Gardens & living

Good ideas take root.

Gardens through the seasons, places to gather, and practical ideas for making yourself at home outside.

Before You Build

A paved path leads toward a white house, with lawn beside the path and tree branches overhead.

Before You Build

The first five feet in wildfire country

Review the area where garden and house meet, with a practical work list grounded in fire-research guidance.

From the notebook

A white timber pergola with lattice sides over a brick garden path.

Before You Build

Plan the room before the pergola

Put the chairs, table, and walking routes on the drawing before the posts.

From the notebook

Stone steps and retaining walls connect different levels of a planted garden.

Before You Build

Let the slope help organize the garden

Different levels can become distinct destinations when the connections are considered early.

From the notebook

A built-in grill and outdoor kitchen on paving beside a lawn and garden rocks.

Before You Build

Write the menu before designing the kitchen

The meals you actually make are a better guide than the longest appliance list.

From the notebook

Hands sketching a plan beside a tape measure and material samples.

Before You Build

The brief that starts a better conversation

Bring your routines, constraints, and priorities alongside the inspiration.

From the notebook

Hands drawing on an architectural plan with a pencil and ruler.

Before You Build

Compare the scope before you compare the number

A practical reading method for proposals that appear to describe the same backyard.

From the notebook

An empty garden bench beside a mature tree with orange autumn foliage.

Before You Build

The backyard inventory: what is already working?

A simple observation exercise before the first sketch or contractor visit.

From the notebook

Workers and a wheelbarrow on a house renovation site with a change in ground level.

Before You Build

The route into the yard belongs on the plan

A project can be beautifully designed and still overlook how materials and equipment arrive.

From the notebook

An outdoor shower mounted against a timber screen between tropical plants.

Before You Build

Before you add an outdoor shower

Define the purpose, privacy, and daily routine before choosing the fixture.

From the notebook

Lettuce in a timber growing bed with its hinged translucent cover raised.

Before You Build

Raised beds or planting in the ground?

Choose the growing arrangement around access, site conditions, and the work you want to do.

From the notebook

A pale bench beneath the broad trunk and branches of a mature tree.

Before You Build

Let the mature tree lead the design

An established tree is a site condition to understand, not a gap to build around.

From the notebook

A solid tiled roof above a timber bench and hanging planters.

Before You Build

Pergola or solid roof: decide what should happen overhead

Compare light, enclosure, and the view from inside the house.

From the notebook