'Spira Mirabilis' / Case Study

Jane grew up on this property. The landscape of her childhood home had been primarily lawn, but after the building of their new house, the yard was basically a raw construction site — the couple called it their "Mars-scape."They and Port visited the site together for the first time one weekend in 2011 and set to work on the project, which wrapped up in summer 2013. The compatible working relationship was instant. “I liked a number of things about Lisa,” says Jane. “First, her philosophy is to harmonize the exterior landscaping with the indoor, or built, environment. She spent time getting to know my husband and me, some of our values and goals in building our house, how we live," she says. "I guess the best way that I can put it is that she got to know the house itself.” Though the Reynoldses had a lot design features in mind — a space for growing vegetables, a hot tub, ample lounging and entertaining areas, a water feature, a native planting area and a separate space for Jane's parents, who live in an in-law flat beneath the house — there wasn't a concept to tie everything together.

3. Using the golden ratio in Seattle. In 2013 a Seattle couple got a brand-new home but a “Mars-scape” for a garden. They wanted a space where they could relax and entertain friends, one that incorporated the contemporary design of their new home and the muted and ecofriendly aesthetic of the Pacific Northwest. With a 5-foot grade change, strict municipal codes and an extensive list of landscape musts, these homeowners needed a designer’s vision.

Before of the property the home owner grew up on

Landscaping, steel, concrete, wood blend