Remark Studio

We recently retained Remark to update a landscape plan that they prepared for us 6 years ago. They responded quickly and worked with our contractor to locate materials. We have received many compliments on the original design, which we love and look forward to seeing the new additions.

Remark did a fantastic job helping design and get a pool project approved in historical old village. I was told for the last three years that we lived here there was no way to get a pool approved. They were able to figure out how to stay within set backs and permeable land percentages and get our project approved on the first time around! They also got everything done in a timely manner. I would highly recommend them to anyone.

JR and his team designed a gorgeous exterior area for our home! It’s unique yet natural and lower maintenance. It makes the house feel calm and relaxing and enhances our beautiful views. JR also did a great job with connecting with the other people on the job to ensure that it came out as planned. Thanks JR and team! Beautiful work!

My wife and I were very satisfied with the complete redo of our front yard designed by REMARK. The design was half hardscape, half landscape and turned out to be the talk of the neighborhood. J. R. Kramer and his team were good listeners, good on follow up and provided a unique, creative design. We give Remark an outstanding rating and would recommend them to anyone.

The Remark team did a wonderful job of fulfilling our landscape wishes! We wanted something native to our area that provides both style and function. The plans Remark provided were just right! The Remark team are knowledgeable and provide excellent customer service. You will not be disappointed!

JR and the REMARK team are some of the best landscape architects in Charleston. Their work can be seen at commercial as well as residential projects all over town. They put together for me an innovative, but still very well thought out plan for my backyard that has turned heads. Importantly, they also listened to everything I wanted out of the backyard in terms of how I thought my and my family would use it. Lastly, they had great landscape contractor connections, and lead me to a great firm locally. This is very important as a number of my friends and neighbors have had serious issues finding a reliable and knowledgable contractor in the space. I would recommend Remark to anyone. - Whit

Remark designed and implemented the landscape of our backyard brilliantly. We have tons of trees and practically no grass and just thought we would ask their expert advice on how to grow grass with all of our trees. When they assessed our property they recommended working with what we have instead of “forcing” grass to grow. We did that very thing.... we embraced the shade of the trees and put down pebbles and stepping stones for a lovely walkway and set up conversational seating and a fire pit to enjoy with family and friends!! So appreciative that they opened our eyes to work with what we have instead of doing the typical backyard. We are thrilled!!

JR and his team are absolutely FIRST RATE. They were able to create a focused yet natural design for my property which is nothing short of inspired perfection. JR's relaxed and affable personalty may somewhat mask his design brilliance. Don't be fooled: He's THAT great. I've been told over and over again that my property looks AMAZING. Hat's off to REMARK's team and vision!!!!!

We hired JR and his team at Remark to design a modern, simple and clean hardscape for our backyard on Johns Island. We are from the West Coast and it's hard to find contractors that can pull off that clean, minimalism resort style - no one in Charleston does it better than Remark! It was the best investment to have a professional design a truly magnificent and unique backyard that we are so proud of. Our neighbors are quite envious! The plant selection, use of concrete and rock that was appropriate for the design but also mindful of our budget was excellent! We very highly recommend Remark for any landscape design job!

I have had a professional relationship with Remark Studios for several years and collaborated on many different projects with them. Their design intellect and personality are sure to give you awesome results, personalized to meet your needs no matter the size or scope of your project.

Holly Kramer brought a whole new experience to landscape design for me. I had spoken with several other people but it wasn't until Holly did a site visit and went over a simple yet unique plan for my yard that I was able to see it really all coming together. She was even able to recommend a really great contractor that did an excellent job completing the work. I recommend Remark with the highest regard for their expertise in landscape design and client interaction.

Remark helped organize and bring my thoughts to reality! I would definitely hire again for any outdoor project. Remark knows how to bring a project together! #NailedIt

