MONTHLY FEATURE: Designing Up using Sitting Walls, Pillars and Steps
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 Turn a flat patio into an architectural statement by adding a vertical element or two!
Now take a moment and imagine your backyard as an extension of the living areas inside your home. There is a growing trend in America that has been labeled Outdoor Living, where customers everywhere are asking their landscape designers to create outdoor great rooms for them. These spaces are being outfitted and used just as any room in your home would be. We're seeing built-in grills and bars, curving sitting walls, sunken rooms with fire features, intimate dining nooks and so much more. What is it that is making these patios different than those built five or six years ago? It's the vertical stone elements that are being added. We're Designing Up.
- The welcoming arms of a sitting wall, or a built-in stone bench, adds a vertical element of interest and a focal point to a well thought out design.
- The lines of a sitting wall enhance the geometry and design of the patio space it is built beside.
- When placed around a fire feature, a double-sided wall gives additional seating for relaxing around the campfire.
- Raised planters make great dividers between patio areas. A small grouping of plants works well to soften the hard lines of stone and breaks up what could otherwise become a huge expanse of pavement.
- An outdoor kitchen is often accented with walls too, as they work well with the stonework of the kitchen for scale and balance.
- Steps are another great way to separate the different rooms of your outdoor living space, as you step up into the dining area or down into the circle where the fire pit is located.
- Pillars are architectural statements in and of themselves: Marking the entrance to the yard or patio, accenting the end of a sitting wall or highlighting a transition to another living space.
- Pillars are great pedestals for a dramatic container garden bursting with annual color. Or a place to mount a light fixture for that extra little bit of light needed when entertaining family and friends.
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PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: Sitting Walls, Pillars and Steps
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TIPS OF THE TRADE: Fall Clean-Up
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Fall brings crisp clear days, deep blue skies and of course, piles of leaves. Did you know that falling leaves can stain pavers? Here are some tips to help minimize the stains.
- Most stains from leaves are temporary. They will usually disappear by the end of winter.
- The leaves of some trees stain more than others. Oak leaves tend to be the biggest culprit.
- The longer the leaves stay on the pavers the darker the stain.
- Keeping the pavers as swept off and debris free as possible will prevent most of the stains from occurring.
- There are several cleaners available for those stains that may persist. Techniseal makes a cleaner specifically for organic stains. Click here to visit their website for more information.
- Also watch out for lawn clippings and fertilizers. Fall fertilizers tend to be a time release pellet that doesn't dissolve quickly and may also leave a stain.
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