One of the most significant projects my design partners at Southern California Landscape and I proposed for our clients, the Grinbaum family of Calabasas, California was the complete renovation of their pool and deck areas. I can’t believe how far we’ve come in just a few short weeks- it is truly an extreme pool makeover!
Before- My clients did not like the formal style of the pool so we came up with a design plan to modify the shape and look of it.
The pool looked fine but it was not the free flowing natural style that my clients favored. The real problem with the pool area was small deck. The deck felt cramped and seemed to be squeezed between the house and the hillside retaining wall behind the pool. In order to expand the deck, we were going to have to move a mountain for the Grinbaums and with the help of some heavy machinery, we did!
“My other car is a bobcat!”
Design Tip: In a natural landscape design, consider using boulders or stacked natural stone over block walls for retaining walls when possible. There are many different varieties of stone available, so look for local stone for best price and to keep the look of your landscape consistent with the surrounding area.
Homeowner, Joe Grinbaum gives me a taste of my own medicine as he photographs me photographing him in front of the newly cut hillside. We pushed the hillside wall back and gained about ten feet of deck space!
Watch this short video for more great before and after photos of this extreme pool makeover!
We replaced the pavers with three-inch-thick, over sized flagstones that were set in mortar and fashioned steps from them. The flagstone deck will feature crevice plantings to encourage storm water to percolate through the soil instead of running off into the street. A drain will collect excess water.
We played it safe and dragged out the patio furniture that will be used on the deck to ensure generous traffic ways and room for the furniture. No more congested areas for the Grinbaums!
Design Tip: Set pavers, flagstone and brick in sand instead of a cement slab to discourage water runoff. The above elements must be thick enough to withstand foot traffic and pressure from weather changes so that they do not crack.
The new flagstone deck is large enough to accommodate lounge chairs, a dining table and some beautiful pots!
Design Tip: Opt for low-growing ground covers to fill crevices between flagstones. Grass generally does not do well planted in small strips and dries out easily from the radiant heat of the flagstone. Elfin thyme, sedums and other low water plants are preferable.
After- The Grinbaums now have a beautiful, “almost new” natural-style pool of their dreams! I can’t wait to plant, but I have to wait for the rest of the construction to be completed.
If your pool is not your style, consider a cosmetic makeover for it. All you need is a good plan and some talented craftsmen…I know the best crew!
If you missed the previous update in the Villa Garden series, “Creating a Sunset Patio Garden,” go here.
I have to admit, this isn’t really a tip for gardening, but its a good tip, so I hope you will read on. I was in Chicago recently and stayed in a hotel with no microwave or mini kitchen area and I had a cold panini sandwich that needed to be warmed up.
What good is a panini with unmelted cheese?
Put your hotel’s iron to work in unconventional ways!
A light bulb went on in my head as I was ironing my shirt and noticed that I had scorched the corner of my collar. The burn mark reminded me of grill marks…..you see where I’m going with this? I was so hungry that the smell of burnt shirt was appealing to me, and then I remembered I had a cold sandwich from the afternoon.
I took my aluminum wrapped-sandwich and ironed it! No steam setting. It only took a few passes, (on both sides) to melt the cheese and warm the sandwich to perfection!
It was a true “I Love Lucy” moment! What crazy ideas have you come up in your moments of desperation?
When I was new to gardening, I went crazy buying every tool I could get my hands on. I wanted to have the best stocked tool shed, although most of my gardening activity was confined to planting, pruning and transplanting. In retrospect, I could have better used the money I spent on tools on more plants!
Do gardeners need all these shovels?
I remember the anxiety I felt facing the tool department those days. I came in for a shovel and there were so many different kinds to choose from, I had no idea what I needed! A straight edged shovel? A pointed shovel? An over sized shovel? I ended up buying one of each!
Hand tools can be multipurpose or for specific tasks such as hedge trimming
Hand pruners were another source of confusion. Did I need anvil pruners or bypass pruners? What size? Selecting tools for the new gardener can be as daunting as selecting cuts of meat for the novice cook or selecting the proper wine for your cuisine.
Check out this video on basic garden tool selection. I hope it gives you some direction so you don’t spend money on unnecessary tools like I did!
For more gardening 101 information and garden design inspiration, visit EdenMakers’ Blog.
