Out door Entertainment Area
Mid-sized country backyard stone patio photo in New York with no cover

This three-story vacation home for a family of ski enthusiasts features 5 bedrooms and a six-bed bunk room, 5 1/2 bathrooms, kitchen, dining room, great room, 2 wet bars, great room, exercise room, basement game room, office, mud room, ski work room, decks, stone patio with sunken hot tub, garage, and elevator. The home sits into an extremely steep, half-acre lot that shares a property line with a ski resort and allows for ski-in, ski-out access to the mountain’s 61 trails. This unique location and challenging terrain informed the home’s siting, footprint, program, design, interior design, finishes, and custom made furniture. Credit: Samyn-D'Elia Architects

The pergola features retractable shade screens which shelter the Napoleon Prestige Pro 825 grill with matching cabinets and storage. For authentic Italian fare, a Fornoteca pizza oven stands at the ready. Lounge chairs and an adjoining countertop bar comfortably accommodate eager gourmands.

After nightfall the backyard comes to vibrant life thanks to the comprehensive array of garden lights. Using a combination of uplighting on trees and shrubs, plus strategically placed pathway lights, the shapes and textures of essential features are beautifully defined. The warm golden glow helps to set a relaxing mood.

Although there was room for equipment to pass beside the house, the owners paid the extra cost for Betz’s limited access conveyor system to remove soil from the excavation. In addition, they paid to have the construction materials carried in by hand just to minimize disruption to their neighbours. Thoughtfulness is still alive.

The attractive composite wood deck built by the owner’s contractor shows the considerable drop in elevation from the main floor walkouts down to ground level. The pool equipment, seen to left of the deck, is noticeable from this high vantage point, but is largely out of view from the deck or ground level.

Christopher Schuch
Pool - small mediterranean courtyard tile and custom-shaped pool idea in Marseille

David Swift

Our client in Emerson has a beautiful home, perched on a magnificent mountain slope with incredible views. They asked Dreamscapes to design outdoor living spaces for them in order to fully utilize the property. Their wish list included a water feature, a deck for outdoor living, a patio to take in the distant views of the mountains, a place to garden, and a natural and native planting design to fit into the existing southeastern native woodlands and mountain environment. Living on the side of a mountain means bedrock. The design incorporates the natural slope and stone and works with the terrain. A new deck was constructed to extend out from the house, floating over the bedrock where it meets the new pond. From the top of the hill, a waterfall cascades down through the native plantings into the pond below. Natural boulders were used to build seating along the pond’s edge, where you can watch the fish, tend to the aquatic plants, listen to the frogs, and even take a dip to cool off. Two natural flagstone patios were built at two different elevations to sit and enjoy the views of the landscape and the mountains. Both patios are accessible by cut stone crab orchard steps set into the slope. The space at the end of the driveway was a blank canvas and the perfect place to design and build a garden of raised beds, enclosed in a traditional picket fence. It is now filled with vegetables, herbs, and cutting flowers. The local bees and butterflies love it too. And the beautiful landscape takes on a magical look after sunset. Landscape lighting was expertly placed, using a variety of fixture types to enhance the pond, waterfalls, trees and plants, bringing the spaces to life after dark. The homeowners are both multi-talented and wanted a place to incorporate their skills. They create original art, build detailed wood work and plant edible gardens, just to name a few. This new landscape gives them and their family and friends a place to work and play and relax. It has become a haven for people and wildlife alike. Outdoor living at its finest!

Our client in Emerson has a beautiful home, perched on a magnificent mountain slope with incredible views. They asked Dreamscapes to design outdoor living spaces for them in order to fully utilize the property. Their wish list included a water feature, a deck for outdoor living, a patio to take in the distant views of the mountains, a place to garden, and a natural and native planting design to fit into the existing southeastern native woodlands and mountain environment. Living on the side of a mountain means bedrock. The design incorporates the natural slope and stone and works with the terrain. A new deck was constructed to extend out from the house, floating over the bedrock where it meets the new pond. From the top of the hill, a waterfall cascades down through the native plantings into the pond below. Natural boulders were used to build seating along the pond’s edge, where you can watch the fish, tend to the aquatic plants, listen to the frogs, and even take a dip to cool off. Two natural flagstone patios were built at two different elevations to sit and enjoy the views of the landscape and the mountains. Both patios are accessible by cut stone crab orchard steps set into the slope. The space at the end of the driveway was a blank canvas and the perfect place to design and build a garden of raised beds, enclosed in a traditional picket fence. It is now filled with vegetables, herbs, and cutting flowers. The local bees and butterflies love it too. And the beautiful landscape takes on a magical look after sunset. Landscape lighting was expertly placed, using a variety of fixture types to enhance the pond, waterfalls, trees and plants, bringing the spaces to life after dark. The homeowners are both multi-talented and wanted a place to incorporate their skills. They create original art, build detailed wood work and plant edible gardens, just to name a few. This new landscape gives them and their family and friends a place to work and play and relax. It has become a haven for people and wildlife alike. Outdoor living at its finest!

Inspiration for a large modern front yard concrete paver driveway in Boston.

Decking - TimberTech Pro Terrain Series (Sandy Birch & Rustic Elm) Lighting - TimberTech Low Voltage LED Step Lighting
Example of a trendy backyard ground level deck design in Indianapolis

Vance Fox
Example of a trendy exterior home design in Sacramento

Here we used Trex’s Rope Swing boards for the deck and designed its multi-levels around the clients’ new hot tub. Because it’s a good idea to take breaks from long stays in a hot tub, we added a bench and private screened seating area — also made from Trex boards, topped with an attractive lattice design. www.deckandpatio.com

Jeffrey Totaro, Photographer
Inspiration for a large cottage green three-story mixed siding gable roof remodel in Philadelphia

Brian Santoro
Design ideas for a traditional side yard stone landscaping in Atlanta.

Treve Johnson
Inspiration for a mid-sized contemporary multiuse home gym remodel in San Francisco with white walls

This kitchen was designed for multiple chef needs but the main feature was leaving room for a table in the center of the space. These homeowners like to be right in the midst of the cooking action.

Large mountain style gray three-story wood exterior home photo in Vancouver with a shed roof