This is an example of a contemporary landscaping in San Diego.

Rays of native ground covers, planted in bands of Haircap Moss, Bunchberry and Hayscented Fern, radiate from the house out to the top of the coastal bank.

Inspiration for a huge rustic full sun landscaping in San Francisco for spring.

Meet Meridith: a super-mom who’s as busy as she is badass  — and easily my favorite overachiever. She slays her office job and comes home to an equally high-octane family life. We share a love for city living with farmhouse aspirations. There’s a vegetable garden in the backyard, a black cat, and a floppy eared rabbit named Rocky. There has been a mobile chicken coop and a colony of bees in the backyard. At one point they even had a pregnant hedgehog on their hands! Between gardening, entertaining, and helping with homework, Meridith has zero time for interior design. Spending several days a week in New York for work, she has limited amount of time at home with her family. My goal was to let her make the most of it by taking her design projects off her to do list and let her get back to her family (and rabbit). I wanted her to spend her weekends at her son's baseball games, not shopping for sofas. That’s my cue! Meridith is wonderful. She is one of the kindest people I know. We had so much fun, it doesn’t seem fair to call this “work”. She is loving, and smart, and funny. She’s one of those girlfriends everyone wants to call their own best friend. I wanted her house to reflect that: to feel cozy and inviting, and encourage guests to stay a while. Meridith is not your average beige person, and she has excellent taste. Plus, she was totally hands-on with design choices. It was a true collaboration. We played up her quirky side and built usable, inspiring spaces one lightbulb moment at a time. I took her love for color (sacré blue!) and immediately started creating a plan for her space and thinking about her design wish list. I set out hunting for vibrant hues and intriguing patterns that spoke to her color palette and taste for pattern. I focused on creating the right vibe in each space: a bit of drama in the dining room, a bit more refined and quiet atmosphere for the living room, and a neutral zen tone in their master bedroom. Her stuff. My eye. Meridith’s impeccable taste comes through in her art collection. The perfect placement of her beautiful paintings served as the design model for color and mood. We had a bit of a chair graveyard on our hands, but we worked with some key pieces of her existing furniture and incorporated other traditional pieces, which struck a pleasant balance. French chairs, Asian-influenced footstools, turned legs, gilded finishes, glass hurricanes – a wonderful mash-up of traditional and contemporary. Some special touches were custom-made (the marble backsplash in the powder room, the kitchen banquette) and others were happy accidents (a wallpaper we spotted via Pinterest). They all came together in a design aesthetic that feels warm, inviting, and vibrant — just like Meridith! We built her space based on function. We asked ourselves, “how will her family use each room on any given day?” Meridith throws legendary dinner parties, so we needed curated seating arrangements that could easily switch from family meals to elegant entertaining. We sought a cozy eat-in kitchen and decongested entryways that still made a statement. Above all, we wanted Meredith’s style and panache to shine through every detail. From the pendant in the entryway, to a wild use of pattern in her dining room drapery, Meredith’s space was a total win. See more of our work at www.safferstone.com. Connect with us on Facebook, get inspired on Pinterest, and share modern musings on life & design on Instagram. Or, share what's on your plate with us at hello@safferstone.com. Photo: Angie Seckinger

Traditional Black Fir Shou Sugi Ban siding offers a unique texture for interior and exterior applications.
Industrial black wood house exterior idea

Inspiration for a large traditional backyard water fountain landscape.

Scott Buley, HTT&T, High Tech Turf & Trees

Bridgewood, Barkman’s new premium slab has all the beauty of wood and the durability of concrete. It features a realistic wood texture created from actual wood planks. Unlike traditional wood surfaces, Bridgewood will never rot, warp, splinter or fade. It’ll never need to be stained or sealed like wood, or crack like stamped concrete. Feel the warm and inviting nature of wood in your landscape projects with our new slab. Photo: Barkman Concrete Ltd.

Custom wrought iron gate.

John Chiasson Photography

Inspiration for a mid-sized transitional backyard gravel driveway in Dallas.

This is an example of a traditional landscaping in San Francisco.

At Landmark Iron Design, you do not have to sacrifice quality to get the best price. Our beautifully hand-forged security doors, gates and railing represent craftsmanship and artistry. Landmark Iron design delivers a truly unique and impressive entryway to your home, and for a price you will find hard to resist. Our step-frame design and designs are abundant. If you can dream it, We can build it. With over 36 years in wrought iron business, You will understand why we are one of the leading manufactures in the Southwest. All doors and gates are created to your specifications and are designed to give your home the elegance you desire.

Ebel oversized slabs, square cut are used for the pathway with creeping thyme planted between the slabs. Project completed with Gerald Grieve Landscape Group.

A view of the lower informal gardens from above.
Inspiration for a traditional landscaping in Grand Rapids.

Matthew Cunningham Landscape Design LLC
Inspiration for a contemporary landscaping in Boston.

This garage in Vero Beach, Florida had our epoxy and polyaspartic flake floor coating installed along with garage cabinets. Now the customer's Vero Beach garage has functional garage storage and a durable floor coating that replaced his old peeling garage floor paint.

A shy sprite of Frank Lloyd Wright's design hides behind Acer palmatum 'Shindeshojo' and Japanese forest grass. Terre Shattuck
This is an example of a mid-sized rustic partial sun backyard water fountain landscape in Seattle.