Ever since my kids were in elementary school, I was involved in their classes and volunteered in the school garden beginning in the fall and throughout the school year. I looked forward to loading up my truck with plants and mounds of soil and digging in because it gave me a great excuse to hang around my kids and be a part of their world outside of our home.
Of course, I enjoyed gardening too!
I was asked to design a special “literacy garden” for the school library where the students could hang out and read outdoors. It was to be a whimsical retreat, a place where the kids could read, dream and commune with nature.
The design and installation of the garden took a lot longer than I expected as funds had to be raised and construction approved by the school district. No one put pressure on me to complete the work overnight, but I felt an internal time clock beating…I wanted to complete the project before my son graduated from elementary school so he could enjoy at least a full year of seeing “mom’s garden.”
I never told anyone about my concern and desire to “beat the clock.”
I designed the garden when my son was in third grade and my daughter in first grade. The garden was completed just before the second semester of my son’s fifth grade, his graduating year. I felt a little sad that he would only be able to enjoy it for a semester, but relieved that my daughter would be able to enjoy it for longer than that.
There was a ribbon cutting ceremony for the garden and I was honored with a plaque and a sign was posted at the entrance of the garden with the words,
This act of recognition was more than I expected or desired. The students were so thankful and it made me happy to see them excited and sitting around the garden. My son and daughter were smiling and seemed proud of their “special connection to the garden.”
My son gave me a hug and whispered in my ear,
“Thanks for finishing the garden before graduation.”
It didn’t occur to me that my son had his own time clock ticking too, and it made me feel a little sad that he carried this concern too. Maybe I was just feeling his heart all along, or maybe he was feeling mine?
My sons words made me realize that this garden would hold a special place in his heart long after graduation. As a mom, I am warmed by the fact that a small part of my son and daughters childhood will live on in this special garden.
School is back in session, which means its the perfect time to create a special garden memory for your child!
Designer Shirley Bovshow with her children in front of the Literacy Garden in 2004
The Villa Garden landscape project for my clients, the Grinbaum family of Calabasas, California is forging ahead at a great pace.
One of the design elements, the new patio off of the formal dining room is almost complete.
Before: This paved pass-through area is the future site for an open-beam patio. In order to make this area more accessible, a double french door will replace the large window on the right to provide access to the site from the formal dining room.
We are calling this the “sunset” garden patio because of its orientation to the west.
Design Tip:Create new useful areas in your yard by replacing windows with doors. Most people avoid using patios that don’t have direct access from the house.
All of the pavers in this area were carefully removed and stored in a safe place for later use. Although we are introducing flagstone as a flooring element in other parts of the yard, we decided to reuse the pavers in the patio areas and acid stain them a more “earthy” color to compliment the natural stone.
Design Tip: Setting pavers in a sand base instead of a concrete pad eliminates excess water runoff as the water is absorbed into the ground. There are many styles and colors of pavers to choose from.
The 4″ inch by 4″ inch steel columns help carry the load of the patio wood beams. Notice all the foundation work is deep in the ground and secured with rebar. Much of the work involved in creating patios is underneath the ground where no one will ever see it, except the workers and inspectors!
Once the foundation is in, construction moves quickly.
The steel columns will be wrapped with hollow, stone textured columns to give the design a finished look and tie it to the architecture of the house.
Design Tip: Structural steel posts have the advantage over wood because of reduced maintenance, durability and strength. They can be painted and used “as is” but look better wrapped with a wood veneer or column depending on your architectural style.
Charlie, of Charlie’s Construction provided a few different stain color samples for us to review. It is a good idea to create a side by side color sample on the wood that will be used so you get a true color saturation reading. Can you guess which color we chose?
Design Tip: Always use outdoor grade lumber for patio construction like this Douglas Fir beam. Wood stains range from clear to opaque and in-between.
Milk paint is also an option if you are looking for an eco- friendly alternative. Traditional paint offers more color variety, but requires more upkeep due to paint chipping.
Pre-stained beams are ready to be hung. (We chose the darkest color- “Oxford Brown”)
The 6″ by 12″ inch header goes up first, followed by the smaller, 6″ by 10″ inch beams. This labor intensive work requires care and should only be preformed by licensed and bonded contractors.
Design Tip: There are hundreds of decorative cuts that can be used on the end of the beams. If there is existing wood work in your architecture it’s a good idea to match the detailing when creating new wood elements.
