Concrete pavers have come a long way in the last decade. Back then, they were essentially a compromise product: if the client wanted a patio and didn’t want a concrete slab, but couldn’t afford stone, pavers were almost as good.…
MJ (my wife) reads this blog, and she made a good point about my last post (“Retaining Walls- Always Needed?”). Her point was that this blog is for a general audience, and since I excerpted a conversation with another designer,…
In working with a client on a recent project, I specified crushed oyster shells as the path material. It gives the paths the same look as Colonial Williamsburg, it reuses waste materials, and the light color of the shells reflect…
There’s not a lot going on in the garden today, so I figured I’d snap a picture of my cryptomeria, aka Japaenese Cedar. It’s a fantastic tree: quick-growing, sturdy, and tolerant of a wide range of conditions. This one sits…
When designing a patio, there are times that only one type of material will do. Either the architecture of the home is so dominating that it dictates the patio, or maybe the client already knew what he or she wanted.…