Tilly Design is an online resource for custom landscape design
Imagine building your dream home, complete with gorgeous greenery, beautiful blooms
and luscious landscaping. Now, imagine being the one who actually designs what that would look like. Enter Tilly. Cofounded by high school best friends Sarah Finazzo (Port Washington), Alexis Sutton (Denver), Blythe Yost (Hudson Valley) and Heather Hoeppner (Chicago), the company began out of a need for ease when creating a backyard oasis.
“Tilly started because we felt there had to be an easier, more efficient and cost effective way to create your dream yard,” said Finazzo, who currently lives in Port Washington. “With a combination of everyday communication apps, landscape software, Google Earth, and an amazing design team, we’ve made remote design simple.”
Here’s how it works. The process is very time efficient, environmentally responsible and extremely cost effective. Homeowners simply fill out a basic form about their project and then the Tilly design team does a space assessment, collects photos and conducts a property survey. Then, a video chat with a designer takes place to show the client what their future yard could look like.
“Our designers are extremely friendly and knowledgeable. They have worked with everyone from first time homeowners who don’t know anything about landscaping to master gardeners,” said Sutton. “Then you sit back, relax and will receive a plan via email within seven to nine business days that includes a planting plan, shopping lists and images of the recommended plants.”
With installation services on Long Island, Tilly can handle a job from start to finish. They also offer phasing recommendations for those clients who wish to create a comprehensive plan, but can only install certain parts at a time based on budget or time.
For Yost, who is Tilly’s head designer, her work includes everything from contemporary cottage courtyards to multi-acre estates. Having practiced landscape architecture for more than 15 years and with two landscape companies based in New York, Yost lends her creative talents to most of the tristate area, including Long Island and the Hamptons. For affluent communities like the Gold Coast, Yost spoke to how Tilly is a useful tool when planning to landscape or change a property, especially one as large as those that accompany North Shore homes.
“Our plans are all done by landscape professionals and are the same plans you would receive if you hired an in-person designer,” said Yost, adding that clients can then put their money towards flowers, plants and installation costs.
According to Hoeppner, for the landscape world, Tilly’s website is very unique with “landscape design completely reimagined for today’s digital world.”
“We have a great blog on our website that is a really good resource for a homeowner looking to start a garden or discover fun projects with their family,” she said, noting that the blog further explains the remote design process. “We also do an Ask Tilly Instagram session on the first Tuesday of every month where our followers can ask any questions they may have about gardening, design, or anything specific to their yard.”
For those who want to take ownership of their landscaping, Tilly is efficient, socially responsible and something you can do at your convenience on your timeline. For more information, visit www.tilly-design.com and follow along on social media @tilly_design.
