ABOUT
Anya Serdyuk is the Founder and Creative Director of Five Senses Garden Design, a garden design studio based in Edinburgh, UK. She received her training at the British Academy of Garden Design.
Anya is driven by her passion for creating beautiful and functional spaces that re-connect people with nature and enhance their wellbeing.
Anya enjoys experimenting with shape and colour. She received training in painting and pottery from the Leith School of Art and the Edinburgh Design School, and is a frequent visitor to Edinburgh’s art galleries. These experiences, together with her extensive travels, fuel and inspire her approach to garden design.
This creativity is coupled with a love for analysis. With a PhD degree and eight years’ experience of working in Financial Services, Anya’s designs are well thought-through, with close attention to detail and a high standard of quality.
Her favourite way to revitalise is to spend time outdoors, whether it is walking in the hills, cycling, or gardening.
Anya gives back to the local community by volunteering in the Royal Botanical Gardens and Dr. Neil’s Garden in Duddingston.
OUR DESIGN PHILOSOPHY
Balance, proportion, and unity of elements
In our designs, we follow the principles of balance and proportion to create visually pleasing gardens. Individual parts in our gardens are connected into one whole, which creates a sense of unity and harmony.
We pay close attention to detail and make sure that the gardens we design are well-placed into the surrounding landscape.
Motion and change
A sense of motion makes a garden dynamic and engaging. We introduce motion into our designs by adding soft lines and thoughtfully placing garden components to allow your eye to move easily across the garden.
A changing garden feeds curiosity and brings in an element of surprise. We carefully select plants to make a garden look different and attractive in every season.
Engaging all five senses
Science has shown that sensory experiences stimulate the production of ‘happiness hormones’, such as serotonin and dopamine. These hormones are messenger chemicals that create feelings, stimulate thoughts, and trigger memories.
At Five Senses Garden Design, we specialise in creating gardens that engage all senses – vision, smell, hearing, touch, and taste – helping you to create memorable experiences in your outdoor space, to connect with nature at a deeper level, to relax, and to maximise your well-being.
Sight
A strong link between design and well-being has been a widely discussed topic among designers, architects, landscapers, and developers.
In our designs, we incorporate balance and proportion, motion and rhythm, a well thought-through colour scheme, and a delightful selection of plants to create beautiful and harmonious natural environments that are pleasing to the eye.
Smell
Flowers fill the air with enchanting aromas. Their scents are chemical blends that have power to delight our senses, affect our emotions, and weave long-lasting memories.
We work closely with you to select and incorporate plants that will create a delightful cocktail of scents in your garden.
Hearing
Sounds have a significant effect on our moods. Nature has its own vibrations and when we spend time outdoors and listen to the sounds of nature, our vibrations harmonise with those of nature bringing in relaxation and rest.
In our designs, we introduce a variety of natural sounds and make gardens attractive to wildlife. Enjoy the sound of flowing water and grasses rustling in the wind, and be greeted by the birds singing in the morning in the trees.
Touch
Physical touch helps us to build a closer connection with the objects around us. Research has found that exploring objects through touch can generate detailed, lasting memories of these objects seemingly effortlessly.
In our designs, we incorporate plants with different textures: gentle petals, smooth, fleshy, or velvety leaves, and textured barks that allow our clients to experience the richness and diversity of nature and to develop a closer connection with it.
Taste
It is a pleasure to savour the food we like. It is a double pleasure if the food is home-grown. Bring your garden to your kitchen by growing your own fruit, berries, herbs, or vegetables or decorate your salad with edible flowers such as nasturtiums and violets.
We can help you to set up your orchard or a vegetable garden, incorporating it seamlessly into the overall design, and will give you advice on how to look after it.
Working closely with you
We work closely with you to create gardens, which reflect your personality and aim to meet both your aspirations and functional requirements.
Sustainability
We are passionate about the environment and in our designs, where possible, we use sustainable and recyclable materials. We support an organic approach to gardening. This approach focuses on managing gardens without any chemicals or pesticides and produces a positive long-term impact on soil, water supply, and wildlife.