This week, the editors of Remodelista were happy to hang out in the kitchen—the easy, breezy, summer season kitchen that feels like an oasis, that is. Take a look at what they uncovered: foraged bouquets, peak-season tabletop ideas, and inspired ways to use bathroom fixtures in the kitchen.
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Above: Julie outdoes herself in 11 Kitchen Storage Tricks to Steal from the Bathroom. Why did we never think of adding a recessed soap niche to a tiled backsplash? And we love the Chinese apothecary drawers in this rustic kitchen.
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Above: A renegade floral designer in the Bay Area has led the forager movement for years. In DIY: Louesa Roebuck's Wild (and Edible) Bouquets, she tells us how to create two simple, wild arrangements using scrounged flowers, fruit, and herbs. Photograph by Matthew Williams for Remodelista.
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Above: Remodelista's London editors discovered Honey & Co. a couple of summers ago—it's right around the corner from our office in Fitzrovia. The restaurant has since been discovered by the rest of the neighborhood, and it's just published its own cookbook. Find out more in London Hangout: Middle Eastern Dining at Honey and Co.
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Above: Another Restaurant Visit takes us to Eatrip in Tokyo, an oasis of calm in the busy Harajuku district. Surrounded by gardens, this simple farm cafe even has its own flower shop. Photograph by Aya Brackett for Remodelista.
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Above: A Victorian house on the outskirts of London has been artfully remodeled with materials that bring in the sun. In Steal This Look: The Endless Summer Kitchen, Remodelista's design sleuths show how you can recreate the style. Our favorite part: the herb planter inset in a marble-topped island. Photograph from Blakes London.
Don't forget: You can vote once a day for the finalists in the 2014 Considered Design Awards. Click below to cast your votes on Gardenista and Remodelista. The polls close August 8th; winners will be announced August 9th. Vote now!
Above: On our wish list: limited-edition cork vases, handmade in Oakland, California. Photograph courtesy of Of a Kind.
Design Milk founder and editor in chief, Jamie Derringer, is poised to overhaul her Southern California backyard (approvals pending); we're watching her every step.
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Above: We're of the opinion that the best party guest is the one who brings the deviled eggs. We're trying this "extra-special" recipe for our next summer bash. Photograph courtesy of Joy the Baker.
Above: Hostas, Hollywood juniper, and bamboo border the revamped outdoor space of an equally renovated Upper West Side apartment. Photograph by Roland Bello.
A stylish tool for swatting those winged house invaders (no, not bats).
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Above: Put this brass weather station outdoors to monitor temperature and humidity. Photograph by Mark Weinberg.
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Above: It's already August? That means the lily pool at the Brooklyn Botanical Garden is in full bloom. Photograph by Antonio M. Rosario.
We're announcing the winners of the Gardenista Considered Design Awards next Saturday, so be sure to vote for your favorite finalists, once a day until August 8. And while you're at it, vote for the Remodelista finalists as well! Just click below.
Spotted on Lizzie Garrett's Tomboy Style, a communal dinner in a greenhouse at Beetlebung Farm, on the southwestern edge of Martha's Vineyard.
Beetlebung Farm, a five-acre property in Chilmark, Massachusetts, is the home of Chris Fischer, who grew up there and left to study cooking under such chefs as Mario Batali and Keith McNally in New York, London, and Rome. Now back home, Fischer sells his organic produce (customers have included the Obamas) and hosts communal greenhouse dinners. We must say the experience sounds magical.
Says Lizzie Garrett: "We were served by friendly barefoot hosts on a dirt floor, sitting on wood benches and rusted metal chairs under a roof of stars and a garland of Jerusalem artichoke leaves. The aroma of the farm vegetables lingering with the salty Atlantic air was almost as intoxicating as the burrata, the kale salad served over a fried egg, the sugary sweet perfect tomatoes with squid, the pork tossed with pasta and basil . . ." Read on for the dessert:
Photography by Gabriela Herman for Beetlebung Farm (except where noted).
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Above: Chris Fischer, the 12th generation of his family to live on the Vineyard, serves just-grown, fresh-picked food (prepared simply) in a greenhouse transformed into a dining room. Photograph by Lizzie Garrett of Tomboy Style.
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Above: Burrata bruschetta. Photograph by Lizzie Garrett of Tomboy Style.
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Above: The farm isn't an official restaurant; dinners are by invitation only.
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Above: Recent greenhouse dinner guests have included actors Maggie Gyllenhaal and Seth Meyers.
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Above: A large bluefish stuffed with herbs and grilled over an open fire.
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Above: The hoop house is set with a long dining table, mismatched chairs, and flowers from the farm.
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Above: Organic produce under cultivation at Beetlebung Farm.
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Above: A shed to keep cold frames warm.
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Above: Beetlebung chef Chris Fischer is a descendant of Albert Osborne Fischer, who bought the farm in 1961.
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Above: Makeshift lamps and strings of lights. Photograph by Lizzie Garrett of Tomboy Style.
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Above: And for dessert? "A buttery slice of cantaloupe," says Lizzie Garrett. "A simple and perfect dessert."
Updated from a post originally published July 31, 2013.
And don't forget: Voting ends on August 8th for the 2014 Considered Design Awards! You can vote once a day for the finalists on Gardenista and Remodelista. We're announcing the winners on August 9th. Click below to let your voice be heard.
The more time we spend gardening, the more we appreciate the sculptural shapes and subtle patterns and colors we see everywhere we go, not just in gardens and plantings and hardscapes, but in natural landscapes, as well. This week's issue is about developing an eye for beauty in all the forms it can take.
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Monday
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Above: Every year, Marie Viljoen visits her family home in the suburb of Cape Town, South Africa, where she grew up. In this week's Garden Visit, she tells us what she's learned from her mother's garden. Photograph by Marie Viljoen for Gardenista.
Tuesday
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Above: In the sweet town of Sag Harbor, on New York's Long Island, a self-taught gardener has built a galvanized planter that makes passersby stop and stare. We pay a Garden Visit to find out more. Photograph by Cara Greenberg for Gardenista.
Wednesday
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Above: In 10 Easy Pieces, we search out the best hanging chairs for those lazy crazy days of summer. (This one? A classic, called The Egg.)
Thursday
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Above: Jeanne investigates Ribbon Driveways for this week's Hardscaping 101: A nice way to give your entrance a bold stripe.
Friday
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Above: Read Outbuilding of the Week to find out how a savvy couple turned a 100-year-old garage in LA into a tiny cottage. Yes, 100 years old in LA. We were surprised, too. Photograph by Bethany Nauert.
And check out Remodelista, where the editors are honing their own eye for Patterns and Prints.
Please don't forget: It's the last week of voting for the 2014 Considered Design Awards. You can vote for the finalists on Gardenista and Remodelista once a day until August 8th. The winners will be announced August 9th.
Once a year I leave New York City and return to my mother’s garden at the foot of Africa. The cab ride from Cape Town International traverses a stark cross-section of South African life, first cutting through the impoverished shanty towns on the city outskirts, with the whiff of the nearby sewage plant. After the outlying suburbs, we move along leafy Rhodes Drive on the cool, wooded eastern flank of Table Mountain, past Kirstenbosch National Botanic Garden. Then we enter the suburb of Constantia, and dip into the valley where my parents’ pitch-roofed house anchors the end of a quiet cul de sac.
