Gary Marsh Design

Gary designed our outdoor space remodel which includes a sprawling deck with some built in seating, two large concrete planters, an outdoor kitchen, two balconies, and several sets of stairs on our hillside property in Orinda. We love our new space so much and continue to work with Gary on the landscape design to finish the project off. Gary’s greatest strength is his artist’s approach. He is able to visualize possibilities that transcend and greatly improve the existing layout. In addition to all that, he is detail-oriented, hard-working, trustworthy, creative, pleasant, flexible, and a great communicator. He was also helpful in guiding us when questions or difficulties arose with our contractor and subcontractors. We never hesitated to call in his opinion for all things design-related. On top of his superb work quality and ethics, he’s a really great guy and fun to have around which was lucky for us because our project went on for much longer than we all anticipated (to no fault of Gary). Highly recommend!

Gary has done a wonderful and detailed job on redesigning our backyard. We have a small backyard with a large pool, with the hardscape around the pool several feet lower than the level of the house. The side yard to the east and the concrete deck to the south each have staircases down to the pool, leading to a cramped landing area above the pool stairs. Given the limited usable space, and the two separate staircases coming down to the pool area, we wanted to redesign our deck to give us more usable space while improving the flow from the side yard to the deck. The location of the pool imposed a significant constraint to this goal. We took this problem to multiple design and build companies who ultimately failed to address the prompt. Gary, however, found the problem to be an interesting challenge and delivered a design that is both elegant and addresses all the issues we have with the current layout. Working with Gary has been smooth; he has offered many suggestions and great ideas about other items in the design of this project. Gary has a knack for attention to detail that has permeated the design. We couldn’t be happier with the outcome and we would recommend Gary to our closest friends for any project they might have.

We hired Gary to design an overhaul of our previously plain backyard area, which had several components to it, including a large deck on a difficult slope that had to tie into an existing fenceline on one side and existing concrete stairs on another as well as a curved set of stairs, multiple poured concrete planter areas, a very large Corten steel planter, and something like 220 plantings around our yard and adjoining hillside. Gary was a pleasure to work with, and did a fantastic job of finding the right solutions to problems posed by existing issues. He guided us to the general contractor we used for the project (which we were extremely happy with), and was concerned with oversight on the project and making sure details were adhered to by the contractor and subcontractor from start to finish. I hope we never have to redo our backyard again, but if I did, I'd certainly hire Gary to design it. I would have included pictures here, as they're lovely, but that feature doesn't seem to be working atm.

Gary is an amazingly talented and creative gentlemen. We had a project that kept changing and he was able to keep coming up with new ideas and concepts to meet our changing needs. He has a deep knowledge of plants and materials for design. He gave us great drawings to work from. His fun and joyful approach to projects make him a joy to work with. Tom Starr Facilities Director Trumbull Manor Novato, Ca.

Gary was a delight! We redid our front yard which included taking out trees and stumps, cement the driveway and ledge and the stairs which he replaced with a beautiful deck, then planting trees and plants and landscaping rocks were a nice touch! We went with Gary to pick out the rock and trees and I was always asking him what he would do and just about always he was right! Thank you Gary and you were right the uplights that come on at night and show the trees and along the pathway are spectacular! A job well done!

Gary was an absolute pleasure to work with! Not only is his work incredibly precise and stunning, he is a perfectionist and exactly the person you want handling your project. The front of my house was nothing short of a disaster. I wasn't sure there was much that could be done to change the look. Gary came in and after curating a careful and well thought out design that was within my budget, he executed and literally turned my exterior into nothing short of beautiful! I was thrilled and have received one complement after another. I never expected my house to have so much curb appeal and to look so sophisticated. I can't thank Gary enough. He is patient and does not stop until everything is perfect. Besides his phenomenal work, Gary is honest, fair and a very nice person. Hiring him was the best decision I've made in years and well worth the price.

We fell in love with Gary's portfolio of gardens and decks and wanted him to design a front yard for us. He is such a wonderful person and a great listener. We threw ideas willy nilly at him when trying to convey what we liked. The final design was fantastic. He had assimilated all our whimsical needs and come up with a harmonious front that was seamless with the house. The design itself was detailed in it's drawings and meticulous with it's engineering. Indeed he not only is an exemplary artist, but a very exacting engineer. We are looking forward to executing on this design and are impatient to see our front transform into elegance. The back yard awaits Gary's input to make it our private zen space :-)).

