Bailey Van Tassel

Just trust me, you’ll be fine ✨ is an understatement. This gorgeous cottage kitchen garden was just finished and I LOVE the details. Tennessee limestone with a gorgeous fountain surrounded by in ground herbs (this was fave element - inspired by a trip to London), custom greenhouse with salvaged doors, and a special spot for a giant melon patch. Also for the record: I have the BEST clients. This couple is shining light and we’re such a pleasure to get to know! Stoney stone and plant by plant we are all transforming the world with beauty and abundance, with nutritious food and a passion for living in deep authenticity. It may be ‘just a garden’ to some, but to those who get it, it’s everything. Perfect build by @tnrocksolid Design: @baileyvantassel (me)

Here’s some honest scoop: 🪻what you’re investing in when you build out a landscape, or create a beautiful kitchen garden is a feeling. Like a room in your home, it holds a purpose, and should also reflect how you want to exist when in the space - it should transport you. 🪻Most of our builds land somewhere around $23 - $33 per square foot. This is pea gravel, stone work, custom pieces, raised beds, borders, soil, etc. Yes, this adds up. We’re priced to reflect taking on EVERY detail, quality materials, and creating something that will increase the value of your home and life. 🪻plan on your project costing 20% more than you think. It’s typically due to scope creep, which is you wanting more things added or a change in approach or materials. 🪻it doesn’t matter what you want, as long as it makes sense to you. The builder will have an opinion, the designer will have an opinion, and you’ll have a preference. Find people you trust - especially if you don’t love making decisions, but also: speak up for what you like. That’s all that matters. 🪻when you hire a designer, you’re hiring someone to configure something beautiful, but also to: translate your goals into physical existence, take on the mental load, manage the job, source and quote materials, offer you inspiration and examples, know way more about options and best practices. It’s also much more fun to tackle a project with a personality that you like, who can absorb the stress of the endeavor. You’ll be spending some time with this person - enjoy them or hire someone else. 🪻 A good team that has navigated ups and downs is better than a flawless crew that you don’t like, or that makes you feel bad or demanding. In the end, it’s how you were made to feel as a person that will stick with you. 🪻the most beautiful spaces you’ve experienced were created with wild and extreme deliberation. Every single detail has potential for beauty and function, but it will cost you. 🪻DIYing some of the build is a pain in the a**. For us and you. It rarely turns out as good, but can still be amazing. Plan on doing 3x the amount of work than you thought. I have more, but my caption is too long! Xo

🌻🍅PRE-ORDER my book!!!🥒🧺 I can’t believe I’m even saying this, but it’s time! Kitchen Garden Living is about how to design, build, and grow a bountiful garden. It’s also about how to bring that into your home, life, and daily rhythms. I focus an entire chapter on living seasonally and have tips for bringing children into the fold throughout the book. Pre-orders are so so helpful to an author as they show all the book sellers that there’s a demand for the book and information, dictating its future success. So, if you’re excited about this, your support at this stage means the absolute world to me. I promise, your future self will thank you! ALSO: all my pre-order friends get bonuses! I’m sending out a download that I personally created and use to infuse my family’s life with 365 days of living intentionally and inspired by the seasons. You will love this. To preorder the book and get access to the bonus, comment “BOOK” and I’ll DM you a link 💌 THANK YOU THANK YOU SO MUCH!!

Exploring this on my Substack. I’m finally loving writing again after the book drained me a bit. This is a touch about gardening but more about life. I hope you enjoy. Comment “stack” to read it for free on my Substack.

The finishing touch, except it’s sort of the whole thing.

Medicinal herb garden around the sauna and some veggie beds built into the slope 💫🌿🌾 Design: @baileyvantassel Build @dawsonstoll

It never gets old

How I do my wildflowers vs my clients 💫🌸

Haven’t met a rule I didn’t want to at least bend.

E=mc2 or something like that … but honestly, there are a lot more moving parts when you’re using land to sustain the family. Our gardens are fancy because we believe in the marrying of beauty and function. We know the science behind a sense of place, and a calm nervous system. Also it’s quite a bit of actual math to be sure we’re designing with an outcome in mind. Goals for your crop yield will dictate the space you need not only for growing, but also for drying, storing, etc. The most beautiful labor of love is what I can boil it down to.

It’s called seed to table, babe 💁🏻‍♀️

Worms 🤝 soil