Above: Flame-colored aloe blossoms shoot up from a bed beside the house.
The first glimpse of the house is an unusual one. In South Africa, most houses are separated from the street by tall walls, electric fencing, and razor wire. No. 9, on the other hand, is wide open, with a full view of the aloe and succulent garden my mother planted to replace much of the former lawn.
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Above: The brick driveway arcs past the front door and the row of wine barrels under the stoep roof, planted with indigenous asparagus fern, peppermint Pelargoniums, and Streptocarpus. As the driveway curves back to the street, it skirts a mixed bed with perennial fuchsia, Plectranthus, Agapanthus, and Cape fuchsia (actually a perennial, Phygelius capensis).
Every night the private security company’s truck sweeps down the drive, leaving behind a note in the mailbox under the polished brass number 9, saying All is well; we have been here.
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Above: As I leave the cab, two corgis tumble out the front door to greet me, hysterical with pleasure. My mother emerges, quiet and happy. In my teenage bedroom, bright with fresh-cut flowers, I look out through the sash window at the garden Maureen Viljoen has worked for 30 years to create. Indigenous, exotic, edible, and ornamental plants blend seamlessly into a plant collector’s dream oasis.
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Above: At the property’s border a tall living wall of small trees, shrubs and climbers—a refuge for birds and the occasional mongoose—separates the garden from a communal greenbelt where a small stream seamed by enormous poplars runs down from the mountain. Above and beyond the living wall and the giant trees rises Table Mountain.
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Above: When I step onto the brick patio behind the house, the scent of the Confederate jasmine covering the pergola wraps around me like a shawl. The patio is where meals are eaten in good weather, at a large iron table under an awning, lit by candles and oil lamps at night.
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Above: Now, a cloud of waxbills explodes from the bird feeder. Sunbirds visit for nectar and twittering prinnias patrol for aphids in the potted Iceberg roses. A hadeda ibis stalks the lawn, poking its beak deep into the turf to extract pale grubs.
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Above: I walk the garden, jet-lagged in the sudden summer and shell-shocked by the abundance of flowers. More lawn has been swallowed by my mother's riotous mixed plantings.
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Above: Vegetables, herbs, and flowers, native and exotic, thrive as neighbors, in a botanical iteration of South Africa’s rainbow nation status. (In the 1980s, an American friend took note of Cape Town's regimented municipal plantings and exclaimed to my mother, "Even the flowers are segregated in this country!”)
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Above: In one bed artichokes, foxgloves, Agapanthus, succulent Cotyledons, leeks, Verbascum, and Coreopsis coexist, knitted together by a sprawl of tiny pink flowers whose name no one ever remembers. Maintaining this apparently random garden style requires a gimlet eye and a great talent for plant choice.
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Above: When I was 14, I laid out an herb garden in full sun in the western corner of the garden. It's now cooled by significant shade from grown trees. My mother has ingeniously transformed the area into a secluded nook where she and my father share weekend lunches on a pretty bench. A water lily grows in a tiny fountain on a mossy patio, and frogs like to visit. Two tall walls that make up the rear of the house support shelves for potted shade-loving plants and works by local craftspeople.
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Above: On a raised, tiled workspace is a forest of bonsais—white stinkwood, pomegranate, Acacia, and olive. At ground level, Streptocarpus, Begonias, Fuchsias, and Heuchera form a quilt of textured color. A trough of arugula hugs tall Amaryllis in scarlet bloom.
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Above: The thistle-like flowers of the artichoke.
From this corner the rest of the wide garden can be glimpsed in the sunlight, through the branches of the tree tomato. The fruit (also called tamarillo) hangs in bright orange bunches, egg-sized and desirable. I eat a bowlful at a sitting, thinking gleefully that I've seen them for sale in Manhattan at $2 apiece.
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Above: A recent shift in my mother’s sunlit space has been the shrinking of her beloved Agapanthus collection. Agapanthus are indigenous to this part of the world. The fancy cultivars, bred in local nurseries, range in color from near-black to blue and white-tipped. But they've recently been attacked by a scourge called the Agapanthus borer, a caterpillar that burrows from the unopened bud, down the long stalk, and into the crown, causing the plant to rot and die.
Everywhere, in public plantings and in gardens, one glimpses Agapanthus buds held at an odd and ominous angle, with a tell-tale black spot on their sheaths. This little-understood pest is changing the gardening landscape. At No. 9 the Agapanthus collection has dwindled to just a few varieties that seem, for now, immune.
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Above: To the east is the garden's social cornerstone—a giant London plane tree whose canopy air-conditions the deck beneath it on the hottest summer day. Thirty years ago this tree was a skinny sapling; now, its trunk is too wide for me to wrap my arms around.
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Above: This is the summer dining room, where a table is set for two or 12 with linen and beautiful plates and glasses. For a party, flowers from the garden spill out of vases, wine chills in ice buckets, and course after course is ferried to and fro by guests traipsing across the lawn.
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Above: Meanwhile, shy green dragons—Cape dwarf chameleons—roll their eyes from their floral hideaways.
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Above: Sunflower in bloom.
Every few years, the garden at No. 9 is one of a handful opened to the public by a trio of Constantia garden clubs. Tickets are sold, tea and snacks are served, and the money raised—$10,000 last time—is donated to local nonprofits. One of these is Abalimi Bezekhaya (Xhosa for "Planters of the Home"), which supports micro-farmers on the low-income Cape Flats; another is Soil for Life, which focuses on healthy soil for growing organic foods.
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Above: Closeup on garlic blossoms.
This is the garden to which I return, whose evolution I have watched over many years, whose beauty and whose practical lessons have made me a gardener and lover of plants. It has convinced me that a garden is to be lived in, by many creatures. More than anything, it has taught me that a healthy garden depends not just on a grand vision, but on the living, breathing presence of the gardener and of her spirit.
And have you voted yet today for the Considered Design Awards? You can vote once a day for the finalists in all the categories, on Gardenista and Remodelista. Polls close August 8th and we'll announce the winners August 9th. Click below to vote!
Roaming the streets of San Francisco is a little old delivery truck teeming with flowers. In the driver's seat is Rebekah Northway, whose floral design business, The Petaler, makes arrangements for some of the sleeker interiors around the city. With a cough and a sputter, the truck dutifully chugs up and down the hills, its flowers trembling with the engine's rumble.
Photography by Tom Kubik for Gardenista.
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Above: Rebekah Northway has been a florist for eight years. When she realized she couldn't fit tall branches in her old sport utility vehicle, she got something with a little more headroom.
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Above: Many of Northway's clients are restaurants: She makes floral arrangements for The Battery, Zuni Cafe, Frances, and others.
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Above: Her flower truck is an antique—a 1984 AM General. "They don't make them anymore," says Northway. She painted it slate gray and put the Petaler's sweeping logo on its side. "I didn't think of branding, you know, adding my website address and all that."
