*
Sloping. Exposed. Colorless.
That summed up the
dreary front yard of this Santa Barbara home where
the odds of spotting a Thunderbird topped any
chance of seeing a chickadee—until landscape
designer Margie Grace stepped in. “The homeowner
wanted privacy, more living space, easy care—and
something that was kind of edgy,” Grace says.
Step One in claiming the space as a relaxation
zone: Outsmart a nasty slope. “The front yard was so
steep you felt like you could tumble from the street
to the house,” says Grace. She conquered the incline
with nary a piece of heavy equipment. “We just
covered it up with a deck.” A low, hidden retaining wall
supports the pretty platform from below.
And pretty is the key word. This had to be more
than just a place to sit outside. “The homeowner has
great style,” Grace says, “and her color is orange.” So
orange it was: The deck was built of recycled
composite material. In orange. She planted kangaroo
paw plants. In orange. And to pump up the privacy,
cedar and redwood lattice and a freestanding
modern iron sculpture were added. In orange.
Privacy gets another boost from a fringy
green hedge of 6-foot-tall yew pine
(Podocarpus
macrophylla
) screening the view from the busy
street. At the same time, a block wall clad in gray
stucco separates the deck and driveway. A lattice
window accents the wall and provides a visual cue
to the front door.
Color added. Slope solved. Privacy gained.
Check, check, check, and done!
OPTICAL ILLUSION
A gray stucco
wall creates separation from the
driveway. A lattice “window”—
mirrored by matching lattice on
the deck, gives it a modern look.
Kangaroo paw plants erupt in
orange against the soft gray.
BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS JULY 2010 8 7
