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Every once in a while, being right is not such a great thing! Last month in this column, I described the initial phases of a spectacular project in Malibu, Calif., and one of the things I mentioned was the fact that from the moment I stepped onto the site, I suspected that there might be some serious problems afoot. This impression was based largely on what I saw to be substandard construction of the existing swimming pool and on concerns about the elevation of the deck relative to the structure of the house. Unfortunately, those initial impressions turned out to be
It's not often that we're asked to stretch ourselves. This past year, however, I was presented with that opportunity in landscaping a site that was quite different from the usual residential lots I encounter in Southern California. Through all my years in business, I've become accustomed to working in a climate that supports year-round planting, year-round foliage and year-round lush views. In this case, I received a call to design a garden in the mountains above Southern California - and I jumped at the chance to
"Without goals, you become what you were. With goals, you become what you wish." -- James Fadiman As I've grown in my personal life and as a businessperson, I've come to recognize a powerful relationship between basic axioms (such as the one just above from James Fadiman) and the setting of my own goals. To paraphrase Mr. Webster, an axiom is a self-evident truth or proposition. Many are quite familiar, so much so that phrases including "Honesty is the best policy" or "Nothing
Let me introduce you to an exciting project I've been working on most of this year. Right from the top, I'll say that even in the realm of the unique and rarified, this one is truly amazing. The clients are quite well-to-do, and the moment you walk into their home, you can't help recognizing that they are accomplished art collectors with an eye for modern masters as well as folk art. Their beachfront Malibu, Calif., home - one of
Most people who know me will tell you just how independent I am. Some, in fact, will say that I'm too independent for my own good. When it comes to business, however, I know that being a soloist carries me only so far: Rather, it's the relationships I've established and maintained within the business community that have taken me beyond the independent realm and helped me achieve the success I was looking for when I started my business. As a designer, I work
I don't know if it's because I work in the pool and spa industry or if this is common to other fields, but I know a great many people who run businesses who are ill-prepared to do so. Architects and landscape architects might have taken some classes that introduced them to basic business principles, but their counterparts in the pool and spa trades are far less likely to have taken such classes and tend to run things by the seat of their pants. In my case, I've learned what I know about business through seminars and business-oriented reading. I've made
Color is amazing. It provides us with some of greatest opportunities we ever have to create spaces that are emotionally evocative and visually compelling - yet it is also one of the most difficult design details to understand and put to good and effective use. Trouble is, there's no easy way to simplify the challenge: Color is indeed a tough nut to crack, and that's as true for architects, artists, fashion designers and the people who choose colors for new
We're all familiar with the climatic differences we experience in areas that get lots of snow as opposed to places that seldom (if ever) experience freezing conditions. These not-so-subtle climate distinctions mean a lot to us as human beings - and have even more meaning in the world of plants and landscaping. That's why almost every one of my columns about plant selection has contained a disclaimer about checking with your local nursery to see if a particular plant will grow in your area. That's also why the experts have developed a variety of
All through my career, I've never really been big on advertising. In fact, the only place I've ever advertised is in Naples, Fla., where I've never been successful drumming up any business even though it's only a short distance from my home. I gave it a good shot - a nice ad with a picture of a vanishing-edge pool, placed in a local newspaper's special section on backyard swimming pools. I was confident I'd get some response, but all that came back was
Throughout recorded history, people have tried to control the elements in every which way they can. We plant trees to block the wind, build levees to hold back rising river water and dikes to hold back the seas. We build skyscrapers that defy gravity, winds and earthquakes. For all of this ingenuity, however, we sometimes don't do a very good job. When our efforts to control the elements fail on a large scale, we witness catastrophes that