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Above: The truck's low profile gives it a mystique—people wonder what, exactly, the Petaler is. But its boxy, familiar shape recalls American summers—the milkman, the mail truck, the ice cream man on a warm afternoon. "Kids look at it with their mouths open," says Northway.
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Above: The truck does more than serve as a reminder of bygone days. "It just makes my day more efficient," says Northway, whose arrangements frequently tower with architectural branches.
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Above: The truck is wide and high enough to allow for clients' branches to be carried inside in well-anchored pails of water.
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Above: Globe thistles.
Occasionally, the Petaler pops up at events, selling small bouquets.
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Above: The wild bounty inside the truck can seem to overflow. It's not unusual for passersby to peek inside, see the blooms (fuzzy baby quince, potato-sized poppy-heads), and ask to buy a bouquet.
It's the last week to vote for your favorite finalists in the Considered Design Awards! You can vote once a day on Gardenista and Remodelista until August 8th; we're announcing the winners August 9th. Click below to vote:
Is this the prettiest edible plant? With its high-low appeal, nasturtium fits in anywhere that's relaxed. A vegetable plot near the back door is the obvious place to grow these annuals: the petals, leaves, and seed pods can all be put to good use in the kitchen. There's no easier way to add color and flavor to a salad than by adding a few of the slightly peppery vermilion flowers.
With their fiesta colors and devil-may-care attitude toward hot temperatures, nasturtiums tell us they are from southern climes. But they translate well into any garden. First brought back from Central and South America, the nasturtium is half-hardy and requires full sun. It also likes moisture, but the soil must be as well-drained and nutrient-free as you can manage.
Whether climbing, trailing, or scrambling, nasturtium deserves a prominent spot in the garden in mid to late summer as it attracts so many insects. Bees, hoverflies, and other pollinators are an obvious bonus, but ladybugs will also feast on the stalks, where clusters of black fly tend to congregate. Nasturtiums keep the garden buzzing.
Nasturtiums tend to wake up after the summer solstice, and cover as much ground as possible as the days grow shorter.
Some nasturtium varieties repel white fly; others attract black fly (as well as cabbage caterpillars).
A hard-working companion to cabbage, broad beans, tomatoes, and cucumbers.
Keep It Alive
Nasturtiums will grow extravagantly as far as the space allows.
When the weather cools, watch for frost warnings or these glorious plants will turn to mush overnight. (Nasturtiums should really be cut down before this stage, if you can bear it.)
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Above: Part of tonight's salad. Photograph by Kendra Wilson.
It's possible to grow compact varieties of nasturtium in cream and pale yellow, but that seems to be missing the point. The glorious spectrum of orange, yellow, and crimson lifts the garden during the dog days of summer.
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Above: Nasturtium 'Alaska' has a peppery taste. Photograph via Home.
Recommended varieties are N. 'Alaska', the yellow-and-orange climber with speckled leaves; ditto 'Jewel of Africa'. For trailing, try 'Tip Top Mahogany', with its tomato-soup-red flowers and bright green leaves. 'Empress of India' is more sultry, with darker red flowers and blueish leaves, while elegant 'Black Velvet' ticks the boxes for color fanatics: It is dark brown and a wonderful complement to everything.
When pickled, the globular seed pods of nasturtium resemble capers; dried, they can be used as a pepper substitute for the imaginative cook. For more ideas, see Foraging with the Vicomte. If left to ripen on the plant, the seed pods should gently self-sow and guarantee a crop the following year, depending on the USDA growing zone.
Warning: We've come to the last week of voting for the finalists in the Gardenista and Remodelista Considered Design Awards. You can cast your votes once a day in all categories. Voting ends August 8th; we'll announce the winners August 9th. Click below to vote!
Glenn Stancroff’s garden stops traffic. At least it stopped me the other day, bringing out all my garden-voyeur tendencies as I drove through the historic village of Sag Harbor, on Long Island, NY. I hopped out of the car and didn’t even have to trespass: His one-sixth acre is almost all front yard, surrounding a century-old former factory worker’s cottage and fenced with a calf-high divider, just enough to keep people from short-cutting across his corner lot.
What I saw was a tidy, dramatic, fully realized garden. Dominating the front yard: a 15-foot-long, curved, raised bed made of corrugated, galvanized sheet metal, holding several trees and shrubs and set in an expanse of gravel studded with large rocks. Along with the plantings—which include many specimen conifers and ornamental grasses—this set-up telegraphs the owner’s longstanding interest in Japanese design.
Intrigued, I left a complimentary note. Owner Glenn Stancroff invited me back for a second view, including a small rear patio invisible from the street. I learned that Stancroff has a masters degree in urban planning and is now retired from a career with the New York City Department of Health.
Above: A river birch with spectacularly peeling bark is set in a bed of liriope near a side entrance to the house—a century-old worker’s cottage with a "second skin" of horizontal wood slats, intended to provide privacy on a busy corner.
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Above: Red-tinged Japanese blood grass fills the front yard's 15-foot-long raised bed made out of galvanized sheet metal. The overall plant palette is drawn largely, though not exclusively, from Japanese garden tradition.
As a gardener, Stancroff is completely self-taught. And yet he has designed, built, planted, and tended the garden single-handedly over a period of three decades. “I went to books and looked things up as I went along,” he says.
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Above: A smoke tree in bloom, along with ornamental grasses, a maackia (a small deciduous tree), and a European beech round out the enormous raised bed. The white panicles of oakleaf hydrangea brighten the background.
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Above: Stancroff scraped up the existing topsoil to fill the raised metal bed, adding organic fertilizers and some peat moss. “The soil here is exceptionally rich,” he says. “I’m blessed to be at the bottom of a hill, and over the millennia nutrients have washed down onto my property.”
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Above: Stancroff used galvanized sheet metal designed for below-grade window wells to construct the raised bed (and a few planters, too). Galvanized nuts and bolts on the inside hold the sections together. He created a free-form shape by arranging the sections to form both convex and concave curves.
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Above: Squares of brick step up to a cedar boardwalk that leads from the front yard through a bed of crushed marble to a parking area at the far end of the house. The Stella de Oro day lilies at right are what Stancroff calls his best survivors. “Over the years, the garden has gone through many changes and mutations,” he says. “If something doesn’t work out, I replace it.”
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Above: A small patio made of brick and railroad ties at the rear of the house provides complete privacy. Under the pergola: a long-needled weeping yew.
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Above: In a raised wooden bed along the rear property wall, a red Japanese maple, Hinoki cypress, and climbing hydrangea reinforce the Japanese feeling.
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Above: Stancroff designed and built the 18-inch fence of pressure-treated wood as a gentle signal to would-be trespassers. Turns out I’m not the only voyeur: This garden is something of a local attraction. “Whenever I’m working outside, someone invariably stops to tell me how much he or she enjoys the garden,” he says. “One man even makes a point of bringing his visitors to see it.”
It's the last week to vote for your favorite finalists in the Considered Design Awards. You can vote once a day on Remodelista and Gardenista through August 8. Stay tuned: We're announcing the winners August 9.
