Design snapshot: Three-sided room/porch

Architects love designing spaces that can be transformed from one use and feel into another use and feel, and, if possible, into yet another use and feel. This three-sided room/porch is a great example why. Close all of the sliding glass doors and enjoy a bright room at the end of the house. Open them all most of the way and experience the outdoors indoors. Open a pair on one side only, and feel the nuance of prospect from within partial enclosure.

The continuity of flooring material and level indoors and out, the wicker furnishings, and pale blue ceiling color enhance the indoor/outdoor vibe of this space. Is it a room or a porch or both? It's the ambiguity that's so engaging, as is the attention to detail in the flanking windows, basket-weave brick flooring, and rafter-tail overhang.

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast

Design snapshot: Hardscape footwork

Architects and designers orchestrate movement through space, both inside and outside the home. It's one of our great challenges. As frequent House Enthusiast readers might recall, I believe most any and all constructed space is architecture, including the patio, garden, driveway, footpath, tool shed, etc. That's part of the reason I enjoy the temperate months; they allow me to explore the architecture beyond our homes' walls.

This space in between -- in between inside and outside, in between house and fence, in between porch and garden -- beautifully steers visitors and occupants as they transition from street arrival to private home and onward.

I'm particularly enamored with the random-sized and random-coursed slate pavers set on an angle that intermingle with brick, and create a jagged border of grass and plantings along a curved, stone-edged, raised bed on one side and a slightly elevated brick and granite porch patio on the other. The organic yet intricate footpath reminds me of my teen figure-skating days. On a small plan sketch of the rink, my coach would choreograph where each spin and jump in my freeskate programs would occur, and I would invariably ask, "But how will I get there: from camel spin to lutz?"  Her answer, "With footwork." Indeed, it's inspired hardscape footwork that brings folks arriving at this home from feature to feature.

The contrast of color, texture, angle, even elevation enrich the experience of this procession, giving clues that both orient and delight. The footwork is as intriguing as the highlights along the way.

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast

Design snapshot: Vertical garden

I saw my first vertical garden in California. There, tackling the vertical surface seemed the next logical step in zone-14 garden evolution. Little did I imagine, it was an idea readily adaptable to our hardier clime. Avant Gardens of N. Dartmouth, Mass. has figured out how. Follow this link for their hardy, drought-resistant, succulent, vertical-garden how-to.

I snapped this shot of their vertical garden in situ on their garage. Naturally, the garden planting itself required design savvy, but so too did the size, fabrication, orientation, and placement of the vertical garden. The cedar garden surround in a width similar to the cedar coursing helps "ground" the box, and the proportion beautifully echoes the proportion of the door panels and lites. The colors work together brilliantly, too.

Having attended the vertical garden demonstration at Avant Gardens this past weekend, I now also understand that vertical-garden size is critical; the larger the box, the heavier and the more unwieldy to mount and maintain.

I'm dreaming up a few of these beauts for my south-facing side wall. Time to start acquiring succulents. So far, I have one. It'll be a while...

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast 

Design snapshot: Meandering footpath

There's something to be said for taking your time to get somewhere. This footpath in a tight space between a home and side fence wanders off the straight and narrow. And, in the process, creates little eddies of space for miniature boxwoods, hostas, and statuary.

The seemingly improvised paver placement, with some in the middle lanes crossing into the next, contributes to the meandering handmade vibe. Slightly elevated edge pavers subtly differentiate the boundary without introducing the added complication of contrasting edging material.

To think that this is merely the garden access; you can't help but anticipate the marvel of a garden that awaits at the journey's end.

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast

Design snapshot: Wheelbarrow planter whimsy

This post is a twofer: both "Design snapshot" and "Idjit garden" post.

I spotted this inspired planter outside a shop in Salem, Massachusetts last spring. The rusted wheelbarrow container garden in dreamy Robin's egg blue parked outside the boutique's similarly blue door and next to its nearly matching-blue bench brought a smile to my heart. Such a fun idea for sidewalk décor; it's both whimsical and practical -- in that it's portable. No surprise, the miniature garden aspect of the wheelbarrow planter is particularly appealing to this idjit gardener.

Since it also happens to be yard-sale season, what better time for an idjit gardener to procure a forlorn wheelbarrow and put it to use as a garden rather than merely a garden tool. I imagine you would need to convert the wheelbarrow to container use by drilling some drainage holes in it, but no matter, this idjit gardener recently drilled holes in some galvanized tubs to convert to planters which was fairly simple. Since the wheelbarrow is portable, you could move it to a sunny or shady spot depending on what you decide to plant. Finding just the right rocks or shells or statuary to ornament your wheelbarrow landscape can only add to the entertainment.

Off to the flea market and nursery you go. Enjoy!

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast