On a project of this scale, scale itself became the most crucial component of the project. Stepping back and really experiencing each component of this project was vital to its success.
Beginning with the driveway, this could have easily been a long straight runway of asphalt, but that is not what we wanted to achieve. It was important to create interest while entering and leaving the site. We accomplished this by adding a slight sweep to the driveway as to direct the perspective. Adding a bit more of a welcoming feel, we incorporated an elegant paver apron at the street. We picked up that same paver apron composition in front of the garage doors. However this time with more of a freeform curve that interwove the front walkway, garage apron and side entries together.
The front walkway is one of the features we are most proud of. With the scale of the home, we were able to pull the front walk away from the home adding much more depth to the planting beds and opening up the palette for some larger plant materials. The walkway starts and ends with circular details inlaid with the same decorative granite featured on the front and back porches. The walkway itself is a meandering experience changing your perspective with every step. The plantings accentuate the modern farmhouse architecture and ground the home into the surrounding landscape. Introducing planting beds on both sides of the walkway broke up the monotony of lawn along the walk, creating a more unique experience.
While the site provided elevation challenges, it also provided the solution; lots and lots of boulders. Utilizing these boulders onsite, we laid out tiered retaining walls to not only retain the elevations but also to set the stage for some stunning planting areas. These planting areas on multiple planes allowed us to use a multitude of different plant materials and work with the scale of the site to create this beautiful composition.
Making your way around the property the clients’ love of expansive lawn is evident, but they also wanted to create intimate spaces to enjoy with their family. That theme really comes to light in the backyard with the covered porch, the fire pit area nestled in amongst the boulders and of course the stunning pavilion.
We drew inspiration from the home’s architecture to form our material palette. We selected a clean and modern style of light grey paver that reflected the white board and batten façade. That was accented with a high contrast black paver border, similar to that of the black window trim. The use of solid granite steppers reflected the use of granite on the front and back porches. At the core of this incredible project was how we used these materials in a way that felt organic and kept scale in mind for this expansive site.