Landscape Design
Patio of the Week
A Hip Backyard Saves on Water and Splurges on Style
Two architects, a husband and wife, merge their talents to transform their backyard in California
The new garage includes a door that leads directly to the backyard. A new fence and gate made out of cedar with a clear coat separate the driveway from the backyard. Sanders-Jacob says the old concrete patio sloped toward the house, which resulted in water pooling near the house whenever it rained.
After ripping up the concrete patio, the husband-and-wife team excavated the ground underneath to slightly slope the yard away from the house. They then covered the patio with loose bricks laid atop a bed of sand to help facilitate water drainage. “Rainwater can now seep through the bricks evenly and no longer pools on top of the concrete,” Sanders-Jacob says. All of the plants in the backyard are drought-tolerant and require minimal watering.
The old crumbling steps leading up to the backyard’s top level were replaced with new board-formed concrete steps. The same type of concrete was used to create a planter box around a camellia tree that came with the property. Evan Jacob, who dabbles in furniture design, created the outdoor dining table out of cedar with a clear-coat to mimic the look of the fencing that surrounds the property. White outdoor chairs around the table add a modern touch that balances the rustic wood.
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After ripping up the concrete patio, the husband-and-wife team excavated the ground underneath to slightly slope the yard away from the house. They then covered the patio with loose bricks laid atop a bed of sand to help facilitate water drainage. “Rainwater can now seep through the bricks evenly and no longer pools on top of the concrete,” Sanders-Jacob says. All of the plants in the backyard are drought-tolerant and require minimal watering.
The old crumbling steps leading up to the backyard’s top level were replaced with new board-formed concrete steps. The same type of concrete was used to create a planter box around a camellia tree that came with the property. Evan Jacob, who dabbles in furniture design, created the outdoor dining table out of cedar with a clear-coat to mimic the look of the fencing that surrounds the property. White outdoor chairs around the table add a modern touch that balances the rustic wood.
Shop for outdoor wood dining tables
The homeowners had intended to cover the ground of the backyard’s upper level with crushed decomposed granite in a sandy beige, but a surplus of crushed gravel changed their mind. “The crushed gravel was supposed to form the bottom layer and then be covered up by crushed granite, but we bought more gravel than we needed,” Sanders-Jacob says. “But since the color of the crushed gravel matched the board-form concrete so well, we decided to use all of it and save some money.”
The couple were considerate of their neighbors, leaving open slats in the fencing that separates their house from the neighbors’. “Their daughter’s bedroom window faces the fence, so we didn’t want to block off the natural light,” Sanders-Jacob says. “We’re growing some jasmine up the slats that will give us all something nice to look at and add some fragrance to the air.”
The couple were considerate of their neighbors, leaving open slats in the fencing that separates their house from the neighbors’. “Their daughter’s bedroom window faces the fence, so we didn’t want to block off the natural light,” Sanders-Jacob says. “We’re growing some jasmine up the slats that will give us all something nice to look at and add some fragrance to the air.”
Before: The previous backyard featured a red painted concrete patio that sloped toward the house. There was no fence or gate between the driveway and the backyard. The original carriage house is the structure on the left side of the photo.
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More on Houzz
16 Ways to Get More From Your Small Backyard
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Find landscape designers
Shop for outdoor furniture
Backyard at a Glance
Who lives here: Heather Sanders-Jacob and Evan Jacob
Location: Oakland, California
Size: 500 square feet (46 square meters)
Designer: Shelterwerk
Architects Heather Sanders-Jacob and Evan Jacob moved into their Craftsman bungalow in Oakland, California, nearly 15 years ago, and the home has been a labor of love ever since. They began by renovating the interior and painting the exterior a bold black with a lime green trim around the windows and doors. Last year, the couple leveled the original carriage house in the backyard to make room for a new garage with enough room to “actually fit a car in it,” Sanders-Jacob says. Their most recent project was to transform their formerly overgrown backyard by adding a new ground covering, new fencing and stylish new outdoor furniture.
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