We contacted Remark with an interesting request—to design a landscape architecture plan that incorporated the numerous existing plants in our yard, keep the spirit of our 1960s era neighborhood, but provide a modern update. We weren't sure if it could be done, but they did the impossible—working around a 1960s master gardener’s design to create a new and fresh vision for a young family. I can’t say enough about how responsive and attentive JR and Lauren were to our design wants and our questions. We discussed our desire to get rid of some grass (too much to mow, irrigate, fertilize, etc.) and how we wanted lots of plants for pollinators. We dreamed of a giant deck where our boys could play and we could entertain, but wanted one that was architecturally beautiful and modern, yet respected the traditional setting. We also knew we would want to execute a plan over many years as we had the resources to invest, so we wanted a design we could implement in phases—so JR and Lauren helped us visualize how we would plan out the design. The entire time Lauren was updating us on their progress and keeping us informed--their customer service alone is commendable. JR and Lauren totally delivered on every front—the deck alone is a masterpiece that we would have never imagined on our own or working with a builder. The plants they selected for the flowing beds fit perfectly with our existing landscape, and the subtle but intentional design elements for our boys to play and explore are incredible. We needed a fresh entry that made our home more welcoming, so they designed a beautiful entry court and hardscape that is a nod to the era our house was built. It will be a few years before we accomplish it all, but we have all the tools we need to execute their design. Here was the process for our job: JR came to our home and did a walk around the property while I explained what we wanted: an awesome deck, new entry/hardscape, keep our existing major plantings but somehow make it cooler. After this initial walk-through, we ordered a property survey since one hadn’t been done on our lot since 1964 and submitted it to Remark. Then JR and Lauren came out and measured every existing plant on the lot to map to the survey. A few weeks later, Lauren and JR came out to our house with a beautiful conceptual drawing of the design, including inspiration photos to help us visualize what they were planning. We requested a few tweaks and a short time later, we received the final PDFs and print-outs! So far we have found their cost estimates to be very accurate which is a huge plus. We are so glad to have worked with Remark!

We hired JR to create a landscape design our front yard space. We were very unusual in our request. We asked him to create something unusual that doesn't look like anything you've seen in this neighborhood. A very tall and ambiguous order. We gave him our pinterest board and ideas that we liked and he ran with it. What he presented back to us in a very short time after was exactly what we wanted. Unique, unlike anything we'd seen and he had also thought about future low maintenance of the grounds, as well addressed our sustainable requirements...our interest in low to no turf, reduced needs for irrigation after 12 months, lots of native plants, less hardscape and more pervious surface for infiltration. I was impressed and also excited about the unique focal pieces he wanted to incorporate to add character and fun to the design such as corten wall and gate, adding in pebbles vs concrete to break up the design. It looked like it belonged in a design from Garden and Gun or an A&E Design Mag. I've seen his other designs and he does modern just as well as he does Lowcountry Classic. Competent professional I'd hire again if I ever have another front yard. :)

Working with JR and Holly at Remark was a great experience from start to finish. They came up with a plan for our backyard that checked all the boxes we asked for. They were efficient and professional, and their plan improved our outdoor living space beyond our expectations. I'd highly recommend Remark to friends and family.

I have been waiting to write this review of the landscaping done at our home in downtown Charleston until enough time had passed for a fair evaluation of the end result of the job. Now 2 years later, I feel like I am able to make a fair & true assessment. The end result is that I cannot be more disappointed! My husband & I decided to hire JR because of his glowing reviews on Houzz.com. If those reviews were true, I don’t know what happened with our job. Let’s start by pointing out what we asked for: -No/low maintenance since we are not here often enough to spend our little time here taking care of the plants… My husband is REQUIRED to trim & clean up every time we are here -Some color…. there is no color at all! Any color that might have been planted has been COMPLETELY overgrown by other things; which brings me to the next point… -After receiving the plans, we specifically voiced concern about over-planting the front garden for 2 reasons: the cost of that many plants being very high & the end result would look like a jungle (I have emails that I wrote saying as much)…. guess what we ended up with…. a jungle that we spent WAY TOO MUCH on!!! As it turned out, we needed to pay for our front garden to be done twice. We weren’t happy with how it was planted this first time (also being over-planted then) that we had to PAY FOR IT TO BE DONE AGAIN (after a poor design) & all the extra plants that we paid for went in the garbage; essentially we paid for the front to be done twice. -During our estimate, we went for a walk with JR to see a neighbor’s garden... to show him what we were looking for… we walked passed that same garden yesterday… it’s still beautiful & ours is a horrible jungle! As a follow up... I reached out to JR to express how disappointed we are about everything above. So he came over with his wife Holly to assess the gardens. They both agreed that in the end JR had his own vision that was not what I was looking for & he should have followed my desires/concerns better. He offered his services to fix it for free however I would need to pay for all the plants & the landscape contractor ALL OVER AGAIN (making it 3 times)!! It has already cost us $16,500 for our TINY property to be very disappointed!! Be aware that when you hire Remark, they hire out the labor to a landscape contractor so that they have no liability what-so-ever... we HAD NO IDEA this was how it would work!! The end result is that we didn’t get ANYTHING that we asked you for. We hired a professional because we needed the help (especially not being familiar with plants local to the area). Even after voicing concern & addressing our needs, we didn’t get what we asked for & paid for. I will attach pics below for you to see for yourself. I wish I never hired REMARK for this job!

