Design ideas for a large mediterranean backyard stone formal garden in Los Angeles.

A stunning backyard retreat showcasing a warm fire pit surrounded by Adirondack chairs, winding stone pathways, and a water feature, all set against the vibrant hues of a breathtaking sunset.

Natural light streams in everywhere through abundant glass, giving a 270 degree view of the lake. Reflecting straight angles of mahogany wood broken by zinc waves, this home blends efficiency with artistry.

This renovated brick rowhome in Boston’s South End offers a modern aesthetic within a historic structure, creative use of space, exceptional thermal comfort, a reduced carbon footprint, and a passive stream of income. DESIGN PRIORITIES. The goals for the project were clear - design the primary unit to accommodate the family’s modern lifestyle, rework the layout to create a desirable rental unit, improve thermal comfort and introduce a modern aesthetic. We designed the street-level entry as a shared entrance for both the primary and rental unit. The family uses it as their everyday entrance - we planned for bike storage and an open mudroom with bench and shoe storage to facilitate the change from shoes to slippers or bare feet as they enter their home. On the main level, we expanded the kitchen into the dining room to create an eat-in space with generous counter space and storage, as well as a comfortable connection to the living space. The second floor serves as master suite for the couple - a bedroom with a walk-in-closet and ensuite bathroom, and an adjacent study, with refinished original pumpkin pine floors. The upper floor, aside from a guest bedroom, is the child's domain with interconnected spaces for sleeping, work and play. In the play space, which can be separated from the work space with new translucent sliding doors, we incorporated recreational features inspired by adventurous and competitive television shows, at their son’s request. MODERN MEETS TRADITIONAL. We left the historic front facade of the building largely unchanged - the security bars were removed from the windows and the single pane windows were replaced with higher performing historic replicas. We designed the interior and rear facade with a vision of warm modernism, weaving in the notable period features. Each element was either restored or reinterpreted to blend with the modern aesthetic. The detailed ceiling in the living space, for example, has a new matte monochromatic finish, and the wood stairs are covered in a dark grey floor paint, whereas the mahogany doors were simply refinished. New wide plank wood flooring with a neutral finish, floor-to-ceiling casework, and bold splashes of color in wall paint and tile, and oversized high-performance windows (on the rear facade) round out the modern aesthetic. RENTAL INCOME. The existing rowhome was zoned for a 2-family dwelling but included an undesirable, single-floor studio apartment at the garden level with low ceiling heights and questionable emergency egress. In order to increase the quality and quantity of space in the rental unit, we reimagined it as a two-floor, 1 or 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment with a modern aesthetic, increased ceiling height on the lowest level and provided an in-unit washer/dryer. The apartment was listed with Jackie O'Connor Real Estate and rented immediately, providing the owners with a source of passive income. ENCLOSURE WITH BENEFITS. The homeowners sought a minimal carbon footprint, enabled by their urban location and lifestyle decisions, paired with the benefits of a high-performance home. The extent of the renovation allowed us to implement a deep energy retrofit (DER) to address air tightness, insulation, and high-performance windows. The historic front facade is insulated from the interior, while the rear facade is insulated on the exterior. Together with these building enclosure improvements, we designed an HVAC system comprised of continuous fresh air ventilation, and an efficient, all-electric heating and cooling system to decouple the house from natural gas. This strategy provides optimal thermal comfort and indoor air quality, improved acoustic isolation from street noise and neighbors, as well as a further reduced carbon footprint. We also took measures to prepare the roof for future solar panels, for when the South End neighborhood’s aging electrical infrastructure is upgraded to allow them. URBAN LIVING. The desirable neighborhood location allows the both the homeowners and tenant to walk, bike, and use public transportation to access the city, while each charging their respective plug-in electric cars behind the building to travel greater distances. OVERALL. The understated rowhouse is now ready for another century of urban living, offering the owners comfort and convenience as they live life as an expression of their values. Eric Roth Photo

PIC Investment Group was looking for a unique boat table for their new boardroom. What we came up with was a design that embody’s a sense of mother nature. We built the table top with the natural edges within the table creating two river like streams from table end to end. Details: 15′ x 5′ reclaimed live edge Elm Boat table, finished with OSMO Hardwax Polyx Oil. Custom built steel leg and under structure. Photo: Courtesy of PIC Investment Group

The key elements of this oasis include a custom 20’ x 50’ Gunite pool, massive 12-person hot tub with integral tumbling stream and a century-old coach house which was exquisitely repurposed into a luxury cabana. The shadows of late afternoon help to define the massive boulders and integrate them with the natural surroundings.

