Landscaping - Help Section

[Joria]

gerrr there are some paint ideas to fool around with that I have discovered.  I frequently use that recolor tool, can't remember the name of it.  There are some paints, or maybe wall papers, that have a different bottom and top.  The bottom is usually a wood plank, similar to what you have used in your house.  If you drag the wood plank up to the flat area it becomes "siding" for much less cost, and can be colored any shade of wood or paint you want it to be.  I think part of what is distracting for me is the wood you used.  It looks too flat and too much like flooring, especially since you used the same wood for the floor over the sun room.

A personal "cheat" I use is I browse the different neighborhoods and if I find a wall paper, paint, exterior I like, using that same recolor tool, I save the design I like in my favorites, (the heart icon), or in paint, paper, etc.  Then I can incorporate the same design in my own home.  Doing this actually has helped me learn how to use that tool better and has given me ideas of my own for recolors/redesigns.

On the floor over the sun room, if you add a bit of fencing around it, it will feel more comfortable and finished.  I keep getting a bit of vertigo thinking my Sim would fall right off that.  Add the fencing, a couple of lounge chairs, perhaps a table between with an umbrella on the table or a patio lamp, or even add an easel or telescope.  That fair folk love seat you used below could also work up there.  Add some of the house plants you used IN the sun room, ON the sun room around that love seat.  That particular love seat screams for more plants around it.

Something else that hits me is the chimney smack dab in the middle of the front of the roof.  You can't see it from the outside of the house itself so it feels a bit awkward and leads to the vertical look of the lines of the house and roof.  That vertical look is enhanced by the windows also.  Try windows that lay more horizontally, or are a bit more square.
Nothing wrong with using big, wide, windows on the rest of the house as you did with the sun room.  Not as many of course.  I think the narrowness of the windows you used  in the rest of the house is the difficulty.

The tree or trees I see feel lonesome.  Can you move them to the corner of the house or cluster three together?  They can be different elevations.

By the way, I liked the hydrangeas.  Yes, they could have been moved a bit so they weren't quite such a straight line but I liked the color.  Sometimes when I'm using them I tend to go overboard with them! 

When you are doing trees, or even something like the hydrangeas, try keeping a visual triangle in mind.  Like, take a V and put a tree at each point, or a shrub at each point.  You can put a bench or sculpture in the open end of that V and fill in gaps with some terrain paint AND smaller shrubs, flowers or grasses.  There aren't many grass types besides pampas grass and bull rushes but they and the lavender often work.  I'll try to remember to do a few and put up the photos.

In general, your house was pretty cool and has given you a great opportunity to learn all this new stuff.  I still struggle to learn and remember tips I get here, (I have post it notes all over my pc!), so in general I'd say you did a great job and obviously are brave enough and willing enough to try all the things the folks here have mentioned.  Kudos!

[Joria]

Ok, here's some examples of that V idea.




I started in Edit town mode and just placed three Aspens, one large, two small in a sort of lopsided V, shown above.  Then I added the Fair Folk love seat.



Next was some shrubs/flowers, some terrain paint, a table and a light.  This overhead bird's eye view doesn't reall show the trees except for the shadows of them but I wanted you to see how I placed the shrubs "casually".  Nothing really totally lined up.  I added the terrain paint "path" and ground under the love seat since I don't care for the dirty ground look when plants die under a darkened area.



A different view showing the trees, bench, etc.



Then I changed things around a bit to show a different way of using that same technique.




In this last view you see I've made it almost more formal, or it could become more formal with some hedges and straighter paths lined on each side by hedges.  It has become a sculptor's garden and still a quiet place to sit and enjoy the view.  You could change it even more by placing a fountain where the statue of Gloria is and maybe not having the other sculptures, or just use a nice tumble of rocks in the center area with a few more grassy type flowers poking through and around it.

Hope this helped gerroo

Edit:  I forgot to mention in the first rendition I used 15 plant items, not including terrain paint.  In other words, an UNEVEN number.  In the second I used 21 plants, again and uneven number.  For some reason uneven numbers are more pleasing to the eye.

