New Build Drystone

DRYSTONE ENTRANCE-WAY WALL, BUILT FROM RECLAIMED STONE, IN PERTH AND KINROSS.

We love to ‘recycle’ stone and we love it when clients want to repair drystone that has seen better days. This job saw us reinstating a entrance-way wall and building it with stone from an old mill that once stood next to the river. The before and after are quite drastic!

The wall was long, and low, and so we took the opportunity to add a small ‘feature’ with the simple addition of a section of flat copes under a beautiful Copper Beech tree. While we were building a group of walkers came past and stopped to chat, and we were thrilled when they began to pose for photographs on the ‘seat’ that the flat cope had created. With the river down below, trees above, the beautiful stone cottage at the end of the drive, and our wall bringing it all together, this scene couldn’t get more idyllic. Another passer-by, a woman who had lived in the area her whole life, told us about the ruins of Muckersie Chapel, and so we plan to return at some point to see this. One of the perks of being a drystone waller is exploring many wee corners of rural Scotland that we might otherwise have missed. We’re always finding new places that we love.

UNIQUE DRYSTONE GARDEN FEATURE WALL IN ANGUS, SCOTLAND.

We were recently commissioned to built a drystone feature for a clients garden in Angus. Projects like this are always exciting as there is an opportunity to add a little extra artistic flair to our work. We were also very lucky to be working with clients who were happy to give us some creative freedom and were excited to see the final result.

Using rescued York Stone from a wall that was to be torn down, we thought this recycled stone would be perfect for this project. This is one of the huge benefits of using stone for your garden projects, it is almost infinitely recyclable.

3.5m of curved drystone wall, two cheekends, one at 1.2m high and the other at 1m high and with a wonderful, vertical-stone backed niche and an undulating cope line that mirrors the backdrop of the Angus hills.

SHEEP STELL INSPIRED, DRYSTONE SEATING AREA IN LENZIE

It was a real treat for us to be able to work on this drystone seating area.

We took inspiration from traditional sheep stells which you will sometimes catch a glimpse of in fields as you drive through Scotland's countryside. When you're lucky enough to see one you *have* to pull over and take 1000 photos. That’s the rule.

Traditional drystone agricultural structures are more than just functional structures. We love how they look and were keen to take inspiration from traditional sheep stells to create this seating area in a client's garden.

Built with local fieldstone, this structure is 12 metres of continuously curved and sloping wall built in a C shape. It’s 1.3m at highest point and so will act like a windbreak/sun trap as well as adding a beautiful sculptural element to this (already amazing) garden.

Building with fieldstone on a slope and continuous curve is definitely not for the impatient, but well worth the time and effort, as you can see.

These structures can be built in any size and look great in any outdoor space.

NEW BUILD BOUNDARY WALL AND RETAINING WALL NEAR BANKFOOT, PERTHSHIRE.

This project saw us extending an existing boundary wall by 27 metres and adding a large retaining wall that was 21 metres long.

Large feature stones were built into the boundary wall adding some extra visual interest as well as reflecting the agricultural environment that surrounds the property. These large stones were placed with the help of a mini digger and the stone was sourced just metres away in nearby fields.

GARDEN RENOVATION, PERTHSHIRE

A complete garden renovation including removal of an old patio and the addition of a new boundary wall and a thirteen metre long flower bed.

The boundary wall includes a seat height section with flat copes and we used double copes on the taller sections which look beautiful and work better proportionally compared to standard copes.

We built the flower bed to a sitting height and used flat copes to make the top of this wall a functional and surprisingly comfortable seat. The flat copes also make a striking visual statement protruding into the soil of the planting bed. The spaces between the copes work well for growing plants and we build the face of the wall with panting in mind too. There are lots of plants that feel right at home on walls and our work will look settled in very quickly by the end of this summer.

To aid in this ‘settled in’ look, we dug in the foundation stones on both structures which makes it look as if the wall has always been there.

All stone was sourced locally (within five miles of the property!) and we reused stone that came out of the mortared wall that we took down.

RETAINING WALL REBUILD , PERTHSHIRE

This was a much needed complete rebuild of a garden retaining wall. Our job began by stripping out the old structure, and conserving as much stone as we could to reuse in the new wall, and we made sure to recycle the old stone into the wall either as building stone or as hearting. Our client wanted the line of the wall to follow the natural line of the bank, so it does, and we also included a large boulder from the original wall as a ‘feature stone’. To finish, we added a thick layer of soil which will, over time, naturally fill in with grass and plants from the surrounding area.

RETAINING WALL , PERTHSHIRE

A new build, ten metre long retaining wall on a property in Perthshire. Built from Swinton Rubble, this is a chunky, solid wall that is built in a random style. We ran into some bedrock which dictated where the corner would be, and it was an interesting challenge to incorporate the bedrock into the foundations of the wall.