5 Outdoor Spaces Embracing Summer's Splendor
From coast to coast, Luxe celebrates summer splendor with outdoor spaces that are sure to inspire.
Marshall Watson & Reid Deane Ganes
📍Rancho Santa Fe, CA
While this Marshall Watson-designed Hacienda-style home enjoys picture-perfect weather most days, an outdoor ivy-covered fireplace not only adds to the ambiance but also offers the perfect solution for chilly evenings. The lounge-like area is a picturesque spot for drinks and hors d’oeuvres, beckoning visitors to take a seat while viewing the stunning sunset.
Workshop/APD
📍Nantucket, MA
When their clients purchased a double lot, Workshop/APD saw the opportunity to construct several outbuildings alongside the main house. The pavilion draws inspiration from simple Shaker-style architecture, in keeping with Nantucket’s building vernacular. Featuring a gym, powder room and service bar connecting to a sauna pod, the dwelling “provides a resort-like experience that brings wellness front and center,” explains Founding Principal Andrew Kotchen.
Hutker Architects
📍Duxbury, MA
Located on a spit of land overlooking Cape Cod Bay, this Hutker Architects-designed home was informed by the historic cottage that previously occupied the site as well as nearby Alden House, one of the oldest homes in the country, which provided additional architectural context. Firm Partner Tom McNeill implemented creative solutions to maximize the limited square footage, like a cantilevered screened-in porch that creates a shaded terrace below.
Rowland+Broughton
📍Aspen, CO
There’s an age-old adage that Rowland+Broughton Founding Principal John Rowland holds true: Everyone moves to Aspen for the skiing but stays for the summer. It’s during this seductive season when outdoor living is at its peak that captures the hearts of residents. The clients of this home very much inhabit that active Colorado lifestyle, and a place of wellness topped their wish list. As such, the firm crafted a decked-out fitness room, which doubles as a Bikram yoga studio, that opens to the stunning grounds. The structure sits adjacent to a 65-foot lap pool and covered seating area where the family can recharge while taking in the unobstructed mountain views.
Land Morphology
📍Seattle, WA
This alluring garden structure was born from a utilitarian requirement—a bioretention area. Founding Principal and CEO Richard Hartlage, and his Land Morphology team, used this to their advantage, transforming the space into an enticing summer spot by erecting a bridge and pergola overtop. Although Seattle is known for rain, its temperate summers are the stuff of legend, and the genesis for this garden destination. “It’s an intimate space for cocktails,” says Hartlage. “I love a dash of red in a garden because red and green are complementary colors.” Varying verdant hues are plentiful thanks to (mostly) native plantings.
