Turn Land Into Home: Design Outdoor Spaces You Actually Want to Be In | Tessa Pinner (Episode 305)

Creating a sense of history and place on raw land takes vision and patience, and garden designer Tessa Pinner shares how to make it both practical and beautiful.  We chat about designing outdoor “rooms,” why smaller spaces can sometimes be easier than wide-open acreage, and how trees, fences, and timeless materials add history and charm.  Tessa offers simple, long-term strategies to beat overwhelm and cultivate outdoor spaces that truly feel like home, whether you’re on acreage or working with a small backyard.

In this episode, we cover:

• Creating a sense of place on raw land through thoughtful landscape design
• Why outdoor spaces deserve as much attention as interiors for function and enjoyment
• Designing “garden rooms” that encourage gathering, eating, and everyday living outside
• How wide open acreage can feel overwhelming and why smaller yards are sometimes easier to design
• Using permaculture “zones” to plan spaces from most-used near the house to more relaxed areas farther out
• The importance of making outdoor spaces safe and hospitable for children and guests
• Choosing materials that feel timeless and appropriate to the style of the house
• Balancing beauty, practicality, and budget when designing for features like pools, patios, and fencing
• Planting trees early to establish maturity and history on a new property
• The hidden benefit of casting a long-term vision and phasing projects in gradually over many years
• How to avoid analysis paralysis when planning: books, drawings, and vision over Pinterest overwhelm
• Hardscaping as the backbone of outdoor spaces— surfaces, boundaries, and seating areas

About Tessa

From the time Tessa was a young girl, she knew that she would spend her life making things. Her first degree program was in fine art with an emphasis on sculpture. Once out of school, Tessa founded a luxury wedding cake studio, which she ran for seven years. But when she discovered a deep love for plants and gardens, Tessa felt she’d truly found her place. She completed the South Carolina Master Gardener program with her local land grant university, spent a research year at a local nursery, and went back to school for two years of formal horticulture training once making the decision to switch careers. During and after that program, Tessa gained experience for five years at a high-end landscape design and construction firm before branching off to do her own consulting work in 2023. She has also traveled extensively in Europe and spent time gardening in England at Great Dixter and the US at Chanticleer Garden as part of her ongoing fine garden training.

Tessa and her husband Brian live in upstate South Carolina with their three precious wee boys. When Tessa is not chasing them, she offers design and horticultural consulting services, makes artwork, experiments in her own cottage garden, shares education and inspiration on Youtube @gardenpartystudio, and cohosts a “virtual garden club” podcast called ‘Garden Gab’ with fellow Southern garden designer Molly Hendry.

Resources Mentioned

GIVEAWAY! Leave a 5-star review on my beginner sourdough recipe to be entered to win a $500 Amazon gift card!

How to Design a Garden by Pollyanna Wilkinson

Food Forward Garden by Christian Douglas

Monty Don’s current publications and youtube channel, Gardening with Monty Don

Check out the Garden Gab podcast hosted by Tessa

Join my FREE masterclass to learn my 4-step framework for making money on YouTube

Master the rhythm of sourdough with confidence in my Simple Sourdough course

Gain the sewing knowledge and skills every homemaker needs in my Simple Sewing series

Turn your content creation dreams into a profitable business with my YouTube Success Academy

Keep all my favorite sourdough recipes at your fingertips in my Daily Sourdough cookbook

Connect

Tessa Pinner | Website | Youtube | Instagram | Podcast

Lisa Bass of Farmhouse on Boone | Blog | YouTube | Instagram | TikTok | Facebook | Pinterest

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