2 minute read
Landscaping Makeover
When we moved to Scottsdale Ranch a few months ago, we found the exact community we were looking for to prepare for retirement in the near future! We wanted a conveniently located neighborhood that had community pools, close to stores and trails to ride our bikes that would be beautiful to walk around and feel proud of the community in which we live. Las Brisas fit the bill! We had just downsized from a large house with a big yard and a pool. We wanted the low maintenance lifestyle of a smaller, one-story patio home. Unfortunately, the yard we got had “real grass” and many overgrown bushes. We wanted our courtyard and backyard to match the interior of house which was modern, minimalist and low maintenance. (Once we finished our remodeling!)
We started doing our research on Pinterest and Houzz and any other sites we could find by searching for small backyards, rock landscaping and modern landscaping. We made copies of the pictures and went about combining many different elements we really liked to create a non-traditional yard. We drew up “mock plans” and kept “tweaking our ideas” as the weeks went by.
We finally came up with the design you see today. We used artificial turf, 24x24 grey porcelain pavers, grey 1-inch rocks and combined the 3 elements to create a yard that we know no one else might have. We wanted areas that were linear, but not just against all the walls. We have some planting areas that are perpendicular to the walls and jut out as a perfect place to put our “modern” succulents in the ground that were repeated in groups of threes. We wanted plants that had low water usage, although everything is hooked up to drip lines. We also used large black modern planters for many of our arrangements to continue the modern affect.
Before After
Before After
We tore out all the old bushes and plants and started fresh. We wanted “grassy areas” but not the whole yard, just sections of linear areas. We wanted our courtyard to be an area where we could sit out with our coffee in the mornings or a glass of wine in the evenings and wave hello to our neighbors walking by.
I feel we created quite the sanctuary for our esthetic! I sit in my little yard and feel the “Zen”! I am so happy with our new lifestyle and love living in Las Brisas. We feel truly blessed to be able to live in such a beautiful place!