JR Kramer and Remark did an outstanding job with the landscape design for our new home in Beaufort, SC. Their combination of professionalism and imagination created a plan that was clearly above my expectations. And, they are delight to work with...

As a residential architect, I have worked with J.R. and his team on several projects in the Lowcountry. They approach each new project with a fresh creativity and thoroughness to create stunning results. As true collaborators, they work closely with clients, architects, and builders to give every project a unified vision. I would (and often do) recommend Remark for any project without reservation.

We have used REMARK on both residential and commercial projects, including luxury homes and suburban office and restaurant development. REMARK designs landscapes that complement the building design and utilize plants native to the area. They take input from the client well and translate that vision into the design.

I am the development manager for two highly visible projects on the Upper Peninsula of Charleston - Half Mile North and Pacific Box & Create. JR Kramer and his team have worked on all of our projects since 2012. He's a key player on our team, and much of what we've created is directly attributable to his highly talented group. I would highly recommend JR for any commercial or residential project.

I am a General Contractor who has worked with JR on several projects in the Charleston area. I was highly impressed with the creativity, skill and professionalism encountered with JR. So much so that I hired him to design the landscaping for my home. I would most definitely recommend JR Kramer for any project.

JR is great to work with. I loved that he really can do different styles of design. He did a great job of listening to my wants and needs, then created a plan that was unique. I am proud that I have a landscape plan that does not look like all the cookie-cutter yards around me.

We have worked with JR and his team for several years and they are wonderful to work with. Their innovative designs are impressive and have made a mark on some of the finest properties in the Charleston area.

Remark prepared the landscape design for both Half Mile North and Pacific Box and Crate. JR and associates got the idea we were attempting to convey and came up with a very successful design, including plant selection which was appropriate to the situation. Remark also re-did the design of the front yard garden for my home, which is both a different scale and a different goal -- namely to look good passing by at 30 miles per hour as opposed to walking speed. This was also well done. All project designs were delivered timely, complied with relevant regulations and were sensibly priced. We will continue to use Remark for future projects.

I have had the pleasure of working with J.R. Kramer and Remark on a few projects in the Charleston, SC area. He provides unique design solutions and has always been mindful of the client's needs and budget. His drawings are accurate, detailed, and above all, creative. I strongly recommend hiring his firm for landscape architectural design.

Remark designed our landscaping and 3 years ago, it's as beautiful as we envisioned. Unlike previous Landscape Architects, Remark took great care not to over plant and the result is perfect. We would hire JR again and again.

We collaborated with JR and Remark on our first project together this winter. We faced a tough challenge with existing conditions, grade, the need for a retaining wall and other things that made the design unique. JR was on the ball and met our needs in a timely manner while providing great service and a solid design. We look forward to the next opportunity to work together.

Impressive talents and skills. Extremely personable. Quite responsive. He interviewed us with revealing questions and effective listening skills. Clearly he knew how to draw from us what he needed to deliver an exciting, very professional, tasteful solution which reflected our thoughts, preferences and interests. Ours was a major, long term project. We turned every clump of soil on the land, removed all existing hardscape and started from scratch. Result: we are quite proud of our property and continue to receive and enjoy many unsolicited compliments. He didn't impose is thoughts and recommendations unfiltered by our preferences. He did, however, "protect us from ourselves" with diplomacy along the way. He interpreted and delivered a result that we could not possibly have achieved without him.

We have worked on many projects with Remark and all have turned out as beautiful as their designed plan. I have nothing but great things to say about Remark and highly recommend using them !

Since the first time I was introduced to JR with Remark Studios from another builder on a project, he was very respectful, kind and knowledgeable. We have worked together on several projects since then and I am very happy with the results and the manner in how he conducts himself professionally and promptly. I also like how their designs and ideas center around the existing environment at each project to give you that natural, elegant look.

JR Kramer of REMARK is a truly a master of making your yard look aesthetically pleasing and functional. Of all the projects I have photographed for them each is unique yet completed with a superior level of pride and thought. I would highly recommend REMARK for anyone looking to spruce up their landscape and look forward to taking more great photos of their work.

Backyard Landscape Design - Boat House and Outdoor Kitchen with Fireplace/Oyster Cooker JR did an excellent job of designing a landscape plan that takes into account correcting ongoing issues with drainage and delivering a beautiful balanced design that works in our neighborhood. He allowed us to be a part of the project every step of the way in the selection of plants, building materials, and hardscape. He recommended other professionals required to complete our project that were fantastic as well.