This challenging site near Wolf Trap had an existing swimming pool at the end of the property. With twelve feet of grade change across the backyard, our landscape design dilemma was; how to connect the new pool with the house, create lots of living space, and still get people to the landscape below. The entire rear of the house was renovated, giving us an opportunity to build a new composite multi-level deck. We crafted a covered living space under the deck and sunroom. Techo-Bloc pavers, a stone dive rock at the deep end and the natural stream bed with waterfalls that cascades into the pool. photography by Mike Bonomo

Natural light streams in everywhere through abundant glass, giving a 270 degree view of the lake. Reflecting straight angles of mahogany wood broken by zinc waves, this home blends efficiency with artistry.

Having a pondless waterfall does not mean that it can’t be adorned with robust plantings, especially when you consider that you’ve not had the added expense of any extra labor and materials required in creating a pond. For this handsomely landscaped pondless waterfall, we planted durable thick and compact evergreens, including the low-maintenance Procumbent Juniper, which spreads well. For splashes of color we added Begonias, Coleus, plus Astilbe with its beautiful and showy flowers. www.deckandpatio.com

I was hired as the interior designer for HGTV's House Hunters: Renovation to help a young couple remodel their living/dining room in their new home that needed major work. Their style, as they describe it was vintage meets old lady chic with pops of modern industrial. They LOVE color and wanted it everywhere. We ripped off all the old wood paneling on the walls, painted the ceiling white and stained the beams dark, added a wall of vintage wallpaper, painted bright and bold accent walls in every room and found a mixture of pieces from flea markets, vintage stores and main stream stores to create their perfect space. Photography by Joshua Targownik www.targophoto.com

Inspiration for a large mediterranean backyard stone formal garden in Los Angeles.

You can read more about the project through this Houzz Feature link: https://www.houzz.com/magazine/hillside-yard-offers-scenic-views-and-space-for-contemplation-stsetivw-vs~131483772

This is an example of a large mediterranean backyard stone formal garden in Santa Barbara.

Design ideas for a mid-sized contemporary drought-tolerant and partial sun front yard concrete paver water fountain landscape in New York.

Inspiration for a mid-sized contemporary drought-tolerant and partial sun front yard concrete paver water fountain landscape in New York.

Andrew Paintner Photography
Design ideas for a large transitional full sun front yard brick water fountain landscape in Portland.

“I spend as much time as I can walking the hillsides of New York’s Catskills and studying the landscape,” says Bill Renter. “This has increased my expertise in how rock placement affects the flow of streams and waterfalls.” Indeed, over the years, Renter has received a multitude of awards for choosing the perfect rocks, and artfully installing them to great effect and function. www.deckandpatio.com

VanBrouck & Associates: Inspired by the classical architecture of Palladio, this Italian villa was designed with a procession of beautifully proportioned, ordered spaces, with strong axial sightlines, to draw the eye through the spaces and beckon the individual to explore. Beautifully sited on acreage, the interior and exterior spaces are thoughtfully orchestrated to interact together, and to connect to the land. Stone loggias, at the entry, rear, and side of the residence, visually and literally extend the interior living spaces. View-lines extend through the house from the open courtyard and infinite landscape vistas of the front to the wooded terrain of the rear. Gentle cross-breezes flow and natural light streams into the rooms from a series of French doors lyrically arranged throughout the spaces.

Natural light streams in everywhere through abundant glass, giving a 270 degree view of the lake. Reflecting straight angles of mahogany wood broken by zinc waves, this home blends efficiency with artistry.