A Landscaping Book for DIY Beginners and Experts – Book Review

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I can unclog a toilet. I can use power tools. But landscaping projects overwhelm me a bit. I don’t have a big yard, but it’s overgrown and it needs some help. There are so many options for landscaping and hardscape and more that I tend to get overwhelmed and end up doing nothing. Wouldn’t it be great if there were a a landscaping book for DIY beginners and experts that has great ideas that explains all the options?

Sara Bendrick – host of the DIY Network show “I Hate My Yard!” and all-around DIY rockstar – has now written that book. It’s called Big Impact Landscaping: 28 DIY Projects You Can Do on a Budget to Beautify and Add Value to Your Home.

Click on the photo to order the book on Amazon through my affiliate link.

I have read a lot of DIY and landscaping books and I LOVE this one – for several reasons:

First, Sara breaks down the options for each type of landscaping project. For example, in Section Two of the book, she has separate chapters for stone, lumber, metals, and masonry and concrete. Then, within each chapter, she gives detailed explanations of each kind of material, the pros and cons of each kind of material – including cost, return on investment in the material, where to find it, and how to protect it for the long run – and then provides beginner, intermediate, and expert DIY projects using those materials.

I didn’t know the difference between a pergola and an arbor – so helpful!

Second, I appreciate how her tutorials for the projects contain detailed materials lists, including cut lists, plus cost estimates and easy-to-follow step-by-step instructions. She includes photographs of most of the steps of each project, so that you can see what the project should look like at each step of the way. Sara includes advanced projects, like adding a flagstone patio or building an outdoor kitchen space, and easier, more beginner-level projects like building a raised garden bed or laying a gravel garden path. There is literally something for everyone here.

What I also love about this book is that Sara showcases repurposing materials in her projects. From upcycling a sink from a trash pile into a basin on a potting bench, to how to create a worm composting bin (to recycle table scraps), to using broken concrete pieces to create a beautiful retaining wall, I love the emphasis on recycling.

Sara Bendrick – click on the photo to order her book on Amazon!

I would recommend this book as a great reference for anyone – beginner or seasoned DIYer – who wants to add beauty to their landscape.

Thank you to Sara Bendrick for sending me her book, Big Impact Landscaping: 28 DIY Projects You Can Do on a Budget to Beautify and Add Value to Your Home, to review. You can order this book by clicking on this link: http://amzn.to/2s6KMwV.