Example of a trendy lap pool fountain design in Los Angeles

Design ideas for a mid-sized craftsman full sun front yard river rock landscaping.

A new garage was built with improved, integrated landscaping to connect to the house and retain a beautiful backyard. The two-car garage is larger than the one it replaces and positioned strategically for better backing up and maneuvering. It stylistically coordinates with the house and provides 290 square feet of attic storage. Stone paving connects the drive, path, and outdoor patio which is off of the home’s sun room. Low stone walls and pavers are used to define areas of plantings and yard.

Wes Stearns
Photo of a traditional raised garden bed in Charlotte.

Photo of a contemporary rock hillside river rock landscaping in San Luis Obispo.

Inspiration for a mid-sized drought-tolerant and full sun front yard stone garden path in Austin for summer.

Sebastian Zachariah

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. Photography: Eric Roth Photo

Coming from Minnesota this couple already had an appreciation for a woodland retreat. Wanting to lay some roots in Sun Valley, Idaho, guided the incorporation of historic hewn, stone and stucco into this cozy home among a stand of aspens with its eye on the skiing and hiking of the surrounding mountains. Miller Architects, PC

A stunning rustic modern exterior blends organic materials and sleek design in this energy-efficient mountain retreat, showcasing sustainable construction and luxurious craftsmanship.

Jenn Baker
Inspiration for a large industrial open concept concrete floor and gray floor family room remodel in Dallas with gray walls, a ribbon fireplace, a brick fireplace and a wall-mounted tv

Raised beds and gate surrounded by Joseph's Coat climbing rose in this beautiful garden
Inspiration for a large mediterranean full sun backyard decomposed granite vegetable garden landscape in San Diego.

Situated on a 3.5 acre, oak-studded ridge atop Santa Barbara's Riviera, the Greene Compound is a 6,500 square foot custom residence with guest house and pool capturing spectacular views of the City, Coastal Islands to the south, and La Cumbre peak to the north. Carefully sited to kiss the tips of many existing large oaks, the home is rustic Mediterranean in style which blends integral color plaster walls with Santa Barbara sandstone and cedar board and batt. Landscape Architect Lane Goodkind restored the native grass meadow and added a stream bio-swale which complements the rural setting. 20' mahogany, pocketing sliding doors maximize the indoor / outdoor Santa Barbara lifestyle by opening the living spaces to the pool and island view beyond. A monumental exterior fireplace and camp-style margarita bar add to this romantic living. Discreetly buried in the mission tile roof, solar panels help to offset the home's overall energy consumption. Truly an amazing and unique property, the Greene Residence blends in beautifully with the pastoral setting of the ridge while complementing and enhancing this Riviera neighborhood.

Our clients on this project were inspired by their travels to Asia and wanted to mimic this aesthetic at their DC property. We designed a water feature that effectively masks adjacent traffic noise and maintains a small footprint.

William Maccollum, Art Grey Photography
Trendy hillside custom-shaped infinity pool photo in Los Angeles

Old fixer-uppers often require two competing levels of priorities from their new homeowners. First and foremost is the need to immediately attend to those repairs that ensure the continued functioning and general well being of the house’s structure. By nature, these usually demand “house on fire!” status, especially when compared to other types of remodeling work that simply enhances aesthetics and general comfort. In the case of a Delaware couple, a structural issue with the front of their 125 year old Victorian (it was sinking!), along with some other more pressing challenges, put a 13 year long hold on getting the bathroom for which they had long dreamed. The shower enclosure features a base of hexagon patterned tile, bordered by marble subway tiles. The shower enclosure features a base of hexagon patterned tile, bordered by marble subway tiles. By the time Dave Fox Design Build Remodelers was hired to handle the construction, the couple certainly had put plenty of thought into converting a spare second-floor bedroom into the master bath. Courtney Burnett, Fox’s Interior Design Manager on the project, credits the owners for “having great creative minds, with lots of ideas to contribute.” By the time it came to put a formal design plan into place, the client “drove the look while we devised how the space would function.” It’s worth noting that there are drawbacks in being given too much time for advance planning. Owners’ tastes in design may change, while a steady stream of new fixtures and building products always demand consideration up to the last minute. “We had been collecting ideas for a while…pictures of what we liked, but as it turned out, when it came time to select fixtures, tile, etc., we used little from those pictures,” the owners admit. A framed herringbone pattern of subway tiles provides a perfect focal point for the shower. A framed herringbone pattern of subway tiles provides a perfect focal point for the shower. The finished bath exudes an art deco spirit that isn’t true to the home’s Victorian origins, which Burnett attributes to being more of a reflection of the homeowners’ preferences than the actual era of the structure. Despite that incongruity, everyone feels that they have remained true to the house by selecting vintage style elements, including subway tiles for the walls, hexagonal tile for the floors, and a pedestal sink that served as the focal point for the entire room. But as with all dreams, once one is achieved, a new one soon beckons. With the bathroom’s strikingly beautiful turquoise paint barely dry, the completion of that long-awaited project has served to kick-start plans for finishing off the remainder of the Victorian’s second floor.

Natural Cleft Bluestone random pattern patio & walkway, LED mood lighting, landscape design & construction, masonry fire pit, seating wall and planter using cultured stone veneer, new composite deck installed wit water proofed understory, Bluestone steps, drainage installation, outdoor TV, cultured stone veneer on foundation walls of house installation, outdoor TV, cultured stone veneer on foundation walls of house

Product: Authentic Limestone for Exterior Living Spaces. Ancient Surfaces Contacts: (212) 461-0245 Email: Sales@ancientsurfaces.com Website: www.AncientSurfaces.com The design of external living spaces is known as the 'Al Fresco' design style as it is called in Italian. 'Al Fresco' translates into 'the open' or 'the cool/fresh exterior'. Customizing a fully functional outdoor kitchen, pizza oven, BBQ, fireplace or Jacuzzi pool spa all out of old reclaimed Mediterranean stone pieces is no easy task and shouldn’t be created out of the lowest common denominator of building materials such as concrete, Indian slates or Turkish travertine. The one thing you can bet the farmhouse on is that when the entire process unravels and when your outdoor living space materializes from the architects rendering to real life, you will be guaranteed a true Mediterranean living experience if your choice of construction material was as authentic and possible to the Southern Mediterranean regions. We believe that the coziness of your surroundings brought about by the creative usage of our antique stone elements will only amplify that authenticity. whether you are enjoying a relaxing time soaking the sun inside one of our Jacuzzi spa stone fountains or sharing unforgettable memories with family and friends while baking your own pizzas in one of our outdoor BBQ pizza ovens, our stone designs will always evoke in most a feeling of euphoria and exultation that one only gets while being on vacation is some exotic European island surrounded with the pristine beauty of indigenous nature and ancient architecture...

The dry stream bed is both decorative and functional. It empties into a 6 inch main PVC pipe that drains into the front swale. Besides the stream bed drain tile, the sump line and downspouts empty into this drainage system.