Continuing to sing the praises of Jessica Helgerson and her team as we have done for many years, here is another project of hers that is eye candy as soon as you walk up to the front door. This project was a top to bottom remodel of a 1920’s house in Portland’s Northwest Hills. Our work involved relocating the kitchen to the sunnier side of the house, adding a second canning and project kitchen to the basement as well as a sauna and wine cellar, and an upstairs laundry. We strove to create a new character for the house that felt in keeping with the vintage, and to furnish it comfortably and welcomingly for our clients – a sweet young family of four. (Photos: Aaron Leitz)

If it wasn’t already obvious I am crushing hard on the work of Quintana Partners (because of recent posts here, here and here) here is yet another project of theirs that caught my eye. I love the randomness. I’d add more stuff of course….especially plants.

Layered and lavish, liveable and lasting, lush and luxurious. LOVE. This exquisite four-bedroom apartment overlooks the banks of the River Thames from Chelsea’s esteemed Cheyne Walk. It is situated on the coveted west and south-facing first floor of Carlyle Mansions and exceeds 2,250 sq ft internally, with rare step-free lateral space and the convenience of an on-site porter. Currently for sale through Inigo.

The essence of this garden derives from the manner in which it synthesises the indigenous, the traditional and the contemporary with an immersive understanding of the historical, architectural and landscape context of the Val d’Orcia. The design is conceived as a sequence of rooms, each with its own specific atmosphere and sense of place. Moving within and between the different spaces of the garden offers encounters not only with a variety of planting, but also with contrasting expressions of perspective, proportion, volume, rhythm, junction and threshold. Framed by hornbeam hedges and with a pergola of wisteria and roses set along its central axis, between beds of vegetables interspersed with flowers, the orto draws on influences from the medieval hortus conclusus and the English vegetable garden tradition.  Water running through a steel basin adds sound and reflects light. After the refined demarcations of the courtyard and orto, the Mediterranean garden organically colonises the territory between buildings, layering flowers, shrubs and aromatics bedded into gravel, to create dynamic waves of delicately various colour, texture and structure. YES. I am really at a loss for words this is so incredibly beautiful. And landscape designer Luciano Giubbilei describes his project so eloquently that I’ll just leave you with these photos….

Stephens Design Studio is a San Francisco based landscape design studio founded by Stephanie Stillman Stephens, that is committed to designing refined and meaningful spaces. Such lush, well thought out outdoor spaces.

Some photos by Joe Fletcher, Nicole Franzen