[gerrr00]

Wow, those are beautiful ideas!  I will go back to the house soon.  Real life has taken the front seat for right now.  Can't wait to try it out.  I definitely am going to change the love seat area.  I know I am going to add plants/flowers around the base of my trees.  I hid the chimney inside a wall in the house.  Whats your opinion on this,should I have it on the outside and keep the windows?  Or leave the chimney where it is and use different windows?  Or something else?  I would like to know. 

[LlamaMama]

I just adapted a floor plan I found online to make a legacy house. It needs landscaping in front, and I would love to see some ideas or examples of the look I'm going for. I love the wild cottage garden that Samoht designed (the second one HERE), and would like to see some areas like that, but with an asian/zen/contemporary twist. I don't want all asian cliche, but rather a melding of zen and wild, asian and cottage, clean and cluttered, not structured. I'm especially terrible at placing paths from the street to the front door (I tend to make a beeline from mailbox to door), and would love to see something more meandering.

It's on a 40x40 lot, and intended to be a legacy house. I'll be interior decorating as I go.


Of particular note is the entrance area, where there is an office (in front) and dining room with glass walls, looking out to what I hope will be a stunning view leading to the front door.


If this interests someone, I'd love to see what you come up with. No need to duplicate the house, but it would be nice if the front houseline and entry were designated as you see them.

Is there some way to make a smooth diagonal foundation line? I fiddled around forever with that, with no luck.

[Joria]

Wow, those are beautiful ideas!  I will go back to the house soon.  Real life has taken the front seat for right now.  Can't wait to try it out.  I definitely am going to change the love seat area.  I know I am going to add plants/flowers around the base of my trees.  I hid the chimney inside a wall in the house.  Whats your opinion on this,should I have it on the outside and keep the windows?  Or leave the chimney where it is and use different windows?  Or something else?  I would like to know. 

Boy, I sure know about Real Life interfering!  Sim Life is so much more fun!

Personally, I like seeing the entire chimney outside of the house.  If you were making a mansion where there were several interior rooms that had fireplaces it would be different.  But just one chimney poking up out of nowhere looks a bit odd to me.  Why not try both ways?  We do have that lovely "do over" button!  I use it a lot!

[Joria]

I just adapted a floor plan I found online to make a legacy house. It needs landscaping in front, and I would love to see some ideas or examples of the look I'm going for. I love the wild cottage garden that Samoht designed (the second one HERE), and would like to see some areas like that, but with an asian/zen/contemporary twist. I don't want all asian cliche, but rather a melding of zen and wild, asian and cottage, clean and cluttered, not structured. I'm especially terrible at placing paths from the street to the front door (I tend to make a beeline from mailbox to door), and would love to see something more meandering.

It's on a 40x40 lot, and intended to be a legacy house. I'll be interior decorating as I go.


Of particular note is the entrance area, where there is an office (in front) and dining room with glass walls, looking out to what I hope will be a stunning view leading to the front door.


If this interests someone, I'd love to see what you come up with. No need to duplicate the house, but it would be nice if the front houseline and entry were designated as you see them.

Is there some way to make a smooth diagonal foundation line? I fiddled around forever with that, with no luck.

Yes, you can make a smooth foundation line at a diagonal.  When you go to the foundation tool,  there are two pictures to the left side in it.  The top one is for a straight line foundation, the bottom is for diagonal.
Start your diagonal line just slightly in front of the end of the straight foundation you already laid and draw your tool up, (inside the house), and to the right.  It should snug up and fill in any gaps.

I'd love to do your landscaping for this.  Those big windows are perfect for viewing that Zen garden you mentioned!  It's easier for me if I can do it with the house in place, at least the lower floor.  Is it possible to give me a link to it?  My head is buzzing with ideas.  Any price limitation?
My own dynasty house is terrible at the moment but we've only just begun and funds are still limited.

[LlamaMama]

This is a brand new legacy, no buns even in the oven yet. I'm not sure how to save the house for uploading without evicting the family. I'd love to see your ideas!

