Denver Home Living Huettner Capital Summer 2017 | Page 13
“We have a lot of color in our
home, and we wanted the outside
‘room’ to be an extension of what
was going on inside,” - Lilyan.
1. FIRE PIT
“I love the glow of the fire pit,” says the owner, Allison, “and
of the water feature at night ! The two-level deck and all of the
pathways of the garden are such a spectacular design and layout.
The plants have grown and filled it all in so beautifully. It’s
really enchanting!” The fireplace is topped with a mulch of glass
beads that flames pass through. The timber deck has a white
wood wash on it, and the L-shaped banquette seating with crisp
white seat cushions make this amphitheatre look so inviting.
THE VISION
“We wanted lots of color and comfortable, cosy places to sit
and relax. And we definitely wanted to be able to entertain,”
says Lilyan. Robin adds, “We all have many friends and enjoy
having parties together. As different as we all are, our friends
all get along well. We cook a lot. We definitely wanted a
vegetable garden and some privacy from our neighbors. We
are all environmentally aware and wanted to make sure that
the plants used were drought tolerant and easily sustainable.
I enjoy taking quiet time (meditating) out there. It is very
peaceful and, like the house, has great energy now.”
2. DECKING
The decking not only provides a pathway for navigating around
the garden but also pops up to provide backrests to invite people
to lounge in the landscape. Allison says, “I still get a thrill every
time I show someone the part of the pathway that lifts up and
turns into a little lounge recliner.” There are three classic vinyl-
strapped sun lounges nestled in the water to keep the girls
feeling cool. The water wall has been given a hammered finish
so the water seems to shimmer as it glides over its surface.
And for home owner Allison, the new garden has had a huge
impact: “My bedroom looks out onto the outdoor room,
so I now keep my curtains open pretty much all the time
during daylight hours. That alone is a different experience
for me. I didn’t even realize how dark my room was so much
of the time. In general, I feel happier and […] so proud
that I have a garden that I want to share with others.”
3. WATER FEATURE
I argued with contractors and concreters to give me the darkest
green they possibly could for the concrete water feature’s slab floor.
For any of you who want to try this at home, the darker the color
of your concrete, the more reflective and luxurious the water looks.
We mixed green oxide into the concrete not only to make the water
feature’s floor reflective but also to make it appear to be the floor of
the garden. A planting of native Australian wetland grass, Isolepsis
nodosa, looks so lush running along the length of the water channel.
America’s favorite
design expert, Jamie
Durie, shares his
ideas for sustainable,
healthy living,
showing how to
create a beautifully
designed, completely
edible garden,
whether you live
in an apartment or
a house. Published
by Harper Collins.
4. POPS OF COLOR
The hot-pink-legged spine of the glass-topped table mimics the
pink veins of the Alocasia leaves. This super contemporary dining
setting, with Kartell clear Perspex chairs, was chosen so you can
see right through the furniture so as not to block the view of
the water wall feature. The clear glass table settings also add to
the liquid-look styling of the beautiful, watery dining room.
5. WALLPAPERING
In front of the wallpapered garage wall is a large Cordyline australis
(Red Star) and clever decking that pops up as back supports that
allow you to lounge in the landscape. The grass that you lounge
on is very low maintenance as it is synthetic. There are many
excellent synthetic turfs on the market these days which look like
the real deal and feel so soft against the skin. So you can get really
comfortable lying on it with a couple of brightly colored cushions.
Jamiedurie.com
International award winning designer & author Jamie
Durie started his design practice 19 years ago in
1998. Since then he & his team at Durie Design have
received over 33 international design awards.
Wallpapering the ugly garage wall was my idea of taking
the indoors outside in what I like to call “luxe-scaping.”
Allison adds, “If someone would have told me before[hand]
that [Jamie] was going to put a big pink floral mural on the
side of my garage, I probably would have grabbed them and
said, ‘NOOOOO!’ And now I completely LOVE it!”
Words: Jamie Durie
Photography & Styling: Tonya Mccahon
Decking – The Greenpeace Good Wood Guide (goodwoodguide.
org.au) will help you make an informed, environmentally
responsible decision when buying wood for your decking.
6. THE DAYBED
I was so drawn to the existing avocado tree that I decided to
custom build a beautiful four poster daybed around it, complete
with curtain rails, white mattresses, and throw cushions. We left
the tree completely undisturbed as we built the daybed around
its trunk. It looks like the tree sprouted through the mattress.
Anyone who lies on the bed can enjoy its fruit-laden canopy.
Kartell transparent plastic furniture and accessories available
through Space Furniture - spacefurniture.com.au/brands/kartell
Outdoor Fabrics: The Atrium Collection from Warwick
Fabrics - warwick.com.au/our-collections_detail
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