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Aquaview (Beverly Hills, CA) makes frameless glass pool fencing for applications ranging from private residences…
I’m generally a low-key guy, but I love almost everything about building waterfalls. I like discussing a site’s potential with my clients. I like going to the supply yard and selecting stone. And while I don’t mind letting others take the lead with the digging, I do like laying out shelves and setting the pond’s interior contours in ways that will maximize
From my first visit, I knew I’d be spending a lot of time here developing the watershapes and landscapes on this amazing site. Set on a bluff in Del Mar, Calif., the whole property slopes down from the street level to the back edge of the property. Beyond was an open space offering uninterrupted views of a river estuary, native coastal scrub studded with rare, indigenous, protected
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
I've always believed that an unlimited budget is not essential to making design magic. While having clients with deep pockets and a willingness to dig deeply into them is always nice and allows us a bit more leeway when it comes to artistic license, I've always observed that having relatively few constraints also tends to make some designers creatively lazy. By contrast, I've often found small-budget, small-space projects to be creatively stimulating. A couple of columns ago, for example, I discussed a project we'd been working on that posed challenges with its sunken deck footings and the need to accomplish a lot with
I've always believed that an unlimited budget is not essential to making design magic. While having clients with deep pockets and a willingness to dig deeply into them is always nice and allows us a bit more leeway when it comes to artistic license, I've always observed that having relatively few constraints also tends to make some designers creatively lazy. By contrast, I've often found small-budget, small-space projects to be creatively stimulating. A couple of columns ago, for example, I discussed a project we'd been working on that posed challenges with its sunken deck footings and the need to accomplish a lot with
From my first visit, I knew I'd be spending a lot of time here developing the watershapes and landscapes on this amazing site. Set on a bluff in Del Mar, Calif., the whole property slopes down from the street level to the back edge of the property. Beyond was an open space offering uninterrupted views of a river estuary, native coastal scrub studded with rare, indigenous, protected Torrey Pines and the Del Mar shoreline's pounding surf. There were also the spectacularly patterned cliffs at Torrey Pines State Park - a vista and set of colors that ultimately determined material choices for this project. It helped that I was completely at ease with
From my first visit, I knew I'd be spending a lot of time here developing the watershapes and landscapes on this amazing site. Set on a bluff in Del Mar, Calif., the whole property slopes down from the street level to the back edge of the property. Beyond was an open space offering uninterrupted views of a river estuary, native coastal scrub studded with rare, indigenous, protected Torrey Pines and the Del Mar shoreline's pounding surf. There were also the spectacularly patterned cliffs at Torrey Pines State Park - a vista and set of colors that ultimately determined material choices for this project. It helped that I was completely at ease with
It's a given that human beings enjoy being near water. That's why waterfront property generally comes at a premium and beaches are a favored destination for those who live inland. Quite frankly, it's also why the watershaping industry exists: Even if there isn't necessarily an overwhelming desire to get wet, the desire for proximity to water is almost universal. This built-in need to be close to water is, I believe, resulting in an exciting trend that seems to be taking hold and is in some cases redefining the role that water plays in the environment: More and more often, we designers are being asked to
It's a given that human beings enjoy being near water. That's why waterfront property generally comes at a premium and beaches are a favored destination for those who live inland. Quite frankly, it's also why the watershaping industry exists: Even if there isn't necessarily an overwhelming desire to get wet, the desire for proximity to water is almost universal. This built-in need to be close to water is, I believe, resulting in an exciting trend that seems to be taking hold and is in some cases redefining the role that water plays in the environment: More and more often, we designers are being asked to
