Archive for the ‘Landscape’ Category

kr design co BLOG: new inspiration

Friday, November 18th, 2011

I have taken a long and fruitful hiatus from blogging and all things social media over the past months.  Why?  I needed to regroup, reorganize, reenergize and get some inspired fire back into my creative work.  I went to Italy to paint and look at landscapes with a dear friend.  I have been drawing a lot by hand.  I convinced my husband that the best use for our garage is to house my sample library which had previously been stashed in various places.  I have learned to love and appreciate the early morning outings with my dog as a time for awakening and preparing for the day ahead.  I have been pouring through books and magazines looking at images that make my heart sing.  And (more on this soon) I have been making daily pilgrimages to the 6-acre plot of land my husband and I bought north of Boulder to daydream about the new house we will soon build.  Now I’m ready to come back, to start blogging again, and to share lots of new work.

I’ve been wondering where to start for weeks, so rather than trying to find the perfect thing to reemerge with, I’m just going to begin by sharing what’s on my mind today, right now.  I got my hands on a beautiful new book, called Private Paradise: Contemporary American Gardens by Charlotte M. Frieze.

It’s full of gorgeous imagery and interesting projects, but most significant for me was an introduction to the work of Ten Eyck Landscape Architects.  I had loosely heard of their work in the past, but never really looked at it.  This morning I took some time to admire their portfolio.  And on the subject on making one’s heart sing, Ten Eyck’s West TX Ranch imagery sure does it for me.

Don’t you just want to be there?

Posted in Architecture, Inspiration, Landscape, Lifestyle | 1 Comment »

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Thursday, March 11th, 2010

I am in love with this home for Australian floral artist Joost Bakker.  Pick up the current issue of Interior Design Magazine – or read it here – because the entire article written on the project is well worth the read.  My favorite feature: there are more than 11,00 terra cotta flower pots “cladding” this home, planted every summer with strawberries!

*photography by earl carter / taverne agency

Posted in Architecture, Building Materials, Inspiration, Landscape | No Comments »

Dreaming of Gardens

Friday, January 15th, 2010

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I’d like to end the week with photos of a particular project that has me dreaming of spring and building my garden.  I’ve been collecting inspiring imagery as I begin to design some garden space on the property that my husband and I own in the foothills outside of Boulder.  We have two acres, most of it sloping, and though we have a very sunny site we sit at 6,500 feet, which is limiting when it comes to plant palettes.  We also have an abundance of wildlife to contend with.

I’ve been working on concepts that are architectural yet xeric, an extension of the language of our house, and am sold on creating a series of terraced gardens combined with steel planters and large slab stone…somehow.  I also want to build a vegetable garden, a small fruit orchard, and fields of lavender…oh – and maybe some grape vines.

The January/February issue of Garden Design features a project by Suzanne Biaggi and Patrick Pickard entitled “Future Feast in the Garden of Flow / Accumulation,” part of a larger installation at the Late Show Gardens.  Enjoy!

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Posted in Inspiration, Landscape, Lifestyle | 1 Comment »

Ben Tremper Photography

Thursday, December 10th, 2009

I had the pleasure of meeting Ben Tremper when Colorado Homes Magazine photographed my house for their 2009 Remodel Issue.  Ben is an amazing individual – very talented, creative, fun and has an eye for the perfect shot.

Ben recently launched a photography blog and it’s just lovely – a perfect way to keep up with all his interesting work, especially now that he and his equally creative wife Amy Tremper (who designed my website and this blog!) have relocated to San Francisco.

Ben’s most recent post features Western Landscapes from his travels over the summer – here are a few of my favorite shots.

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all photos copyright Ben Tremper Photography

Posted in Architecture, Inspiration, Landscape, Photography | 2 Comments »

Something Different – Seed Pod Imagery

Friday, December 4th, 2009

I follow a lovely blog authored by Rochelle Greayer, a writer and landscape designer who runs Greayer Design Associates LLC, based in Harvard, MA.  Her blog, Studio G, is full of beautiful photography, plant ideas, and other landscape-oriented sentiment.  A few weeks ago she posted a piece on Seed Saving, and I found myself regarding these amazing images with awe and then…as grounds for color palette inspiration.

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image by *dragan

Those of you who know me are aware of my preference for a clean, slightly industrial, earth-toned palette with very specific punches of color and texture.  These pods hint at that same philosophy – so intriguing.  And so I searched for more seed pod photos…here are a few favorites.

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Colorado Ranch Overlooking Mesa Verde

Tuesday, December 1st, 2009

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I had the pleasure of visiting the ranch of a family friend over the Thanksgiving holiday.  The snow was blowing in as we were walking the property, obscuring most of the view, but certainly not hindering the beauty of this place.  As always, adventures such as this cause me to yearn for land, solitude and animals!  600 acres, a horse barn with caretaker quarters above, a lovely main house, and grazing livestock…all looking out over the very special Mesa Verde.  My favorite part, aside from the rolling meadows and surrounding mountains, was the barn – a contemporary take on a western institution.

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Planter Fabrication at Tribble Stone

Wednesday, July 1st, 2009

I am collaborating with Kristin Undhjem / KSLAcorp on landscape architecture and design (including exterior furnishings) for a 35 acre parcel overlooking Telluride, Colorado.  The home is magnificent, designed by CCY Architects out of Basalt, Colorado, a firm responsible for some of the best residential design in our state (in my humble opinion).

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There is a tremendous amount of stonework associated with this project, including a basalt water table, a basalt fire-rock and a Colorado Buff sandstone planter, slab pavers, and stacked sandstone blocks.  We’re sourcing the Colorado Buff from Tribble Stone in Boulder, and the other day I had the pleasure of visiting the stone yard to inspect fabrication progress of the planter rock.

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The geometry of the planter is pulled from the architecture and serves as a focal point in the courtyard entry sequence leading to the home.  The planter dimensions are so large that we’ve had to fabricate two pieces that will be set with a crane.  The seams are very precisely located and align with joints in adjacent sandstone slab paving.  The stone has snapped exposed edges and a very cool bridge saw is used to score the area that gets hollowed-out.

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The planter rock is one of three in a series of stone elements: table rock, water table, planter rock.  The table rock is also substantial in size (about 8′ x 6′ x 16 inches) and finding a stone this size has been quite a challenge.  Thanks to Eric Tribble for his persistence – he has several great options for us.

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