This urban patio was created by landscape designers Earth Inc. for Toronto's annual Interior Design Show. The firm focuses on sustainability, so they chose a wealth of reclaimed materials for the space, including discarded streetcar tracks from an old rail supply yard, feet from a backhoe's stabilizer legs, and yellow pine from the Ohio River Valley. The result, says Earth Inc. partner James Dale, is reminiscent of old downtown Toronto.
While you may be reluctant to comb through salvage as the Earth Inc. team did, Dale notes that many demolition companies curate and sell the best stuff from their demolition jobs. "You can find all sorts of amazing artifacts at reclamation yards," he says.
Here’s the casual but cozy look they created:
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Above: The 20-foot-square space emulates twilight on a weathered brick patio, where modern materials and aged pieces combine to create a welcoming space for outdoor dining. On the floor, the Earth Inc. team laid Danish Hand Mould Pavers in manganese ironspot—a black brick—from Nebraska-based Endicott Clay Products. The fold-away harvest table has an inset trough to be used as an ice bucket. Photograph via Poppytalk.
This time-lapse video shows the team installing their exhibit (and occasionally, eating lunch). And here's how you can recreate it yourself:
Above: Screen blocks, also called breeze blocks, are concrete masonry units that can be stacked for privacy and shade, while still allowing air to circulate. Earth Inc. used salvaged diamond-pattern blocks, which can be purchased new from regional manufacturers. The 12-inch-square Screen Block No. 377 (left) costs $6.92 at A-1 Block Corporation in Orlando. Or go to Home Depot for the cloverleaf-pattern Gray Concrete Block (right); $2.77 each.
Above: Once the concrete block wall is up, fill porous surfaces with a primer such as Pratt & Lambert Pro-Hide Silver Latex Block Filler. Then use thin coats of exterior latex masonry paint for a finish that's as distressed as you like—Benjamin Moore's Van Courtland Blue is a close match.
Above: James Dale grabbed a vintage liquid-fuel lantern from his father's camping stash to give the scene a gentle, flickering glow. The German-made Feuerhand Lantern is available in red or black, $39.95 from Portland’s Hand-Eye Supply. See more options in 5 Favorites: Classic Oil Lanterns.
Above: Pillows line the banquette—formerly a warehouse beam—in botanical and geometric prints. Similar styles (from left): A cotton Red & Black Branch Leaf Pattern Accent Throw Pillow Cover, 16 inches square, $18.95 from BHDecor on Etsy; Rouge du Rhin’s linen Quilt 1 pillow, 18½ inches square, €75; and Ikea’s cotton velvet Stockholm Cushion, 22 inches square, $14.99.
Above: You’ll need three of Roost’s Factory Cage Lamps—Wide (far right). Finished in silver-plated brass, the fixture takes a 63-watt filament bulb and is not wet location rated. At Lightopia, $201.88.
Above: Not up to building a table from salvaged materials yourself? Restoration Hardware has done it for you, reclaiming antique elm doors for its Flatiron Rectangular Dining Table. The welded, riveted solid-steel frame stands on caster wheels. Available in six sizes, from 60 to 120 inches long; $555–$1,255.
Above: For a more rugged industrial look—and bigger wheels—check out the pine and iron Fiumicino Dining Table by Moe’s Home Collection. It measures 85 by 38 inches and is $1,624 at Wayfair.
Above: Designed by metalworker Xavier Pauchard in 1934, the 18-inch-high Tolix Malais Stool is made of galvanized sheet steel with a powder-coated finish and rubber feet. Manufactured in Autun, France, and available in white, black or gray from Design Within Reach, $195.
Above: Earth Inc. set its table with bowls and a colander from the sturdy Falcon Enamelware Prep Set: six stackable, dishwasher-safe pieces of porcelain fused with heavy-gauge steel. Made in the UK, the set is available from Brook Farm General Store for $118. For more about Falcon Enamelware, see Classic Enamelware for Outdoor Dining.
Above: It may take a few years, but ‘Happy Wanderer’ Vine Lilac (Hardenbergia violacea) will climb obediently against a wall for vibrant color that lasts through three seasons. The Australian native needs sheltered space and can withstand partial shade, $29.50 for a 3.43-gallon plant from Lowe’s. Photograph courtesy Brighton Plants.
It's the last week to vote for your favorite finalists in the Considered Design Awards. You can vote once a day on Remodelista and Gardenista through August 8. Stay tuned: We're announcing the winners August 9.
Trapping scent is as easy as trapping heat. Grow these flowers in a small garden or enclosed area where you like to sit out after dark. Then let your sense of smell take over your sense of sight.
(Note that this isn't about those plants that hide their light under a barrel by blooming only at night—like the moon flower, whose luminosity and scent beckon moths. Rather, these five are blooms whose scent is especially fragrant at the end of the day.)
Above: Honeysuckle thrives against brick, which absorbs the residual heat of the day. The flowers pump out their scent later on, but it can last until early morning. The honeysuckle's tubular blooms harbor nectar at their base—designed, it would seem, with the proboscis of the moth in mind. Shown here, Early Dutch honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum belgica), $14.95 from Brushwood Nursery.
Above: Lilies also come alive at night, scent-wise. In the Sissinghurst Castle Garden, where these lilies gather, a white barn owl inspired the idea of Vita Sackville-West's White Garden: It would streak across the garden while the family ate out at night. The glow of pale flowers is easy to arrange; their scent is a bonus. Lilium 'Regale' bulbs are available from early spring at American Meadows.
Above: Roses, whether white, pale pink or yellow, waft out their glorious scent in the evening. An arch or pergola covered in pale roses lights the way in the gloaming. Shown here, the rambler Rosa Adelaide d'Orleans, starting at £15.50 from David Austin Roses.
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Above: Dianthus, or garden pinks, have a stronger clove-like scent as the heat of the day ebbs, and their color becomes more subtle and harmonious in the fading light. Shown here, Dianthus 'Doris'. Another old-fashioned pink known for its scent is actually fringed white: 'Mrs Sinkins', from $6.50 per plant at Select Seeds.
Above: Angel's Trumpet (Brugmansia arborea)has a very sweet scent; $2.47 for 10 seeds from Seedaholic. Because it is also highly toxic, it's often grown in pots raised off the ground.
The main point to remember about night-scented flowers is that they attract insects of all kinds. This is to our benefit: A single bat can eat thousands of bugs a night—and that includes mosquitos.
It's the last week to vote for your favorite finalists in the Considered Design Awards. You can vote once a day on Remodelista and Gardenista through August 8. Stay tuned: We're announcing the winners August 9.
Our judges have selected the finalists; now it's up to you to choose the winners. Vote in each of the 17 Considered Design Awards categories, on both Gardenista and Remodelista. You can cast your vote once a day in each category, now through August 8.
For Best Professional Landscape Project, our five finalists are: Adam Woodruff & Associates, Arterra Landscape Architects, McCullough's Landscape & Nursery, Terremoto, and Mary Barensfeld Architecture.
