Imagine: It's your own little oasis, a private corner of the world tailored to suit your needs. Perhaps the crisp lines of boxwood hedges transport you to another time and instantly put you at ease. Or maybe tall, natural stone pillars give you a sense of security. Or better yet, your hardscape centers around a fireplace or patio where you linger for long evenings with family and friends. Whatever you imagine your hardscape to be, the best part is its convenient location: right in your own backyard.
“It’s something that’s really cool, when you come home from work, walking out into your backyard and having a peaceful area to relax in,” explains Jarod Hynson, president of Earth, Turf, & Wood (www.earthturfwood.com) in Denver. “We are becoming so busy, so it’s literally a 30 second walk to go out your backdoor.”
Hynson says the popularity of hardscapes relate to the notion that they are an extension of your home, giving you room to breathe, relax or entertain. And if your design style is more timeless than trendy, more stately than flashy, you’re bound to love these dream properties with classic landscapes. Take a tour of two local projects, then use our expert tips to create your own chic outdoor hideaway.
Suburban Sophistication
This historic home on Marietta Avenue in Lancaster already had charm, but the owners turned to Hynson and his team to design their dream outdoor living space. Hynson wanted to expand the backyard and give the family a space with three distinct ‘rooms’ for entertaining: A fire pit area that could accommodate a large group; a small patio off of a living room; and a formal eating area.
For Hynson, clients requesting that their finished hardscapes serve several purposes is not an uncommon request. “We’re finding with a lot of backyard projects nowadays people want “rooms,” or different areas for kids, a place to view a TV or sit by the fireplace or a pool,” he says. “The day and age of one patio space for everyone to all sit around is gone.”
Before Hynson and his team at Earth, Turf, & Wood could create the timeless space, they had to do a major overhaul of the backyard. They began by re-leveling the ground, installing a new drainage system and redirecting the fairly imposing driveway to reclaim area for the project. For a classic feel, Hynson chose full-colored flagstone in varied colors and sizes for the floor; along with some of the original purple-shaded stone from the home, the patio was carefully laid, looking much like a woven patchwork quilt.
The walls that make up the outer perimeter of the home were built using crystal lake quartzite wall stone, matching the stone on the house. The team used the same quartzite stone to create the large 5-foot-by-5-foot fire pit and surrounding wall, as well.
To address the owners’ privacy concerns, Hynson and his team built mounded flowerbeds and selected mature plantings, such as tall cherry laurels, Canadian hemlocks and boxwoods, to evoke the feeling of seclusion.
“They don’t defoliate in the fall, so you’ll have that privacy all year long,” says Hynson. “Everything stays green and creates a nice backdrop over the winter.”
The team then incorporated low-voltage LED lighting into walls, pathlights and uplights under trees, even adding mushroom LED lamps around the fire pit. “It gives a soft feel to the backyard, if they want to spend some time there in the evening,” Hynson says, adding, “It’s also a fairly inexpensive light for security lighting at night.”
The owners accessorized the garden with personal touches, like wind chimes and lanterns. They also outfitted the patio with furniture made of teak and wicker. These pieces complemented the timeless look of their hardscape.
“I think the fact that you can use real, natural stone back there is timeless,” says Hynson of the project. “So what it looks like today is what it will look like 10 years down the road, or 30 years down the road.”
Classic Country Getaway
On an expansive property in Central York, part of what once was an 800-acre farm, sits a stately home built in the 1800s, the first house on the farm. This is the location where Jeff Inch’s team transformed a couple’s grassy backyard into a sophisticated country getaway.
“They wanted to restore it back to what it was, but in a more efficient way,” says Inch, owner of Inch’s Landscaping (www.inchslandscaping.com) in York.
Inch says the owners wanted an outdoor living space with the feel of the olden days, natural and not too modern. They also wanted a patio that could be lit up for nighttime parties and large enough to entertain around 50 people.
“[They] wanted to give it that time period feel,” explains Inch. “When I pulled up to the house, I knew what I wanted to do. I got that vibe.” Almost immediately, Inch envisioned natural elements and time period plants, like boxwoods, surrounding the home.
And that’s precisely what his team installed. Out front they planted mature boxwoods, tightly lining the 4-foot wide walkway to the front door. The green provided a sharp contrast against the stonework, softening the scene yet making the stone “pop.” Out back, more boxwoods were added to complete the look: 250 plants in all.
For the patio, the team laid Pennsylvania bluestone, a local export out of Schuylkill County, in three varied sizes. A step was added to break up the large space, splitting it into coveted outdoor “rooms.” Inch says he had to convince the owners to keep the patio area open, opting for pillars instead of stone walls. “We did plant walls to soften it up and give it the garden feeling,” he says.
Next, Inch’s team built the gray granite stone pillars using natural veneer stone. Inch explains this slashed the high cost of recreating the large boulders that had been used for the original white stone cold storage house on the property. The team placed sets of pillars at every entrance, topping them with elegant, hand-made copper lanterns from Olde Mill House Shoppes in Lancaster.
“My biggest thing is, when I do outdoor living, I try to light it up … not like an airport, but like a romantic low-light,” Inch says.
To round out the project, some poignant finishing touches were added: A romantic bird bath was placed in the center of the patio, as well as sets of tables and chairs, love seats, and benches throughout the space. Inch’s team even created an outdoor shower behind the well house within the yard. The shower was fashioned using old windows and doors that Inch plucked from a friend’s barn. And complete with a rainforest shower head, the eco-friendly shower not only recycles its water, but also serves as a “cool feature and conversation piece” for guests wandering about the yard.
Timeless Touches
So what constitutes a timeless outdoor hardscape? Our experts sound off about essential elements and provide helpful tips for making your own dream oasis a reality.
NATURAL STONE: Both Hynson and Inch agree: Anything that comes from the earth, from natural boulders or stone, to cobblestones and brick, adds a classic feel to any patio space. “Brick is a great accent, especially hand-made brick,” says Inch. “It’s not as perfect, but those imperfections make it look older.” Inch also suggests pea gravel as a good choice for a walkways or patios, especially as a landing space for outdoor furniture. “It’s an old-fashioned, English feel,” he says.
GREENERY: Boxwoods are a key addition as well, elevating your hardscape to another level of chic sophistication. “They’ll give you color year-round and can be trimmed to fit the garden,” says Inch. “It’s probably one of the biggest things, from the plant-standpoint,” adds Hynson. But he warns that attention must be paid to upkeep, saying, “You have to maintain them in order to give it that classic feel.”
LIGHTING: When it comes to lighting your dream space, while still keeping with a classic style, our experts are split. Hynson often incorporates LED lighting into his hardscapes, noting the huge advances in technology now make LED light look natural. Inch, meanwhile, says he prefers to stick with conventional lighting, to be able to actually see a light bulb.
NATURAL STONE LOOK, FOR LESS: If you crave the classic look of high-end natural stone for your hardscape but are working on a more modest budget, consider using York Tile for your project. “The beauty of this product is that it gives you a Pennsylvania bluestone appearance at a lower cost,” says Dan Longenderfer of York Building Products (www.yorkbuildingproducts.com). The slate overlay, produced by NewLine Hardscapes (www.newlinehardscapes.com), a division of York Building Products, is man-made from mixtures of concrete; it can be installed over existing concrete slabs or placed directly within sand. “It comes in three different sizes on one pallet, which makes it easier to place,” explains Longenderfer. “The pieces are designed to fit together nicely, and the oversized units are great for large expanses of patio.” Longenderfer says the natural slate finish has a unique “undulating” look, and slate gray color is a popular choice for timeless hardscapes.
