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“You only get one chance to make a first impression.” How many times have you heard that in your life? There’s a good reason for it: First impressions last – and that’s particularly true with a home. This is why real estate agents typically bring up “curb appeal” when advising clients about how to sell at the best price. Why? Because if prospective buyers drive up and sees a messy, weed-plagued yard, chances are good that they will simply roll on by. And even if they stop, the negative initial impression will be hard to shake as they
Everything about this project was classic and beautiful. For one thing, the home has the soft look of a French country chateau. For another, it’s located in Hancock Park, one of the oldest of Los Angeles’ upscale downtown neighborhoods. And when you add in the fact that it sits on a half-acre-plus lot on a quiet street, we had the pleasing sense that we’d landed on a refreshing oasis at the heart of a bustling metropolis. We also enjoyed the privilege of working here with Andres Cardenes, a wonderful architect who had collaborated with these clients on and off for several years. In their latest endeavor, he had come in to refurbish the home along historic and formal lines – something that often happens in this neighborhood, which boasts numerous restored and beautifully maintained homes across a range of architectural styles. Our firm, New Leaf Landscape of Agoura Hills, Calif., had worked with Cardenes on previous projects. When he called, he talked a bit about the situation and let us know that he thought we’d be a great fit because of the way we
Beauty enhances our lives by changing our perceptions, and what we do as landscape professionals plays an important part in setting that perceptual stage. As the mystic poet Rumi wrote in the 13th Century, "Beauty surrounds us, but usually we need to be walking in a garden to know it." The steps we take in moving to and from our homes are important in that context, both for us and for our clients: These daily treads affect our perception of the world and influence our moods. While we can't always change the part of the journey that continues beyond the garden gate, we can do much to shape the sense of welcome, beauty and ease by
For more than two full years, this project was my personal and professional obsession. It all started in 1993, when my client, a wealthy recording-industry magnate, called on me to design the landscape for a property he'd just acquired in Bel Air, one of the most exclusive neighborhoods in Los Angeles. The Spanish Colonial-style home had been built in the 1920s and was in a sad state of disrepair. By the time I arrived, it had been gutted to the studs, and very nearly all of the hardscape and plantings around the house had been torn out as well. What he was offering me was a tantalizingly blank canvas in a most spectacular setting. In the two years that followed, not only would we