Project 1
Adam Woodruff & Associates | Girard, IL | Jones Road
Design Statement: I strive to connect my clients to nature and the larger landscape while creating a rich, evocative experience for them. Jones Road is one such example. My clients, a middle-aged couple with grown children, were in the midst of a house renovation when they engaged me to design the landscape of their rural property. Their bi-level home sits on a ridge with views of pasture, timber, and a meandering creek. They requested a design that would be sensitive to the borrowed landscape and not disrupt their views. I imagined a grand, stylized prairie enveloping the house to complement the pastoral setting.
The property was largely turf, with few trees and an existing pool surrounded by a poured-concrete patio. The grade abruptly dropped off along the back of the house. Consequently, an entire hillside had to be moved and soil repositioned to accommodate expansive new beds. The bold move improved aesthetics and overall functionality. The new garden seamlessly blends the wild and the domestic, bringing pollinators, birds, and wildlife to the doorstep. Grasses form the foundation of this naturalistic design, a matrix through which shrubs, perennials, natives, and bulbs emerge. The feeling is spontaneous and natural.
Chosen by: Guest judge Flora Grubb, who says, "The garden at Jones Road doesn't so much borrow the surrounding landscape as collect it. The plantings near the house evoke the spirit of the long view, but with an intensified palette that remains prairie-subtle and intoxicating."
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Above: The house is situated on a ridge with views of pasture, timber, and a meandering creek. The clients requested a design that would be sensitive to the borrowed landscape and not disrupt their views. I imagined a grand, stylized prairie enveloping the home.
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Above: Plants are artfully woven together to ensure a diverse and visually dynamic display with good bloom succession and seasonal interest.
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Above: An entire hillside had to be moved and soil repositioned to accommodate expansive new beds.
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Above: Patinaed sculptures of bronze and brass are recent additions. Their graceful forms enhance the grassy garden, providing year-round focal points and adding a touch of whimsy.
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Above: Regrading improved aesthetics and overall functionality. The new garden seamlessly blends the wild and the domestic, bringing pollinators, birds, and wildlife to the doorstep.
Project 2
Arterra Landscape Architects | Tiburon, CA | Painterly Approach
Design Statement: Panoramic bay views drew our client to this house on a steep hillside bordering a sweeping grassland. During initial construction, the building foundation wall had been improperly waterproofed and the cross slope was graded ineffectively, which resulted in extensive damage to the lower level of the house. Years later, when the damage was discovered, we were brought in to correct the drainage issue, protect the repaired foundation, and create a dynamic garden space for the family. We designed a sinuous grass swale that winds down the slope, cutting the cross-flow toward the house and creating the opportunity for a romantic, meandering pathway to an informal sitting area on the way to the pool.
Chosen by: Flora Grubb, who says, "This bold and colorful hillside garden composed of workhorse plants looks lush while being water-wise. Transcending its components, the space is both inviting and exciting."
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Above: The grass swale weaves through the masses of plantings and diverts water away from the house.
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Above: The plantings are deer-resistant, which means that we didn't have to cut off the rolling hills with a fence.
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Above: Drought-tolerant, low-maintenance Mediterranean plants attract hummingbirds and bees, providing nectar and habitat.
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Above: Along the path we nestled a cozy sitting area, perfect for relaxing with a glass of wine and taking in the panoramic views of the San Francisco Bay.
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Above: The warm-colored plant palette was a conscious choice to counter the cool breezes and saturate this hillside canvas with painterly sweeps of fiery color.
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Above: We're happy the clients can now enjoy their view.
Design Statement: This residence is nestled within a forest of mature trees. A master plan was created and implemented over the last five years and will continue to grow. The project includes a kitchen garden, woodland paths, restoration of native undergrowth, and planting large sweeps of perennials.
Chosen by: Gardenista Editor-in-Chief Michelle Slatalla: "This project celebrates old and new equally, gracefully marrying the tall trees with edible beds."
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Above: A vantage point leads through the woods to an artist studio.
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Above: The kitchen garden includes boxes and stock tanks.
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Above: A Corten garden structure leads from the driveway to the dining area.
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Above: Planters surrounding the pool area.
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Above: Woodland plantings.
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Above: A perennial bed surrounding the pool.
Project 4
Terremoto | San Francisco, CA | Post-Punk San Francisco Landscape
Design Statement: This Pacific Heights landscape is the manifestation of a desire to create a garden that is neither a facsimile nor a refutation of the horticultural vernacular of the Pacific Heights area, but rather, a distillation of its best architectural and botanical qualities.
Chosen by: Michelle Slatalla. "The versatility of poured concrete as a hardscaping material—and unifying theme—pulls this garden together."
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Above: Formed, poured-in-place concrete walls of a light color climb the hill, retaining the hillside and guiding the user's ascent through the space. A densely planted row of Thuja plicatas provides privacy from the neighbors above.
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Above: A mosh pit of English boxwood, Australian tree ferns, white roses, purple-flowering magnolias, and assorted vegetables both challenges and acknowledges the strong horticultural vernacular of the Pacific Heights neighborhood.
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Above: We threw a party, and it was a fantastic party.
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Above: Horticulturally inspired cocktails and conversation.
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Above: A Japanese cedar soaking tub wrapped in vegetation brings you to the second level of the project. Black trellises frame the property's edges.
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Above: Layering ornamentals (boxwoods) with edibles (artichokes and tomatoes) provides for interesting juxtapositions, both in texture and convention.
Project 5
Mary Barensfeld Architecture | Berkeley, CA | Hilgard Garden
Design Statement: Hilgard Garden aims to provide the owners with an extended outdoor living space; a garden room. Sandwiched between the neighboring townhouses’ rear yards, the site consists of a plot of land 23 feet wide by 50 feet deep, with a 17-foot elevation change. The owners’ desire for outdoor seating and an entertaining area close to the house, plus an accessible seating area at the top of the site, drove the project program.
Due to the steep slope, reaching the upper seating area requires navigating a considerable elevation change. To avoid taking up a large swath of the smaller backyard square footage with a conventional stairway, a ramping meandering path through aromatic ground cover and the outstretched limbs of sculptural Japanese maples was selected.
The 400-square-foot lower patio area, located on the same level as the living room, provides the clients with a seamless extension of their living space for relaxation and entertaining. It aspires, in the classic modernist sense, to be the new living room of the townhouse. Upon entering the house, one’s eye is drawn through the glass living room doors and out to the garden's reflecting pool and three sculptural Japanese maples. At night, the back-lit triangular steel panels’ LED lights further draw your attention towards the 60-square-foot upper terrace seating area and its views over the East Bay and San Francisco.
Chosen by: Flora Grubb. "The architecture side of landscape architecture in the Hilgard Garden makes the space. In the manner of earth art or the best public plazas, the multifaceted walls create places to perch, wander, admire views, and yet still soak up the pleasures of nurturing plants."
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Above: The weathering steel screens on either side of the garden are for privacy.
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Above: Hilgard Garden aims to provide the owners with an extended living space; a garden room.
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Above: A ramping meander to an upper terrace.
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Above: The water-jet-cut patterns on the steel plates provide transparency while allowing the wind and the green of the bamboo to filter into the space.
