Portfolio

Twilight aerial of the whole garden — lawn, lit terrace, fire table and pergola, with the modern house behind

Louvered pergola lit from within over the outdoor kitchen, stone-topped island and built-in grill

The concrete fire table alight on the lawn edge at dusk, string lights overhead

Swim spa lit on the composite deck, lounge seating and pergola beyond

Paver driveway and entry path at dusk, planting beds picked out by path lighting

01Saratoga, CA

Victor Place

A new modern house given a garden to match. The front is laid in large-format pavers that run driveway to door, broken by planting beds of lavender and ornamental grasses around a retained oak, with a horizontal timber fence and gate closing the street edge. The back is one open lawn with a louvered aluminium pergola over the kitchen terrace — built-in grill, stone-topped island, storage the full run of it — and a long concrete fire table where the paving meets the grass, flanked by white concrete sofa forms. A composite deck steps up around a self-contained swim spa at the far end. Path and step lighting, uplit trees and festoon lights carry the whole garden into the evening.

The pool at dusk with deck jets arcing over it, the Spanish-style house and its covered terrace lit behind

Arched rendered fireplace with a timber mantel and log store, timber sofas facing it across a low table

Built-in grill and sink in an outdoor kitchen with glazed turquoise tile cabinet fronts

The pool lit from within at dusk, raised spa at the near end, patterned tile terrace alongside

Covered dining terrace under rough-sawn timber beams, hanging lanterns above the table

02Saratoga, CA

Portos Court

A Spanish-style house and a garden built in the same language. Heavy rough-sawn timber beams carry a deep covered terrace off the back of the house, hung with lanterns over a long dining table, and the outdoor kitchen sits under it — built-in grill, sink, cabinetry in a glazed turquoise tile. The pool runs the length of the yard with a raised spa at the near end and a pale stone surround, and one whole seating terrace is laid in patterned pale-blue tile. At the far end an arched rendered fireplace with a timber mantel and a log store above it faces a curved seat wall set with round woven cushions. Palms, bougainvillea and subtropical planting close it in.

The cabana lit at dusk — timber-lined ceiling on an exposed steel strut, outdoor kitchen and lounge, pool beyond

Outdoor kitchen in the cabana — grill, sink, cabinetry and a wall-mounted screen under a timber ceiling

Linear gas fire table alight between lounge sofas at dusk

The pool in daylight, artificial turf band along the paved edge

Overhead aerial of the finished garden, pool and terrace laid out against the turf

03San Jose, CA

Berry Way

A new build in Cambrian Park, finished end to end. The pool is a clean rectangle with a raised spa in one corner, ringed in large-format pale porcelain paving with ribbons of artificial turf set between the slabs and a turf band running the long side. A detached cabana carries a timber-lined ceiling on an exposed black steel strut, and holds a full outdoor kitchen — grill, sink, run of cabinetry, bar seating and a wall-mounted screen. A linear gas fire table sits in the lounge setting across from it. Horizontal redwood fencing and an uplit clipped hedge screen the boundary on three sides.

Night aerial of the terraced garden, the curved retaining walls and steps lit along their length

Steel-framed pavilion with a timber-lined ceiling over the outdoor kitchen and dining table

Swim spa set into a composite deck beneath a second pavilion

Wide concrete staircase between curved planters, risers lit, climbing to the house

Chairs set around a fire bowl on the gravel court at dusk, pavilion lit behind

04Los Altos, CA

Amber Lane

A sloping Los Altos property rebuilt as a set of terraces. Curved poured-concrete retaining walls sweep across the fall of the land with lighting recessed into their faces, and a wide flight of concrete steps climbs from the lower terrace to the house with every riser lit. Two structures sit on the paving: a steel-framed pavilion with a timber-lined ceiling over the outdoor kitchen and dining table, and a second over a swim spa set into a composite deck. A gravel court off to one side holds a ring of chairs around a fire bowl. The planters are built into the wall line and run to grasses, agave, succulents and roses, and one curved bed is planted Japanese-style around a stone pagoda lantern and a seated figure, uplit after dark.

Twilight aerial of the terraced garden, pool lit below the stone retaining walls with the steps and terraces uplit

Pool with an integrated raised spa in a pale stone surround, hedge and house behind

The upper terrace at dusk, dining under a cantilever umbrella beside the lit steps

Broad stacked-stone staircase with lighting set into the risers

Paved walkway at dusk between planted beds of grasses and boulders

05Los Altos, CA

Nash Road

The neighbouring Los Altos property, terraced in stone rather than concrete. A pool with an integrated raised spa sits on the main level in a pale stone surround, with cantilever umbrellas over the dining settings and an outdoor kitchen island — grill, sink, worktop — built into the terrace edge. Stacked natural stone retaining walls step the garden up behind it, split by a broad stone staircase with lighting set into the risers, and a second run of board-formed steps carries the far side. The top terrace is left as open lawn. Planting is drought-tolerant and structural: kangaroo paw, grasses and boulders through mulched beds, all of it lit low.

Selected work

Victor Place

Portos Court

Berry Way

Amber Lane

Nash Road