LASN is a photographically oriented, professional journal featuring topics of concern and state-of-the-art projects designed or influenced by registered Landscape Architects.
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(Continued on page 18) 16 Landscape Architect and Specifier News With growing interest in residential outdoor living and the expansion of the home's living space into the backyard, plenty of new opportunities are available to landscape designers and installers who are willing to look beyond their traditional job profiles and offer other services to their clients. The development of modular masonry kits for the construction of popular outdoor living elements has made this significantly easier, as landscape professionals who are not masons by trade can now purchase kits to build complete masonry fireplaces, fire pits, pizza ovens, or kitchen islands. Selling the client on the value of professionally installed outdoor elements can often make the difference in landing a lucrative project, and offering pre-engineered kits adds value to the installer's services that is easily demonstrated to the client. The full masonry construction of these elements gives the installer and client an assurance of durability and value. For the homeowner, this translates into immediate enjoyment of the product and long-term added value to the home, as these upgrades will also serve as selling points to a prospective homebuyer in the future. As long as quality components are in place, the added value will remain for years to come, whereas cheaper, less robust products will show their age very quickly, and have a negative impact on the overall value of the home. Outdoor room projects added to existing homes will often place limitations on the size and scope of the project due to other elements already in place that the homeowner may want the new layout to complement. Such installations create challenges for the designer and installer, but these can be easily overcome with some creative thinking and the use of flexible construction systems, such as the Stone Age cabinet component system for kitchen islands. This project, in a Jenks, Okla., backyard outside of Tusla, presented several limitations, including a restricted backyard with an angle property line that ran close to an existing patio, an angled wall line of the home adjacent to the intended outdoor living addition, and a large pool opposite restricting the expansion in another direction. Additionally, the construction team was working with a budget of approximately $25,000, which will generally cover a medium-sized project of this nature. h a rd s c a p e s By Rob Wright, Stone Age Manufacturing, Inc. Expanding Outdoor Rooms with Pre-Engineered Components Above A homeowner in Jenks, Okla., wanted a large food preparation area with plenty of storage and a serving and dining counter, all within a narrow and angled corner of the patio. About 30 feet of modular, pre- engineered outdoor kitchen components were installed to fit the family's needs in just five days. 16-19.indd 16 3/26/14 2:33 PM