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Above: The upper terrace, with views of San Francisco Bay.
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Above: LED backlit Corten panels at dusk.
NOTE: There's still time to vote for your favorite finalists in the Considered Design Awards. The polls close August 8th, but until then you can vote once a day in all the categories on Gardenista and Remodelista. Click below!
In San Francisco's Pacific Heights neighborhood, Lutsko Associates designed a small, lush garden to be lived in at ground level—and to be viewed from above. The result? From the vantage of the house's upper-floor terrace, it feels as if you've lifted the roof of a dollhouse to peer into its meticulously appointed miniature rooms:
Above: The garden is divided into three distinct spaces separated by shrubbery and a translucent glass wall, making it feel much larger than its quarter-acre size would imply. The limestone flooring is punctuated by tracks of woolly thyme. Photograph via Contemporist.
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Above: A city view, including San Francisco Bay and the downtown Transamerica building, is visible through a translucent window in a reeded glass panel wall. The neighbor's balustrade can be seen through the lower half of the paneled wall.
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Above: Closely clipped hedges of Prunus caroliniana (cherry laurel) grow along a framework of steel to divide the garden into separate rooms.
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Above: A translucent glass wall provides privacy while simultaneously taking advantage of available sunlight.
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Above: The color palette is limited to green, gray, and white throughout the garden to unify the three separate enclosed spaces. Plantings include the peppermint-scented Pelargonium tomentosum (L).
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Above: Dark granite etched with a spiral pattern creates a mosaic effect.
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Above: A fountain is set in a curving bronze wall.
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Above: The fountain's water collects in a basin cut into the floor.
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Above: A lemon tree (L) grows up a plaster wall.
A typical city lot in San Francisco is 25 feet wide by 100 feet deep; for an atypical way to maximize the space, see A Jewel Box Townhouse Garden.
Wondering about what to do with a typical New York City lot (which is even smaller)? For another of our favorite city backyards, see Lush Life: A Townhouse Garden in Manhattan.
Updated from a post originally published August 7th, 2013.
NOTE: Voting ends on Friday, August 8th, for the 2014 Considered Design Awards. Until then, you can still vote once a day for your favorite finalists on Gardenista and Remodelista. We're announcing the winners—chosen by you!—on August 9th. Vote now and let your voice be heard.
Treat yourself to a time-out in a hanging chair. Here's a roundup of our rattan-inspired favorites (with a few fabric options for hammock lovers).
Take note that natural rattan is best when it's kept in a dry location—perfect for hanging on a covered porch or indoors from a ceiling beam (bring that summer swing feeling inside). Want to hang a chair from a branch in the garden? Synthetic rattan to the rescue. Several of our selections are made with weather-resistant synthetic fibers.
If you prefer something more horizontal, see our 10 favorite Nap-Worthy Hammocks.
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Above: The Original Cobble Mountain Chair is handmade in Vermont with a bentwood frame of locally harvested oak. The $254 price includes two cushions. Photograph via Refinery 29.
Above: Made in Indonesia of hand-bent rattan, Serena and Lily's Hanging Rattan Chair is suspended by a heavy-duty loop and rope (included); it's $450.
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Above: Anthropologie's Rattan Hanging Chair has a lacquered finish and is intended for indoor use; $498, including hardware.
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Above: The Layla Grace Rattan Hanging Chair will hold up to 180 pounds in weight. It measures 40 inches high by 24 inches deep by 40 inches wide and costs $544.
Above: The Ikea PS Svinga Hanging Seat is designed for children (though the maximum load is listed at 220 pounds). Available in white or blue woven polyethylene, it hangs from a black rope with shock-absorbing rubber springs; $69.99 at Ikea.
Above: The spacious Swingason Chair is made of weatherproof synthetic rattan and has convenient side pockets to hold your reading material. $249.99 at Pier 1 Imports; cushion sold separately.
Above: From Spanish design team MUT, the Nautica Swing Chair looks like bentwood and comes with a fabric seat. The indoor version is crafted of peeled and tinted rattan, while the outdoor version is made of high-resistance aluminum tubing. Contact Expormim for pricing and availability.
Above: Another midcentury design, the Eureka Hanging Chair by Giovanni Travasa is still being handmade in Italy, with a leather hanging strap. Prices start at $5,600, depending on the finish, at Property Furniture.
Above: From Seattle-based Ladies & Gentleman Studio, the Ovis Hanging Chair pairs a felted Navajo wool sling (also available in leather) with a wood and metal frame of either brass or copper; from $2,800.
Updated from a post originally published August 13, 2013.
NOTE: Voting ends on Friday for this year's Gardenista and Remodelista Considered Design Awards! You can vote once a day for your favorite finalists. It's a close call in two Gardenista categories—Best Small Garden and Best Hardscape Project—so your vote can make a difference. We'll announce the winners on August 9th.
Admired lately: leafy wallpaper patterns, which add a verdant feel to an interior (especially welcome in spaces without a lot of natural light). Here are five favorites:
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Above: Marthe Armitage's papers are hand-printed to order in fanciful patterns featuring flora and fauna and bucolic country scenes (including Oakleaf, shown above). Available from Hamilton Weston.
Above: UK artist Neisha Crosland's Cactus Paisley Wallpaper depicts a "prickly pear climber with leaves like sea horses." It's available in a range of colorways; the one shown is Marrakech Blue.
Above: Swedish company Sandberg's Raphael wallpaper pattern was inspired by 17th-century French tapestries. In the US, Sandberg wallpapers and fabrics are available through the Scandinavian Design Center.
Above: The LA stylist and designer Estee Stanley papered a wall in Willow Boughs, a classic William Morris pattern available at Wallpaper Direct, in her Hancock Park home.
NOTE: It's the last week to vote for your favorite finalists in the Considered Design Awards. You can vote once a day on Remodelista and Gardenista through August 8. Stay tuned: We're announcing the winners August 9.
I have the sort of family that perks up at the first whiff of a DIY project. Mention that there might be spray paint involved, and they practically leap off the couch to compete for the honor of hosing down a pair of filthy old fiberglass urns.
The goal was to get the urns painted and planted in one afternoon, transforming garbage into the sort of gold that makes the neighbors envious when they walk past the house.
Materials:
2 fiberglass urns from God knows where, found moldering in the garage.
2 cans black spray paint (matte).
2 daughters, each with a "vision" for "a planting scheme."
Some nice plants and a little potting soil, mostly left over from previous DIY projects.
Shiny pebbles.
1 glass of white wine, to sip while supervising from the porch.
Above: The black urns are dramatic; you can leave them sitting in the garden, framed by other foliage.
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Above: To get your family to do all the work, lay a trap. A pile of shiny pebbles—don't say what they're for—and some irresistible little plants will pique their interest. Arrange these lures, without comment, on the kitchen table.
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Above: Unable to resist the pebbles, Clementine signed on for the project. Zoe, home for the weekend, suggested adding succulents to the mix. Photograph by Josh Quittner.
Above: The before picture. We have two of these 28-inch-tall urns. A similar fiberglass Antique Rust White Urn is $100 from Jamali Garden.