We love our deck and patio! We had very specific requirements; we wanted a more modern look and the use of low maintenance and long lasting materials including stone, steel and composite boards. Also, since the deck was going to be over a 2nd story bedroom (we have a hillside home) we needed to ensure that light was going to get through to the bedroom after the deck was built. Gary's design met all of our needs. His workmanship exceeded our expectations with his ability to make changes on the fly, if the need arose (I totally get design build now). Finally, Gary did a really good job of blending our requirements with his creativity and skill.

We first hired Gary more than 25 years ago when we bought our current house. The house had three very small decks, and no usuable rear yard, since the land our house is on has a very significant slope in the back. So, we asked Gary to design and build us a deck that would provide us with nice "living and entertaining" space, including a hot tub. We couldn't be happier. (The pictures probably don't do it justice...we love everything about the design Gary came up with and the quality of the workmanship is as good as it gets. 25 years later, the decking that Gary had installed has held up beautifully, but one of the small decks that were original to the house was in need of repair, so we contacted Gary last year (2016) and asked him to inspect our decks as we wanted to be sure everything was still structurally sound, and replace/repair the small deck. Our experience was the same as 25 years ago....great work, and excellent communication throughout the process. One other anecdote: A few years after we were living in the house, we experienced an earthquake tremor (I think centered in Bolinas). I had been relaxing on the deck Gary built when my wife came running out saying "Did you feel that?", and honestly I didn't feel a thing. So if you want creative, beautfiul design, excellent craftmanship and reliable professionalism, do yourself a favor and hire Gary Marsh Design.

Gary brings his artistic and construction talent to his designs with a great eye for detail. He takes into account surrounding topography, the architectural integrity of the home, and scope of work the customer is willing to do, while gracefully handling unusual design and construction requirements. The design focuses on the customer; we always felt heard, and that he understood our desires. Gary's ultimate goal is that you enjoy the end product ---- and we definitely are!

Gary is a creative and visionary artist who has a highly developed talent for seeing the relationship between form, shape and texture. He is also equally skilled and knowledgeable about building materials and construction, as well as botanicals. We first met eleven years ago when our disintegrating redwood deck and expansive barren outdoor area needed some thoughtful planning. Gary worked collaboratively with us and we contracted with him to draw an architectural blueprint for two new Brazilian hardwood decks, a stamped concrete patio, and an undulating rock retaining wall with a recycling water feature constructed with an antique French stone basin. The designs included new areas for planting and suggested plants. We continue to say that this was the best money we have ever spent on our home, feeling as if we are on a permanent vacation in our own backyard! Last summer we again contacted Gary and sought out his advice on a lawn replacement project. He helped up design a faux streambed with a bridge, a stairway extension from the deck, a decomposed granite pathway, and helped us select drought tolerant plantings. Now our yard is even more of a heavenly paradise! Anne Moran & Francis Macrae

Gary Marsh created a fantastic deck replacement for our woodsy and naturalistic yard. We wanted a deck that would fit with the trees that surrounded the deck area, not the standard rectangular deck. When we saw Gary’s portfolio of curved decks, we immediately knew the curves would blend perfectly with the massive curved limbs of the trees. Gary impressed us with his professionalism, and worked with our ideas to expand past the original deck area and to ‘swoop and curve’ around the trees (my words exactly). We were so impressed by the neat, tidy and organized manner of the work, and how immaculate the work area was in at the end of every day. Everyone we know has told us what a great deck we have! All thanks to Gary’s great flair for designing decks to fit the space.

I have worked with Gary on numerous projects. He is one of the most creative people I know and is extremely knowledgeable on methods used in the industry today. He is enjoyable to work with and the end product is as important to him as it was to me.

Our backyard required a major reimagining. The pool needed to be removed and patio and deck replaced. Gary created a lovely, integrated and elegant design that included an attractive deck, new retaining walls and, not the least, a beautiful garden. Gary helped us select our team of contractors and collaborated well with them. We appreciated his good humor and support throughout a process that lasted nearly a year from beginning to end. Art & Basia Leaffer, San Rafael.

Gary was exceptional in all facets of our deck project. As designer, Gary worked with our ideas and constraints, but then applied creativity and style to design a deck that is very functional and extremely beautiful - wonderful flow, beautiful lines that are unique but not distracting. Gary also acted as contractor on our project, a rare and invaluable combination having the designer actually build the structure. Gary was a great communicator throughout the project and always helped us find the right blend between "fix it" and "move on - you can't pull the string on every inherited problem." It was a joy to watch the project and see the highest quality craftsmanship from foundation and structure to finishing touches. We couldn't be happier. We loved working with Gary and love our new deck!