LATEST NEWS - 27 NOVEMBER 2008

Stone Inspired has just been given the best small project award in the bi-annual building awards given by the Dollar Civic Trust for our work on a property in the town in the summer of 2008.

See the Dollar project page for more details.

Stone Inspired - Dry stone walls and features

Stone Inspired is a dry stone walling company based in Scotland that creates garden and landscape features using stone.

Use of dry stone

Dry stone is an amazingly adaptable building material that offers many benefits - design flexibility; strength; durability and beauty - and is ideal for garden design and landscaping projects. Click on an image to view examples that we have built:

Ornamental dry stone features

Free-standing dry stone walls

Retaining walls and terraces

Raised dry stone beds for gardens

What is dry stone?

Dry stone walls do not require any binding material such as mortar or cement to hold them together. Rather their strength comes through the correct selection and placement of stones. They also offer improved drainage compared to brick or mortared walls, particularly when used for retaining walls or raised beds. As well as being an environmentally-friendly building material, a well-built wall will require minimum maintenance and should last for dozens of years.

The material is extremely versatile and strong - the only real limit to what can be built is the designer's imagination!

Examples of projects

Within stoneinspired.com are examples of the use of dry stone in fantastic garden settings. Some of the pieces were built as stand alone dry stone walling jobs to enhance a garden; others as part of larger garden design projects.

Dry stone Walling courses

Local DSWA branches run training courses for people interested in learning how to build dry stone walls. Training courses are run over a weekend, usually about four times a year, and are aimed at absolute beginners. Each course is very hands on, with nearly two full full days of practical work taking down and rebuilding a real wall, supplemented by some theory work. Each course is run by a working professional waller who is there help, guide and inspire. Otherwise, trainees are postively encouraged to roll up their sleeves and get stuck in.

For further details and contact information go to the dry stone walling association page.

Sources of stone

The UK is blessed with a varied geology, and this variety of stone allows for many different types of building material - from chunky granite to thin layered Caithness slabs; from rough dolerite to regular sandstone.

Each type of stone offers different combinations of look, feeling, colour and texture. Moreover, there are differences in the look of stone that is freshly quarried to that which has been reclaimed.

Before selecting a stone type, you should consider the likely visual impact of the completed wall.

Free estimates and consultations

We provide free estimates and initial consultations for all walling and landscaping work. If you are interested in redesigning your garden using natural stone, please contact us.