections. She was helpful in giving us the best sources to purchase the many selections in the plan. The soil was enriched and many of the plants and small evergreens are in place as we wait for the remaining plants to become available.
We have received numerous comments from our neighbors on the color, arrangement and appeal of her selection of plants and the layout design. She is a true professional in “designing gardens that make you smile” and an accomplished Master Gardner. We highly recommend her services.
Erskine & Melinda Austin
Bellevue, WA
March 19, 2009
"I had the pleasure of walking thru a garden show with Kirsten. I learned that she has a wealth of knowledge and enthusiasm for gardening.
I told her my desires for a garden in the ugly storage area of my yard. She did more than design for me, she even created the feeling and the emotions I wanted to come with it.
Being that I'm a new gardener, she gave me steps to do this project myself as I desired. I'm not overwhelmed. I'm excited and can't wait to show HER my finished product."
Dana Sweney - Duvall
“I was completely intimidated by the amount of work that needed doing in my garden, and put off starting because there seemed to be so much to do that I didn’t know where to begin.
Sitting with Kirsten over a cup of tea really helped me to focus on what I want from the different spaces in my garden, and listening to her many ideas and suggestions got me excited about introducing new elements, for example a tea garden.
Her detailed three year plan, complete with color photos, has broken the work down into manageable tasks and has really taken the stress out of it for me, allowing me to finally enjoy my garden.”
Fiona - Duvall
"Kirsten was a wealth of knowledge and bright ideas.
She took lots of time to truly understand what my gardening
interests, abilities, and limitations were before making
realistic plans for improving my garden space.
She provided me with loads of practical gardening
advice as well as a well thought out and
detailed plan for slowly creating a yard and
garden that will truly blend with my surroundings and
meet my needs as a novice gardener."
Beth from Duvall
"I have shared many enjoyable years of flower and vegetable gardening together with Kirsten. My favorite project she helped me with recently was a new garden in front of our house.
I love how we collaborated to incorporate an interesting shape with pavers, colorful plantings, and future garden art ideas. Kirsten has a passion for the fun plants, the huge leaves, the interesting colors and textures. She understands plant placement and really knows how to make a garden work not only functionally, but aesthetically.
From healthy earth to amazing plants, I look forward to more wonderful gardening adventures with Kirsten."
Nadja - Duvall
Feel free to send me your experiences with Gardens Alive Design to