This complete backyard renovation draws inspiration from the beauty of the existing home and surrounding Birmingham neighborhood to create an outdoor space for living and entertaining. Built in 2021, the design centers around a pool oriented along the axes of the house’s family room and a recently renovated carriage house. Nestled between pool and house is an arrangement of cozy outdoor rooms including a dining terrace and covered fireplace lounge that extends organically from the home. Each area offers a functional and unique way to enjoy the space, and radiant heating ensures that outdoor entertaining can last well into the chilly Michigan autumn.
Category
Private
Location
Birmingham, MI
Year
2021
Photographer
Chris Major
They frame an eased-edge step that crosses a hedge-lined garden path and opens into the expansive pool terrace. Echoing the clean lines of the pool, layers of plantings add depth and soften the required pool enclosure elements. Mature plant materials were used to give the garden an established feel from day one.
Marking the transition from dining terrace to pool, several specimen cylindrical form hornbeams add a sense of verticality and subtle formality. The pool’s handmade clay tiles add a burst of visual interest that complements the smooth textures of the water, terrace, and rectangular thermal finish Bluestone steppers set in a narrow grass border. Separating the space from the rugged canopy beyond is a low wall of pleached plane trees that subtly marks the yard as a self-contained private oasis.