[samoht04]

Go into Edit Town Mode, then select your lot and save it to the library. Now you can either just upload the household with the house or start a new game, place the household + house and evict the family to get a house without the family.

@Joria - I really like the Last picture you had, it looked very relaxing! 



Tutorial Photo Tip: Use the Cheat fadeobjects off to stop trees and shrubbery fading, it helps get close-ups.

[LlamaMama]

Thanks! I fixed the diagonal foundation and uploaded the house here. http://www.thesims3.com/assetDetail.html?assetId=3073400  If it's not a hassle, please note how much is spent and I'll treat it like a loan to my legacy that I'll have them pay off.

The walls inside the house are tentative, with plans for a master suite, etc. in the future. I just wanted to get some basic layout done. I'm telling you, this novice builder had a tough time translating the real life house plans into the sim world, with less flexibility for diagonal placement, etc! As always, I learned a lot by doing.

And my compliments to our landscaping gurus for the gorgeous examples and fabulous tips!

Edit: replaced the link

[Joria]

Tutorial Photo Tip: Use the Cheat fadeobjects off to stop trees and shrubbery fading, it helps get close-ups.

Thank you Samoh!  I did not know that and will put one more post it note on the pc now. lol  That probably would have worked in my disappearing staircase too, huh?

[Joria]

Thanks! I fixed the diagonal foundation and uploaded the house here. http://www.thesims3.com/assetDetail.html?assetId=3073400  If it's not a hassle, please note how much is spent and I'll treat it like a loan to my legacy that I'll have them pay off.

The walls inside the house are tentative, with plans for a master suite, etc. in the future. I just wanted to get some basic layout done. I'm telling you, this novice builder had a tough time translating the real life house plans into the sim world, with less flexibility for diagonal placement, etc! As always, I learned a lot by doing.

And my compliments to our landscaping gurus for the gorgeous examples and fabulous tips!

Edit: replaced the link

Got it LlamaMama.  Will work on it tomorrow.  Tonight I destress with a book.  Listening to dh help the kid with algebra makes my nerves fray. lol

[LlamaMama]

This is just for fun, please don't feel any pressure to hurry. I was just looking for ideas.

[Joria]

This is just for fun, please don't feel any pressure to hurry. I was just looking for ideas.

Exactly!  Fun, fun, fun!

[samoht04]

I am also going to have a go at this! 

[Joria]

I am also going to have a go at this! 

Samoh, yours are going to be fabulous I know.  Ok, here's a few ideas.

First, I'd move the gnub game to the rear and move the garden to the left of the house closer to the kitchen and of course, move it more to the rear.
Most folks with big, fancy houses don't want a veggie garden or game to be seen from the front of the house.

Your Sims loved my little Zen garden.  Jumped up and down, clapped hands and yelled whoo hoo at it.  Lol  Here's a few of the ideas I played with.  I saved none of them but there are so many ways to go.


This is the little Zen spot.  I felt it kind of welcomed you in and it would be a quiet spot when looking out the window.  A bigger contemplation garden, either Oriental in tone or more European could be done in the back.  Maybe raise the ground a bit, add fountains, sculptures, a pond.




This is where I changed the path to the house.  Wasn't sure if I liked that big center thing but the path was so long before you got to the sidewalk I felt I had to do something to break up that long line.



Added two large bamboo trees that arch together overhead.  I rather like that but not sure it doesn't overwhelm the low roof line.



Ok, I liked the FabuFoo but they are very expensive and not sure you have them.



Here is with formal flower edging along entry with formal shrub fence.  Ignore the weird grass.  You simply can't match EA's grass exactly and I was trying different grasses.



So, that's bits and pieces of some ideas.  I really did not realize how challenging it would be doing someone elses landscaping for two reasons.  One, I do not know the budget and I can go waaaaaay wild with landscaping and spend a fortune.  Second, my tastes and yours could be extremely different  so I'm kind of second guessing.  Oh, and there is a third, wasn't sure if I could move the veggie garden and game which actually would make a big difference in what I would do, and wasn't sure if you intended to fence it in at all.

