The Complete Guide to Creative Landscapes: Designing, Building, and Decorating Your Outdoor Home - Brossura

The main theme of Black & Decker's "The Complete Guide to Creative Landscapes" is the "outdoor home," which has its own "rooms." One of these outdoor rooms may have grass as "flooring," picket fencing as "walls," and a vine-covered arbor as a "ceiling." This way of looking at landscaping reminds us that, through proper planning, the yard can be an extension of our indoor living quarters. The book convinces us that we'll want to spend more time in the yard once we make it more livable. --about dot com

This book is so well layed out. I give this book 5 stars because it has excellent descriptions and pictures. I built the terra cotta fountain in the book and I love it so much.--K Kainula--This book is great as general advice. There are SO MANY different projects though that there is not a great level of detail on any one. Just enough of an overview and "how-to" to make you feel comfortable about taking some of these projects on for yourself or answering those questions that always used to make you go "Hmmmmm." Still, for a first time homeowner it will give you a lot of ideas and confidence to start making plans. --Greg Burgland--This is a great book with so many very well illustrated projects. I have just built a new home and am beginning to landscape my 4 acres I find this book very useful. All the projects are described in great detail with lots of pictures. Thanks L. Rocha --landscapequeen

I bought this book over a year ago. I've read through each project a dozen times. I love about 94% of them. Our house sits on a lot that is ~ 100 feet x ~ 120 feet. I was going to get crazy this spring and summer with a new patio, arbor, and several garden areas. Sometime a couple of months ago, my book disappeared. I have searched nearly every square inch of our attic and basement, in addition to every closet, underneath every bed, and even in the garage. My wife has looked as well, but to no avail. I'm 32 years old, and losing this book has nearly made me cry on at least four occassions. It's that good. Our library doesn't have it. None of the hardware stores in town have it. We have one bookstore in town - and they don't have it. Last weekend, I finally broke down and bought two other books, thinking that by doubling up it would somehow take away the pain of losing my B&D Creative Landscapes book. It hasn't worked.I'm purchasing another copy on line this afternoon. There are just too many things in the book that I can't find anywhere else. It's nothing that difficult, but they do such a great job of making things easy to follow, and each project gives you ideas for three more. Buy the book. Buy two copies. And be sure to hide one in your drawer where no one can take it --TD Hoops-- I have been in the search of a home for months now and the one thing I kept telling myself was that when I finally bought it, I would also buy this book. I looked at lots of books at Home Depot, B & N, etc. but this is one of the best and most creative landscaping books I have found. So today, knowing that I have a home and YARD that I can call my own, I am buying it!! --mikey1

Bryan Trandem & Jerri Farris have written and edited more than fifty home improvement and gardening books. Jerri Farris is the author of Building Garden Ornaments, and co-author of Building Your Outdoor Home. Bryan Trandem is the author of Landscape Design & Construction, and Designing Your Outdoor Home.