The outdoor living room

Recently I have noticed a growing trend in the sense of the outdoor living room. A concept that was widely used in California back in the 50's is now making it's way here to Toronto!


With the warmer summers and longer growing seasons we are having ... there is a push to be outside in your backyard rather than in the home and in front of a TV. Actually, they are making flatscreen TV's for the outdoors these days... so you can have all the comforts of inside with you as you enjoy the outdoors in your yard.


Why not create that dream living room or dinning room space in your backyard? You'd be surprised what a few well placed pieces of furniture or even well planned out gardens would do to a space.


Complete that with an Outdoor kitchen with a bar and you'll never have to leave home to find a fun spot to entertain in! If budget is a concern, doing something as simple as planting a tree in an ideal spot would create that shady area needed to have a table and chairs set up so you can enjoy an outdoor space. When decorating the landscape, the possibilities are endless....

Define: Stone Mason

There are lots of pitfalls and hidden risks when hiring someone that has a business card which portrays the image of a professional Stone Mason or Landscape Contractor. A Stone Mason is a professional that knows stone material and is an artist at working with Natural Stone.

Just yesterday I was on my way to an appointment with a client and I had to stop my car, back it up and take this picture! Wow! Yikes! I'm willing to guess that this home is probably valued at about $700 000 to $900 000 in Toronto's current real estate market.

Yet the masonry work done on these front steps is scary! I hope it was a family member that sets tiles for a living who built the steps and did not ask for any money. I think it would be highway robbery to pay a contractor calling themselves a stone mason and you end up with a job like this.

When you interview a potential stone mason to do the masonry work around your home, it is an investment! Always make sure you ask to see past projects to avoid mistakes like the picture above!

A proper masonry job should look like the picture below. Solid 2 inch or thicker tread edges that are professionally finished with a rock-faced edge. Straight and level lines are also a plus to keep the steps looking neat.


This picture displays a work in progress as the Stone Mason is building the new set of steps into the walkway. This particular job is something I designed for one of my clients and I highly recommended the stone mason for this work because of the quality he puts into his craft. Even the unfinished work done by a professional mason looks better then the finished work seen in the photos at the beginning and middle of the article.

The Hidden Aspects of Landscape Architecture

One of the most important things to learn when dealing with a landscape design is to learn to check what the mature heights and sizes of your chosen plant material is.

More often then not, I run into cases such as the above photo. The plants seen there are what I would consider to have been planted in the wrong spot. Yes they may be small and cute looking when you see them on sale at the nursery... but remember this important lesson! Always check the I.D. tag for the plant's specifications.

How big will it get? How tall and wide will it grow? Does it need full sun or part shade? The spot you are thinking to plant it in... does it have the space needed for the mature size of this plant? Will you constantly be pruning it back so it does not block pathways and hide crucial things like a view to your front door?