StillWind Creations

I normally hire Chazz to help look after my plants and landscaping. When he finished the mulch this year, we discussed replacing my cracked sidewalk with it's poorly repaired steps with something upscale. Chazz took a ride with me to look at another home in Meridian Kessler whose sidewalk I always admired. He explained how it was built and told me he could recreate the same look and built it to last 100 years or more. I was interested. . Over the next couple days, Chazz called around to get prices on blue stone and the limestone steps. The materials were not inexpensive, but they were the best, and that is what I wanted. We agreed to start the project right after Easter, however, we ended up being further delayed because of the rain. Chazz kept in touch with me until he could start the job when the rain cleared. He busted up and removed the old sidewalk. He even arranged to give my concrete to someone who could recycle it into much needed fill. Next the stone arrived from the stone companies. He was there when they delivered to tell them where to put the pallets of blue stone and where to dump the limestone. Chazz was thoughtful and ran a conduit under the sidewalk for electrical lines in the event I decide to do landscape lighting. The sidewalk was built with a foundation of limestone gravel and the top layer was made of finely crushed limestone that is almost the consistency of sand. The fine limestone works as a very flat bed upon which to lay the pavers and also works as a grout to fill the space between the pavers. The project, including excavation, took about 6 working days, although it went on a bit longer than we had planned due to so many rainy days. The overall result is marvelous. I love coming home every day to my new sidewalk. It raised my home's curb appeal dramatically and I have no doubt it will translate into more equity. Now I'm dreaming about having Chazz build an outdoor stone kitchen. I hope you enjoy the pictures.

Chazz ordered the mulch and showed up when the mulch truck arrived and directed the driver where to drop the 10 yards. Then he distributed the mulch in both the front and back yards taking care not to damage some of the flowers that are coming up. Chazz also repaired the Indiana brownstone rocks that surround my backyard bonfire pit, as some of them had cracked and were caving in. He came back when the job was done specifically to trim one small branch on the maple tree that was making the tree look too asymmetrical. Chazz consulted with me on the replacement of my front sidewalk which is cracked and lopsided due to runoff water damage from the slope of my front yard. I took him to another home in Meridian Kessler with a lovely blue stone path that leads to their porch. Next week he is going to tear up the sidewalk, regrade my land and replace the cracked concrete sidewalk and three steps with blue stone and hand cut limestone stairs. The price he quoted for labor and materials was just $3,000 which is very fair especially for such high end material. A Butler University professor once asked after seeing a StillWind Creations hard scape project if he trained in Europe because his work is built like the Romans build it. Anyway, I'm super excited to have him get started on this new project and will have another report (with photos) in month.

I love hiring Chazz because there is never any worries. He does the work right the first time and you don't have to check on him. He knows all the plants in my yard and works with me to make the best decisions where they need to be. This is the first time I hired Chazz for fall clean up. He did the work (a few hours a day) over three days, getting the yard to put to bed right before winter. The yard looks great! Chazz is always a sure bet to hire. I plan to have him consult with me about replacing my nearly 100 year old sidewalks with some type of pavers that will fit with the historic home. I've seen his paver and stone work at several residences and it is built to last 100 years. He's the best in the business.

Since all of the work was done by Charles and his son this project took longer than if we had hired a larger company, but we were aware of this before it was started. His work was well worth the wait! The new patio is a vast improvement over what was there before and if we ever get some rain I suspect our drainage problems will have been addressed also.

Went without a hitch. This was a small job, and Stillwind brought it in on time and on budget. I will definitely engage them when I'm ready to do the larger projects they specialize in.

I had several flower beds that had gotten out of hand. After we talked about what I wanted, Chazz and I visited other Meridian Kessler homes and talked with one of the neighborhood homeowners who was asked to be on the garden tour to begin to solidify ideas. I was going to have the landscaping done early in the year, but Chazz warned me to wait until the painters were completely finished and not to waste my money on mulch or his work until then. So in a way, he turned down my job until it was best for ME to start it. He got to work within a couple days of the exterior stucco renovation and painting of my home by spading up the existing beds to loosen the soil, removing the weeds, and cutting a new bed in the front lawn and around my maple tree. He also trimmed the trees of low-hanging branches. After preparing the beds, he moved about 2 dozen hostas, several dozen ferns, some boxwoods and others to new and better garden spots based on sun or shade exposure. I bought several new lillies and some cone flower plants from a Master Gardener on Craigs List (saving a fortune) and he planted them in their new homes based on light exposure. Chazz then prepped the beds with pre-emergent to keep down any new weed growth, and added 15 yds of hardwood mulch which he negotiated to be dropped in my yard, rather than the street because I asked. He finished by installing two rain barrels, so that I can catch water for my new beds. He even created a PVC overflow on the smaller rain barrel in the event I don't get it emptied before it is full so that the water does not erode the foundation of my house. Chazz was willing to be flexible with the design, and more importantly, was there every day and did what he said he would be. He even helped me move a room sized Persian rug while he was there when I needed a hand!

It went very well, this is not the first time I have had Chazz do work for me, and he always delivers. This is just the latest in work that includes Keystone retaining walls and cultured stone on my foundation walls. He has an eye for design and makes sure its done to last.