This was fun.  I think I'm going to just go ahead and fool around with it to completion, no matter what the cost, and then save it.  Of course, I am NOT touching the house at all as this is your baby and it wouldn't be right.  I sure wish the game wouldn't put the houses you place so far back.  That is an enormous front lawn.

Edit:  Ok, looking at the low roof line and sprawling, ranch style nature of the house, I think the more formal look is really out of place.  I'm thinking some rock piles, (which I am VERY clumsy with), would be better and maybe not that huge center section at all.  Maybe have the path meander to the house rather than the straight line.  If it was a two story house, the other path and formal stuff could work but it would be a ginormous house then.

[LlamaMama]

@Joria: I love the zen garden by the door! I've never used the combed sand before, and will definitely have to play with that. I meant to delete the temporary path, so that is not set in stone (heh).

The house is set back from the street because the plans called for a garage on the front left. I didn't know how to attach a ground-level garage to a foundation house, and didn't like the square of dead space between a garage and house, so I deleted the garage and figured I'd either landscape that area in front, or else add a garage once I got cars. I live in California where we frequently place a garage toward the front of the house, and where slab foundations are usually used instead of raised foundations, so I'm clueless. Part of what I'm trying to do is landscape that big area in front.

Don't let anything hold you back. Go crazy with it and don't worry about anyone's taste but your own! I don't plan to download your input directly, just incorporate the parts I like best. I'm just trying to visualize how the two styles might possibly look together: cottage and zen modern; chaos and simplicity; east and west. Feel free to enjoy my sims (put Jessica in her red everyday clothes) and listen for Shark to make his growly noises. Go ahead and keep whatever you do as your own, if you like!

I'm enjoying watching your talent at work!

I am also going to have a go at this! 

Same goes for you, samo! Go wild!

[Seriphina]

@Joria the grass that EA uses is the Autumn Grass.  It's the base for most of the EA made towns and the default for CAW.

[Joria]

Thanks LlamaMama.  Go wild it is. lol 

I love using the raked sand and often will put it in a kid's "sand box".  Your yard will get one complete with equipment.  Rather like I did for my contest entry.  Dynasty kids need play areas too.

The only way I have found to put a garage onto a foundation house is by using stairs to go down into it, but I can't see how you would do that if it was attached right in the front rather than off to the side.  One of the stock houses, a really big one, I think it's the last one in the library, does it that way.  It's a fairly awesome house as is and perfect for a really big lot.  Love fooling with that house.  Hmmm, I don't think it's totally a garage though, more like a huge carport.

@ Seriphina,  thanks!  I'll try the autumn grass, though I admit I like a greener grass like we have here in Oregon.

[samoht04]

Here is my pics:







I did all that for about $10,000.

Moveobjects on was used in this garden.

[samoht04]

Sorry for the Double Post but here is the Rooftop Garden Photos:

Well Rooftop gardens are a simple matter, the only catch is the cheat you have to use. moveobjects on this allows you to place the Plants/Trees on a floor tile, it is best to choose a floor tile which looks like dirt or grass for the best effect.





moveobjects on was used in these images.

[LlamaMama]

Zomg! That's amazing, samo! I don't even recognize the house. It'll take me a few minutes to get my bearings, so off I go to look closely! Thanks for trying your hand at this!

Edit: can you take a shot of the house straight-on and slightly from above? I can't see how the front path goes.

[Happytime]

Very nice, samoht04!

I've never tried it, I wonder if you can put "real" garden plants on a roof? Anyone know?

  -- Happytime

[samoht04]

You can plant them and then use moveobjects to place them on the roof. I wonder if you can place things from the inventory where ever you want if you have moveobjects on, or whether it only works in build/buy mode.

[LlamaMama]

@samo, I'm still having trouble understanding the view in the 3rd and 4th to photos. Could you describe the location please? Also if you still have the house, may I see a full view in front so I can see the paths? Thanks again!

[samoht04]

The 3rd Photo is the path that I made, it is at the back of the house off the deck. The 4th Photo is the Garden in the distance and it is in the back corner, the back right corner if you were facing it. I will go and get those photos now.