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Above: Zoe hosed down the urns to get off the spider webs, etc. Then we let them dry in the sun for about an hour.
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Above: A key to getting your family to do the DIY project is to provide each worker with her own personal can of spray paint. Photograph by Josh Quittner.
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Above: "Hold the can about six inches away and spray in stripes, back and forth," I called helpfully from the porch. We let the paint dry for a couple of hours before proceeding to the next step, which was to put a few shovels of potting soil in the bottom of each planter.
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Above: Succulents to cover the surface of the soil in each urn.
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Above: In the center of each urn, "we" placed a Ponytail Palm Tree (a similar size is available for $44.75 from Ty Ty Nursery) to create enough height to balance the shape of the urn. Around the base of each palm, "we" planted a tiny garden of succulents. The idea was to have two distinct levels of plantings to create more interest and give the effect of two separate gardens in one pot.
Sprinkle the shiny pebbles around the base of the succulents to cover the soil. The black pebbles look particularly good against the matte black paint.
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Above: The reason everyone looked so happy: We had a zillion little succulents to place—plenty to go around. In a few months, as they get bigger, some of the succulents will be replanted in the garden. Photograph by Josh Quittner.
Updated from a post originally published September 10, 2012.
NOTE: It's the last week to vote for your favorite finalists in the Considered Design Awards. You can vote once a day on Remodelista and Gardenista through August 8. Stay tuned: We're announcing the winners August 9.
When I was growing up in Memphis, we lived for a while in a little brick 1920s bungalow. A very prolific pecan tree grew beside the garage, and each fall we would gather the nuts from the spot where my dad parked the car—two strips of concrete with grass in between. Little did we know that we were harvesting pecans from a "ribbon" driveway.
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Above: A classic ribbon driveway, like that of my childhood, harmonizes beautifully with this Craftsman-style bungalow. Photograph courtesy of johndallas via Flickr.
What is a ribbon driveway?
Ribbon driveways, sometimes called Hollywood driveways, usually consist of two parallel tracks paved with a hard material and separated by an unpaved area. The tracks, or ribbons, are normally a couple of feet wide with a three-foot strip between them, though the proportions can vary to accommodate the sizes of different vehicles.
Apparently our family driveway was the height of fashion when our house was built. Ribbon driveways became popular in the 1920s. They were a natural progression from the ruts carved in the ground by the wheels of wagons and, later, automobiles. It makes sense that if you're driving your vehicle from the street to the garage every day, you'd want to avoid wearing deep, muddy grooves into your lawn. The simplest and most economical way to do that: paving the areas where the wheels go and leaving the grass in the middle.
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Above: This country driveway near Port Hope, Ontario, is essentially two tire tracks worn into the ground—the archetype of the ribbon driveway. Photograph by Chris Smart via Flickr.
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Above: Ribbon driveways aren't limited to vintage-style residences, as evidenced by this oceanfront house in Bridgehampton, NY, by Stelle Lomont Architects, a member of the Remodelista Design Directory. Photograph by Francesca Giovanelli, Kay Wettstein von Westersheimb.
Why use a ribbon driveway?
Ribbon driveways can easily be curved to fit the contours of the property where they're being installed.
Because they use less paving material, they usually cost less than a fully paved driveway.
They offer a range of landscaping options: They can be constructed from a variety of paving materials, and the strip in the middle can be planted with any number of low-growing ground covers.
They are a "green" solution, because they're more permeable than solid driveways, allowing rainwater to be absorbed into the ground instead of draining into an overloaded sewer system.
Ribbon driveways with planted centers are cooler in summer than concrete slabs and more pleasant to walk on.
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Above: Alternating ribbons of grass and stone help extend the verdant look of this property in Montecito, CA, by Santa Barbara's Arcadia Studio. Photograph by Arcadia Studio.
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Above: Irregular pavers set in grass form an unobtrusive drive to a garage on the far side of a garden. Photograph via Martin Hoffman Landscape Architect.
What materials can be used for a ribbon driveway?
For the driving surface, the classic choice is concrete, which goes well with vintage Craftsman-style architecture. But crushed gravel, mortar-set brick or stone, cobblestones, oyster shells, or more modern interlocking pavers work well. Really, you could use any material that can withstand the weight of a moving vehicle and that complements the style of your house.
For the center strip, grass is typical. But you can also use a contrasting hard-surface material that requires less maintenance, such as stones or gravel. For a softer, more landscaped look, use mulch or any low-growing ground cover that will thrive in the light conditions. Old reliables like vinca minor, ajuga, or creeping phlox are good choices, as are herbs such as creeping thyme or rosemary. We've even seen succulents planted in the middle of a ribbon driveway.
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Above: A ribbon driveway in Canton, OH, is made of chunks of local Cherokee marble. Photograph by johnnyurban via Flickr.
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Above: Old stone pavers make a good driving surface: They're permeable and have a pleasingly weathered patina. Image by Nils Freyermuth via Flickr.
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Above: A low-maintenance garden integrated into a ribbon driveway by Natural Bridges Landscaping. Image via Natural Bridges Landscaping.
What about ribbon driveway maintenance?
A major advantage of ribbon driveways is that, if correctly installed, they're more flexible than a fully paved driveway in their response to the freeze-and-thaw cycle, and less prone to cracking from weather extremes. Of course, different materials have different requirements. Crushed gravel tends to scatter and may need to be topped up periodically. Center-strip plantings may require weeding, mowing, and/or watering. Snow removal can damage the plants, so you may find yourself replanting after a particularly harsh winter.
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Above: Brick and oyster shells meet in a ribbon driveway. (For more on crushed shells, see our Hardscaping 101 post on Seashell Paths and Driveways.)
Ribbon Driveway Recap
Pros:
Environmentally friendly. Allows for greater water absorption after downpours, which helps avoid overloading sewer systems.
Attractive. Gives your property a greener, more landscaped look than a giant slab of concrete or blacktop.
Flexible as far as placement goes—easily contoured to fit an irregular space.
Low cost.
Easily maintained; durable.
Cons:
Can be difficult to maneuver. It's hard to drive a long ribbon driveway in reverse.
Plantings can be damaged by the wheels of vehicles that are wider than the paved strips.
Mowing the grass in the middle can be problematic.
Explore more ideas for patios, roofs, and fences in our Hardscaping 101 archive.
NOTE: You only have till the end of Friday to vote for your favorite finalists in the Considered Design Awards! You can vote once a day on Remodelista and Gardenista; we're announcing the winners August 9. Click below to let your voice be heard:
Liberty fabric is easy to spot. Dissecting this is less easy, but you know it when you see it. The colors are joyous even when somber, the designs sing, and the quality of the weave is always a Liberty of London hallmark. Most impressive, though, is the archive-looting: The designs seem fresh because of the way they reference the past.
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Above: Inside the Liberty of London store, on Regent Street in London's West End. The haberdashery department, on the fourth floor (or third, for European readers) off this central light well, is home to Liberty Art Fabrics, including Tana Lawn.
The name Tana Lawn first appeared in the 1930s. "Tana" is named for Lake Tana in Sudan, the source of the cotton plant. "Lawn" refers to the quality of the weave, which is very fine. Photograph via Liberty.
