Casual Casa: gravel

Showing posts with label gravel. Show all posts

Mediterranean casual style of Provence and Tuscany

Stone walls, colorful shutters, easy-going gravel, and plants that are allowed to grow into their natural forms make for a pretty and cozy setting. This approach is also low-maintenance and ages well. When people, especially in the US, try to recreate this look they often create an unnaturally pristine version and miss out on the perfectly imperfect charm.

^ Even fully-paved narrow alleys can be charming with colorful stucco, shutters, and wild and free potted plants.

Image sources: image 1, images 2 & 3, image 4, image 5

Benefits and beauty of DIY stone garden paths

There are many types of garden paths and many ways to build them but the simplest to make using the most natural materials are the ones that are usually the most attractive. Gravel, flagstone, river rocks, or some combination of those closely laid together over sand create long lasting garden paths that make simple DIY projects. The resulting organic appearance creates a great compliment to the landscape around it and has a lot character.

Such paths are also very cozy and zen looking and add to the relaxing charm that a yard and garden should provide. These paths are also very forgiving and flexible. Maintenance is easier. If one of the pieces start rocking and need to be changed or reset, it is much easier to do. If you later decide that you want to make your path wider/narrower, or add/remove a section, these changes are much easier to make. And if one day you decide to completely remove it, most of the stones can be reused in another project.

^ Found materials such as bottles, or stamped bricks, or other mementos can be added for more personalization and character.

Sources: Image 1. I can't find a reliable source for any of the other images. I found them on pinterest but the source websites are either not up anymore or they link to malicious sites. If any of them are yours or if you know their sources, please let me know so I can link/reference them.

Gravel for natural garden paths

Along with a mixture of plants and boulders, gravel is a "natural" choice for relaxing and easy-going landscapes. Gravel is:

easy to live with, you can move it around, adjust it's path/shape/size easily
will keep dust and mud under control
inexpensive compared to other options
it is permeable so it keeps the soil under and around it more healthy, and
looks great as part of a natural looking landscape.

Gravel generally does better in relatively dry climates, and it has been used extensively in Mediterranean landscapes and in the American South-West for good reason.

Image 1 from houzz.de, image 2 from bhg.com, image 3 from houzz.de, and image 4 from markweaver.com

Random inspiration

Simple, honest, natural, functional.

Images from principlesofaesthetics.tumblr.com

Casual barrel pool & painted bathroom walls

Casual + natural + colorful = beautiful, practical, easy-going.
I am not sure how long painted bathroom walls would last with so much exposure to water, but the idea of easily applying a new coat definitely has its appeal, and the example here looks amazing with a touch of stoic, humble, & authentic.

Top image from issuu.com/leafmag, bottom image from elle.es

Variety

Great yards usually have variety; of colors, of textures, of foliage, and of styles. It's true for yards, as it is for everything else in life. Sticking strictly to a single style, or a limited color palette, etc. does not offer the richness our hearts and minds seek. (Warning: This is not a post against monogamy :) Actually in relationships, deeper connections with a few is always better than shallow ones with many.)

Image from turningpoint2.tumblr.com

Homey home & patio

Casual and cozy place with lots of inspiration; some color, natural textures and materials, access to outdoors, and easy-to-maintain stuff always make life better!

Images from EspacioLiving.com

Relax in natural beauty

Great easy-going place with xeriscaped plants, stone walls, gravel on the ground, and cheerful colors that were allowed to show some age. Not only do these features give a place cozy-casual feel, they also make the place easier to maintain and last longer which makes the place truly relaxing!

Images from maison-deco.com

Simple

Nice simple (and low-maintenance) exterior with corrugated sheets and simple gravel landscaping. This is the Tin Tabernacle Tearoom and it looks like a pretty neat place to hang out.

Image from BaileysHomeAndGarden.com

Relaxing yards

If you are looking for ideas for natural landscaping that's also water-wise and edible, you can find some inspiration at San Diego based Letz Design Landscape's website. Besides the more practical and obvious benefits of water-wise and edible gardening, such gardens also tend to be more relaxing, easy-going, and great looking.

Images from LetzDesign.com

Award winning landscape

Margie Grace of Grace Design Associates won the "Gold Award for Residential Design" from the Association of Professional Landscape Designers for her work pictured here. Natural looking, low water use and low maintenance, very easy going, and very attractive yard! It's a win-win-win-win-win situation!

All images from Blog.MichelleKaufmann.com

Love the unpolished yards!

Combination of gravel, flagstone, and low-water-use plants that are allowed to grow into their natural shapes and sizes create some very easy-going and absolutely beautiful landscape designs.

All images from ReesRoberts.com

Cool side of pool-side

Great yard backyard with rusted corrugated sheets for fences, low-maintenance, low-water-use plants, and permeable gravel. That wooden gate is quite nice as well. Also notice that the plaster on the house has not been painted. Very cool, green, great looking, and very easy-going set-up.