Near the urban village of Westwood, I designed this garden for a 1920’s Spanish Colonial home  shared by two writers.  They’re very social and love to host friends for cocktails and dinners.  But when I arrived, there was no space big enough for gathering, no place for a grill, no eating or lounging spots and a weak connection between the house and its greatest outdoor amenity, the swimming pool.  Even the pool lacked space for chaises and room for people to safely circumnavigate.  The landscaping itself was little more than oversized and overgrown planters that clogged and obscured the yard.

  

I reorganized the space to create distinct areas for living, dining, swimming, lounging, cooking, and even growing flowers and herbs for cutting.  A patio at house level features a firetable to gather around, in easy conversational range of a built-in barbeque and sideboard.  This patio adjoins a broadened staircase to an intermediate dining level, which in turn steps up to the pool deck, which was subtly expanded for better utility.  Talavera tile, a key design motif in the house’s interior is used throughout the garden - for step risers, paving accents, and table surfaces - unifying indoor and outdoor spaces.