Displaying posts labeled "Outdoors"

Don’t get excited boys and girls. It’s just the pool house. Just the pool house!? Who am I kidding? It’s fabulous. I’d happily move right in and make it my main home (which makes me wonder what the main house does look like). Brentwood Pool House by West Hollywood based residential design firm STUDIO LIFE/STYLE.

All prim and proper, solid and traditional out the front, slick and modern out the back. I’m stalking a renovated home in the Melbourne suburb of Malvern and it’s my favourite type of renovation … a sensitively restored facade with a fun open plan family addition to the back. A small back yard isn’t so much of a drawback when stylish landscaping and easy sight lines in and out through expansive doors and cleverly placed windows blur boundaries. Link here while it lasts.

The perfect marriage of sophistication and rustic style, of old and new, humble object and high end statement piece. Stone and straw play against the gloss of lacquer and hints of gold. While the dichotomy provides the drama in this Mediterranean Townhouse by Spanish designer Serge Castella, the contrast is more curated than clashing. Imagine living surrounded by such beautiful things.

I really have no words for how absolutely breathtaking this property in California by Ferguson Ettinger Architects is. So I’ll leave it to landscape architect Jeffrey Gordon Smith to tell the story of this dream: In the heart of a historic drought, this new home overlooking the clients’ 72-acre vineyard in the Paso Robles wine region called for a water-wise landscape that could further enhance their stunning property. Applying a subdued color palette accentuated with Mediterranean grasses and timeworn olive trees, the new landscape anchored and blended the home into its surrounding environment. Delicate plant textures that flutter in the wind softened the modern hardscape and architecture; creating a striking balance between the built and natural environments. Large drifts of drought tolerant grasses allowed for sweeping views to continue past the property line, to the clients’ vineyards and the rolling hills beyond. The grasses were also selected to mirror the native vegetation as it fluctuates through the seasons, creating a strong sense of connection with the region. Using rugged boulders and gravel in conjunction with clean hardscape pavers, the project brought a fun California twist to the traditional modern aesthetic.

I’m stalking again. Walking down virtual streets, peering through the virtual nets and basically just being a virtual busy body. I love to see how people live even if it is a striped back and tidied up look to make the real estate listing photos just so. Today’s house in the Melbourne suburb of Armadale sports a late 19th century facade but a very modern rear addition and pool. The link to the listing is here while it lasts.