Essential

The Science of Lighting
As I see it, successful landscape lighting is a two-part process:  First, the designer applies aesthetic principles that create the art, then he or she supports that artistic vision with scientific and technological savvy.  One without the other doesn’t work:  You can’t effectively practice the art until 
2012/10.1, October 10 — Landscape Lighting, Penny Pinching Woes, Fish-Friendly Ponds and more
  October 10, 2012                       …
2012/9.2, September 19 — Cima del Mundo, Pond Revisions, Dancing Water Wall and more
  SEPTEMBER 19,  2012 www.watershapes.com ESSENTIAL A Classic Crescendo   For the best part of…
A Classic Crescendo
‘Project of a lifetime” may not be enough to describe our work at Cima del Mundo.    [T]he hilltop home had experienced many changes since its original construction in 1925, including service as a makeshift monastery as well as a stretch of years in which the property was abandoned and allowed to go almost disastrously to seed.  In all its history, however, the estate has never been through as much by way of transformation as it has 
2012/9.1, September 5 — Integrated Views, Pond Fixes, Balboa Park and more
SEPTEMBER 5,  2012 www.watershapes.com ESSENTIAL Integrated Views A spectacular site is often the foundation for…
2012/8.2, August 22 — Front-Yard Design, Aquatic Plants, Halprin Fountain and more
AUGUST 22 2012 www.watershapes.com ESSENTIAL Suburban Spaces You really can find opportunities in unexpected places,…
Eyes on the Skies
Among the wonderful benefits of working in the custom watershaping business is that you never really know what sort of projects will wander into view. Through the years, we at Live Water Creations of Santa Rosa, Calif., have certainly participated in developing and executing some unusual designs, but I can honestly say that working on one that included a huge, beautiful steel pyramid topped by a deep-space telescope was something that
2012/8.1, August 8 — Stellar Reflecting Pool, Pond Tips, Japanese Inspiration and more
August 8, 2012 WATERSHAPES.COM ESSENTIAL Eyes on the Skies It’s not his daily practice to…
2012/7.2, July 25 — Whimsical Design, Vanishing Edges, Inspiring Waterfalls and more
July 25, 2012 WATERSHAPES.COM ESSENTIAL Serious Whimsy Developing watershapes and landscapes for residential clients can…
Serious Whimsy
This project was all about fun and finding ways to infuse watershapes and the overall landscape with childlike senses of playfulness and wonder. At a glance, of course, it’s obvious that this particular approach wouldn’t work for too many clients, but in this case, we were working with a woman who wanted her yard to express her love of color, her sense of humor and her unparalleled inclination