Themed landscapes are beautiful… but if you prefer a more eclectic approach, then mixing materials and aesthetics is a way to achieve exactly the look you want, without being in a rigid style box. But, this approach isn’t without its challenges. Here are the ways a landscape contractor blends different aesthetics in Allentown and Reading, PA, areas.
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Most homes built in the last 30 or so years are a blend of several styles, so it can be challenging to decide what the accompanying hardscape should look like. The good news is that today’s landscaping rules are pretty relaxed. You can mix styles and if you do it right, it will look great and not like a hodgepodge.
Blending Old and New
When you think about “old” hardscape materials, your mind likely turns toward stone. Granite, marble, travertine, limestone, and sandstone (including flagstone and bluestone) are just a ew natural stones that have been used for millennia to create durable horizontal and vertical elements.
To use this ancient building material in a more modern setting, your landscape contractor could use stone that has a smooth, sleek finish rather than a rough-hewn look. Or, the stone could be left with a more rustic weathered or chiseled texture to create an interesting contrast to smoother materials such as oiled teak privacy walls, porcelain tile, or poured concrete.
Blending Casual and Chic
The whole idea behind backyards is to give you a place to relax. However, many people love to entertain outdoors and give their guests a more special experience than the classic backyard BBQ.
A backyard paver patio is almost always welcoming in its own right but colors do make a difference. Your landscape contractor could use cooler colors such as the greys of limestone, bluestone or granite, to give your patio a more chic look reminiscent of a luxury spa and warmer sandstone or flagstone colors will make for a more casual look.
Again, textures serve as important design elements: more texture (such as a flagstone patio and stacked-fieldstone walls) contribute to a more casual feel, but you can use textured surfaces as accents in conjunction with smooth surfaces to achieve a chic aesthetic. A sleek concrete fireplace or fire table set on a flagstone patio creates a blended aesthetic that allows each element to be its own “thing” while still looking great together.
Blending Elegant and Rustic
Elegant spaces are often fairly rigid in their design, using symmetry and carefully placed elements such as pillars topped with light fixtures, to create a sense of sophistication. Rustic spaces are typically more freestyle: imperfect spaces that echo the shape of the land and natural materials, and concerned more with comfort and function than perfection.
To blend the two, consider using rustic materials in a more organized fashion. For example, instead of uncut flagstone slabs, use pavers cut into squares and rectangles. Add a pergola for a sophisticated touch, but instead of white painted wood, use larger, more rustic pillars and beams to echo the trees in the landscape.
In addition to your patio elements, you can use an easygoing planting theme to give your backyard a more relaxed feel, or a more formal planting theme to create a more elegant space.
Final Thoughts
Blending styles in your hardscape areas is relatively straightforward as long as you use complementary colors. Use that as a jumping off point. Our landscape designers are here to help you create your dream backyard, whatever your style preferences may be!
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