Holly Days Nursery http://hollydaysnursery.com/horsham-landscapesupply/landscaping/landscapingawards/ Project Entry: Just You & I 2014 PLNA Awards for Landscape Excellence Winner Category: Hardscaping-Residential $15,000-$30,000 Award Level: Honorable Mention Photo Description: Our long-time client wanted a fireplace constructed at an underused section of her existing deck. “My children are young adults now,” she explained. “The youngest in his last year of high school while the older kids are off to college. Of course we still enjoy family meals at the large outdoor table when everyone is home, but my husband and I want a more intimate space to relax.” Today, our client and her husband share their morning coffee in a new and cozy sitting area. A corner fireplace of contemporary design anchors the space and harbors a surprise design element. Special challenges associated with this project were threefold: • The newly created seating area would be relatively small and serve the dual purpose of secondary access on and off the deck. Location of the fireplace would be critical in making the space both intimate and functional; • The elevation of the existing deck would require placement of the firebox more than four feet above the soil line; and • The chimney would present both a challenge and an opportunity to incorporate its structural height and breadth into the newly created planting bed and informal walkway. As mentioned earlier, this particular area of the deck was largely underutilized due to traffic patterns on/off the deck and to/from the house. The total area measures 105 square feet. Using standardized furniture placement and traffic flow measurements, our design team determined placement of the fireplace in the corner of the existing deck would provide optimal movement within the seating area without blocking access to the stairs. Corner placement also provided the best view of the existing gardens. The fireplace is nearly eleven feet tall. Its cinderblock core with mortared joints sits atop a concrete footer built below frost line. The bottom section of the fireplace (i.e., that portion sitting below the deck floor) is 8” wider to make it look more in proportion with the overall height of the structure. It features a 28” firebox located four feet above soil line and is surfaced with Rolling Rock Building Stone, RealStone Thin Veneer. West Mountain stone was used to create the hearth while the display mantels are Bluestone. When viewed from below, the deck was rather an eyesore in an otherwise well maintained yard. No landscaping existed around its perimeter; its footings and construction beams were fully visible. We re-graded the area, installed a pressure treated lattice skirt and created planting beds and an informal walkway around its perimeter. The walkway features West Mountain stepping stones set in a bed of red tipple and bordered with Beige Belgium stone edging. It connects the deck’s main stairway, secondary stairway and driveway while navigating around the chimney. The base of the chimney houses a surprise design element. Here, we installed a beautiful 20” high sitting bench capped with flagstone with hand chiseled edge. By drawing on the particular talents of our hardscape and landscape design team, we were able to create a beautiful, solidly built fireplace in appropriate proportions to the seating area. Our client is particularly pleased with the newly created space and enjoys the placement of the bench.