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Above: The Liberty florist is found at the main entrance, on Great Marlborough Street. This side of the building is the full length of the HMS Hindustan, one of two ships that lent their timbers to the Tudor revival building. Photograph by Kendra Wilson.
Above: Four fabric designs, clockwise from top left: Kindle C Dufour; bestseller Susanna B, originally designed by Emma Mawston, head designer of Liberty Art Fabrics (and given a new colorway); Rosa A, featuring a rock rose with scattered peppercorns; and Tatum G, from the Liberty Classics collection. When Tatum G was designed as a Tana Lawn fabric in 1955, it was a reworking of a design from the 30s. Tana Lawn fabric sells for £22 per meter.
"The thing underneath it all is: Liberty fabric is printed on Tana Lawn," says Emma. All that needs to be added, she says, is "our colors, our eyes, our palette."
Plus, of course, Emma's creativity. She comes up with a theme, then sends her designers out on field trips. For "Botanicals" they visited Tresco in the Scilly Isles, known for its high density of flora. For last year's collection, they took their sketchpads to Iceland. William Morris was the jumping-off point and he was fond of Iceland. Emma's fine art approach is a lively mix of abstract ideas with commercial nous.
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Above: Rich colors in an outdoor display are a hint of what's to come on the third floor. While some of the fabric patterns we show here may no longer be available, others are produced year after year, sometimes with subtle (or not so subtle) color variations. And Liberty adds dozens of new designs each season. Photograph by Kendra Wilson.
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Above: Last year, British TV audiences were treated to a three-part documentary about Liberty. In one episode, Emma Mawston declares: "I was born to work at Liberty." While many staff members share this loyalty, one can't help feeling, after talking to Emma, that Liberty was waiting for her to come along.
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Above, from top left: Manuela, inspired by a Liberty scarf designed in the 70s (which drew on the 30s); Jack and Charlie B; Joyce B (in collaboration with a tattoo artist); and Sweet Cherries, a collaboration with British chef Jamie Oliver—the design was made by stamping the marks of sliced cherries and star anise onto fabric.
You may wonder what all this has to do with William Morris. Actually, it was Morris's poem "Iceland First Seen" that inspired Emma Mawston to explore the senses. So we have among these fabric samples: sound, scent, touch, and taste. We'll leave it to you to guess which fabric was inspired by which sense.
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Above: The rambling half-timbered landmark in London's West End.
Updated from a post originally published December 16, 2013.
NOTE: It's the last week to vote for your favorite finalists in the Considered Design Awards. You can vote once a day on Remodelista and Gardenista through August 8. Stay tuned: We're announcing the winners August 9.
Fourteen years ago when Annette Gutierrez and her husband, Gustavo, bought their 1908 Craftsman house in Hollywood, it badly needed repairs. Or more. "Everyone urged us to tear the whole thing down," remembers Gutierrez, who owns the LA store Potted. Instead, they renovated the house. Next they added a pool and hot tub. And then, finally, their attention turned to . . . the 100-year-old garage.
"We realized the garage would be much better if it were a pool house. Or in-law space," says Gutierrez.
Despite a tight budget that limited construction costs to about $175 per square foot, they wanted the cottage to be a fully functioning living space, with a kitchen, bedroom, and full bath. "And we wanted it to be private so that someday—in our golden years—we might use it as our LA pad while we travel the world and rent out the main house," says Gutierrez.
Exit the garage. Enter the Little House. Built on a budget:
Photography by Bethany Nauert.
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Above: Gutierrez and her husband finished the garage's three-month transformation earlier this year. To preserve the privacy, "we put in a system of fences that channeled the entrance up the driveway, giving the Little House its own patio," Gutierrez says. "We also decided to leave the garage door opening as it was, but to fill the space with a series of little windows, kind of like Mondrian without color."
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Above: The "before" photo.
"We knew that if we didn't preserve the wooden vaulted ceiling, the interior would just be a dingy room," says Gutierrez. "But with the roof, the garage was an inferno in the summer, especially since most of the roof faced south."
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Above: The "after" version.
Gutierrez and her husband insulated the ceiling with high-density foam covered with wood paneling, leaving the beams exposed. "To get the worn look of the hundred-year-old original ceiling, we took a blowtorch and torched every single piece of wood that went up," says Gutierrez.
Above: A white tiled Midge Table (also available in five other colors; $495 from Potted) sits between the chairs.
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Above: The interior space is divided into kitchen, living area, and bedroom. "To offset the earthy ceiling, we painted the walls Swiss Coffee and used high-gloss white cabinets from Ikea for the kitchen," says Gutierrez.
Matte green subway tile was installed above the stove, "with a few extra colors added for interest," says Gutierrez. "It's an expensive look that's not very expensive at all."
The pot hanger is a heavy-gauge chain purchased from Home Depot, bolted to one of the upper beams; clips were added to hang the pots.
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Above: The entire interior floor was covered in two sheets of gray linoleum. Countertops are maple butcher block. The wooden shelf in the kitchen came from an old barn.
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Above: In the bathroom, Ikea's Bråviken sink ($250, not including the fixture).
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Above: In the bedroom, built-in bookshelves. "I have a lot of air plants," says Gutierrez. "They're fun to decorate with and don't need to be watered as often as other house plants. They're a good choice for a space where we don't spend most of our time."
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Above: "I especially love the vintage porcelain baby doll with the air plant on its head," says Gutierrez.
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Above: Wall pegs for coats and a glass-paned door to let in more light.
NOTE: The voting period is almost over for the Gardenista/Remodelista Considered Design Awards! You can vote once a day for your favorite finalists through August 8. Stay tuned: We're announcing the winners August 9.
On Friday at 11:59 pm ET, we'll close the voting period for the 2014 Gardenista Considered Design Awards. The winners in the seven categories will be announced on Saturday morning. Each winner will be featured on Gardenista, so don't miss your chance to vote for your favorite projects. You can cast your vote here.
Summer's riot of color inspired the Remodelista editors to look beyond black and white. Here's a taste of what they covered this week:
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Above: As a child, Krista Nye Schwartz lived in India for a year. That started her on a life path paved in "intense color and texture and pattern" and a career as an interior designer. Margot pays a House Call and reports back with A Textiles Enthusiast at Home in Ann Arbor.
Above: A design duo reinvents classic games, including this set of bocce balls. Good Sport: Summer Games by Fredericks & Mae also unveils their colorful dartboard, dominos, and backgammon set.
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Above: How great is this botanical alphabet wallpaper? Hand-drawn in ink and watercolors, it's also available as a poster. Even better. See what else this Swedish company has come up with in Rebel Walls of Sweden: Wallpaper for Everyone.
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Above: Spotted lately: 1950s-inspired abstract patterns. A super-easy way to incorporate the trend at home: 6 Abstract Patterned Throw Pillows.
Note: This is the last day of voting in the Considered Design Awards. You can vote until midnightfor your favorite finalistson Remodelista and Gardenista. Click below to vote, and then stay tuned: We're announcing the winners on Saturday, August 9.
