This Sixties house, with its ill-fitting Japanese-inspired details, presented a design challenge. We replaced the bulky entry structure and sweeping circular driveway with a modern pool and garden. Cleverly positioned behind the front building line, this new landscape offers a surprising and contemporary take on a front yard.
This modern home and its two guesthouses, set on an expansive eight-acre landscape, required substantial vegetative screening to establish both intimate spaces for quiet contemplation and areas capable of hosting large gatherings.
With extensive use of native grasses, plants for wildlife, and a variety of pine trees and ginkgo trees, the eight-acre landscape transforms the modern home and two guesthouses into a secluded and self-contained world.
The previous landscape was lackluster and in desperate need of refreshment. The existing pool was at a lower level than the finished floor of the house so the new pool was raised and designed with a negative edge. The surrounding landscape was also designed to cater to outdoor living and relaxation and so a terraced patio was added.
We maximized the front space of this lot by adding thick, lush plantings with a stone slab parking area and stone steps up to the front door. Plants at the front included various Sedge, Yew, Aralia, Hellebore, Rosemary and Japanese Maple to bring the space to life. Next to the swimming pool, a mixture of Arizona Cypress and Podocarpus were used to give extra privacy.
The stone slabs at the front of this house function as extra parking space, transitioning to a walking path to the front door. We softened the modern lines of the home with arching plant beds, a water feature and fire pit area. The pool in the courtyard was designed to complement the house and enhance the varying grade levels of the interior space. Lush planting beds and stepping stones were used again to soften the view.