The patio beams are up and we’re now chalking out the patio edges and walkway areas. Homeowner Joe Grinbaum (right), walks the future patio area as project foreman for Southern California Landscape, Eddy Martinez looks on.
Once the perimeter area is confirmed, an edging will be installed and soil dug out to make room for a sand base and the pavers. The Grinbaum’s are almost ready to party in this once-neglected and unused area.
Design Tip: It is helpful to have your outdoor furniture selected before patio completion so you can set it out and make sure you have comfortable traffic space and ample patio area.
Visit us again at EdenMaker.TV for more “nosey neighbor” updates on the building of “Villa Gardens.”
I was expecting downtown Chicago to be another congested, concrete jungle, as is the case with many high profile cities. Instead, I got a shining example of urban renewal and a model for sidewalk garden chic!
The Chicago street scape I saw, especially along Michigan Avenue, in Chicago’s famed “Magnificent Mile” area was jaw-dropping beautiful! I was in Chicago to report on the latest gardening products showcased at the Independent Garden Center Show, (more on this later).
I was surprised to see that many of the sidewalks were free of liter and there were curbside gardens everywhere! I was so busy checking out the gardens, I didn’t pay attention to the “A-List” fashion stores along the boulevard.
Check out these fashionably coordinated gardens and garden art installations along Michigan Avenue and some lesser traveled side street gardens. I wish my Los Angeles urban areas looked like this:
“Umbrella garden” dress with coleous and impatiens.
Recycled bottle cap dress and pink begonias
Coca cola dress in lush garden
Fake flowers never looked so fashionable!
Pristine lawn and flower beds to enjoy from a distance
Repurposed shower curtaindress
Recycled table cloth dress
For more information on this garden walk, check out: www.TheMagnificantMile.com
Just another “median strip” garden in Chicago. Everything is so bold here…like me!
This curbside dining oasis was shared by at least four different restaurants. I didn’t even notice the cars!
This is my kind of bus stop. I wouldn’t mind waiting here for an hour!
Cordyline, coleous, sweet potato, impatiens, red begonia….a little color in downtown Chicago
This is the best dressed fire hydrant I’ve ever seen! Even the dogs show some respect for it!
Croton madness!
Garden enthusiasts will be thrilled by the “free garden offerings” in downtown Chicago though a visit to the Chicago Botanical Gardens is worth the price of admission!
I’m on my way to Chicago to cover the Independent Garden Center Show. The “IGC Show” will run from Monday August 19 until Thursday, August 21 and is beingtouted as the “World’s Largest Garden Center Show,” so I have BIG expectations!
I’m packing comfortable shoes, my video camera and taking along an assistant so that I can make my way through the massive exhibit hall where over 500 garden product manufacturers hope to catch the eye of retailers and media representatives.
As a garden spokesperson for television and online, I’m looking to find the most unique, clever, practical and beautiful garden products to share with you and use in my landscape designs.
I’m ready to be swept off my muddy feet with:
Out of this world statuary!
Fountains with personality….
Outdoor furniture that looks like furniture!
Sexy water garden plants and decor!
Garden accessories I can place in the garden with pride!
New, personalized garden tools that suit my lack of dexterity!
New, shiny (and not so shiny) garden pottery that will be the envy of all….
And anything out of the ordinary, strange and captivating like this “Flying Bamboo” from Monrovia Growers!
Plus, soil, seeds, mulches, fertilizers, water management systems and everything else!
Have any garden products you want me to scope out for you? Let me know.
Visit EdenMakers’ Blog for the latest scoop on what you can expect to find in your local garden center.
Whether I’m designing a landscape for my clients in Los Angeles or for a family on garden makeover television, one thing remains the same- the neighbors are always curious about what is going on ”next door,” so I started EdenMaker.TV!
EdenMaker.TV will feature video, photos and progress notes of my real world landscaping projects to satisfy the curiosity of my client’s friends, family and “nosey neighbors!”
It’s my hope that while peeking into these projects, viewers will take away design ideas, problem solving tips and get an inside look at the effort involved in creating a dream landscape. It’s dirty work! Literally!
You will also meet some of Los Angeles most talented landscaping professionals, like the award winning design/build firm of Southern California Landscape who I partner with to create these outdoor sanctuaries.
