Filthy Garden SOS Featuring Vivid Green
The whole team at Vivid Green were thrilled to be contacted by the producers of the Channel 5 show ‘Filthy Garden SOS’ last year.
Channel 5’s Filthy Garden SOS team – making memories to last a lifetime.
Presenters and experts Diarmuid, Penny and Danny – along with their team of architects, builders and gardeners were challenged with the task of injecting new life into the garden of a much-loved grandmother, Olwyn, with the addition of a garden room – designed and built by Vivid Green!
Project SOS
It was an SOS from a doting grandson that took Diarmuid, Penny and Danny to White City in London. Olwyn, at 86, was trapped inside her house. The garden, she once tended with much care and attention, was now so overgrown that it even blocked out the light. Worse still the garden has become a dumping ground for bags of rubbish and unused items, including kitchen appliances – all of which had added to the chaos lurking outside her back door.
Ryan lived with his grandma on and off for 10 years, now as her full-time carer, he had also been overwhelmed by the extent of the work – as his efforts to cut back the garden failed. He would invest in taming the garden but he’d find it had completely grown back when he returned. Olwyn was now starting to forget things and her world shrinking – especially in light of the pandemic, therefore, Ryan wanted to revitalise her garden to help her by bringing back cherished memories of good days in the garden by giving the outdoor space a new life.
There was no job Ryan wasn’t willing to learn and tackle, so he could get Olwyn out of the house. They wanted to grow fruit and vegetables together and have a space for all the family to spend time together. As for many of us during the pandemic, the effects had taken their toll on them – the lack of outdoor space has meant that they were stuck indoors and with limited outdoor space, they had nowhere to relax – and very little sunlight!
A quiet space built for relaxation…
This relatively small garden room was situated in the far corner of the newly designed garden space. Fully designed and built by Vivid Green it will provide additional space for Olwyn, Ryan and their family to relax or entertain in, away from the main house. With full-height windows and a bright, fresh interior – the garden room captures plenty of natural light but can be used all year round as a cosy retreat!
The programme shows that even the smallest garden room can have a massive impact on the way we live. The new garden design isn’t just an extension of Olwyn’s home; by adding additional space available to the family, the garden room is a beautiful space that can be enjoyed everyday.
An inspirational space built to last a lifetime…
A Japanese garden in Hammersmith Park was the inspiration for this garden project. A traditional Japanese garden design often has a common theme; because they are designed to be areas of natural beauty and evoke feelings of calm, serenity and peace of mind. Collectively, the team of suppliers and designers created a space that would create new memories for Olwyn and her family.
Amongst the array of activities going on with a very busy build site to navigate, the Vivid Green team set to it – building a bespoke garden room, using our eco-friendly ground screws (16 of them in total). This means that the solution doesn’t require concrete to set the foundations. This solution is a much faster way to build the foundations for the garden building. The ‘box’ and roof of the room were then constructed using Vivid Greens preferred method of SIPs (structural insulated panels) – one of the most energy-efficient methods of construction.
To complete the look, Western Red Cedar was used for the external finish – a popular, hard-wearing cladding option that will weather well and requires very little maintenance.
As with all of our builds, the interior of the garden room was fully finished on completion, with heating units, hard-wearing wooden flooring. The landscaping by the highly regarded ‘Filthy Garden SOS’ team means that flowers and plants were planted in the new garden design, which includes Olwyn’s favourite, Lavender, to trigger memories of her past.
See My 5’s write up and a full list of all of the episodes suppliers and contractors: https://www.channel5.com/filthy-garden-sos-season-1-episode-4/
