What people are saying.

  • "I could not imagine a more beautiful & functional landscape design than the one Matthew created for us. My boyfriend and I were bumping heads on how we wanted to renovate our small backyard. (him: wild secret garden / me: minimal & functional) and somehow Matthew made it work! It's been two years and Matthew has been great with our follow-ups. Of course, a few plants didn't work so we replaced them which is totally normal in gardening so no biggie."

    — Carol S.

  • "We highly recommend working with Hillrise Design. He is a talented creative and a fantastic project partner. We have a sizable mixed hillside property that was/is riddled with half-finished previously started projects and untamed portions. Matthew came up with a multi phase and problem-solving project design including a great deal of landscaping, hardscaping, irrigation solutions, fencing and ultimately, a pool. Our project is ongoing (b/c: phases) but Matthew has completed a multi-terraced California native -laden hillside with fruit trees, stairways and a bench space all with gorgeous nighttime lighting. He found great tradespeople to support the project and carefully oversaw the implementation. Whether you have strong ideas of your own or none at all, he's a supportive guide with experienced perspective and will come up with beautiful and achievable designs. Also, Matthew is the rare creative who delivers work on time or is transparent about delays & prices, responds to communication quickly and is very fun to work with. We are not done with our total project yet and I can say with confidence that we are highly pleased with Matthew's work so far and cannot wait to continue to work with him on the next phases."

    — Joya M.

  • “Neighbors slow their stroll when they walk past our house. We see them just stare and if we happen to be outside, they will inquire who did the landscaping. We feel very lucky that Matthew accepted our project. Our house sits on a hill with so much potential, but at the time of purchase the yard was overgrown and hopelessly tired looking; in complete shambles. We had several landscape designers take a look to not respond or just decline. Matthew was calm, professional and we knew we were in good hands. He understood what we wanted. We wanted someone with an Eastside sensibility. We wanted something modest, yet gorgeous. Right, don't we all and how does one begin to pull that off? Well, Matthew did. We love driving up the driveway now. We feel proud of our home. We highly recommend working with Matthew McKelligon."

    — Jen K.