With a corner lot and a narrow backyard, this Leesburg, VA family felt like their property wasn’t usable. It felt tight and awkward—and in all honesty, the family had a lot of reservations about what could be achieved, even with a landscape design.
But when the project was complete, the homeowners told us the space felt bigger than ever before. In fact, they said they could hardly believe how much room it felt like they had.
They now say they’re spending more time outdoors than ever before and have a lot of functional ways that they can use their yard. With three outdoor living rooms, the family can lounge, dine, and relax in the beautiful Leesburg, VA countryside.
Enhanced Functionality with a Leesburg, VA Landscape Design
The homeowners’ primary goal was to make their yard usable. They weren’t spending a lot of time out there because it lacked functionality. The solution was a large multi-level patio that could essentially be broken down into 3 separate rooms.
Let’s take a look at each of them.
A Terrace for Lounging
The design starts with a raised terrace patio which is right outside of the home’s kitchen. This is the space that the homeowners now like to grab their coffee and catch up on the news in the morning. Being immediately off of the house, it makes it easy to step outside and have a place to sit and enjoy the beautiful outdoors.
An Outdoor Kitchen for Entertaining
Several steps down from that terraced area is a simple outdoor kitchen. The homeowners weren’t looking for all the bells and whistles of a huge outdoor kitchen. In fact, given the proximity to their indoor kitchen, they just wanted a nice space where they could bring food out and enjoy a meal or snack outdoors—particularly when having guests over.
With this kitchen design, there is plenty of countertop space to set up food. It also features a built-in refrigerator so there are always cold drinks available.
A Cozy Fireplace Spot
A few steps away from the outdoor kitchen is a gorgeous wood-burning outdoor fireplace area where the homeowners and guests can sit after enjoying their meal at the kitchen. The homeowners liked the idea of having plenty of built-in wood storage so that a fire could always be made up quickly when the mood strikes.
Additional Features to Complete the Look and Feel
Along with adding a large patio with three separate rooms, there were some other additions that would help complete the total project. Among these inclusions were lighting and plantings, an upgrade of the basement walk-up, and the addition of a natural stone walkway which would lead friends and family to the new backyard.
Let’s look at each of these additions.
Landscape Lighting & Plantings
Landscaping lighting and plantings are often thought of as the “finishing touch” or the “icing on the cake” of a total project, but they’re really important elements that can’t be overlooked. After all, what would a cake be without icing?
The landscape lighting in this project was subtle and understated. We have some lighting built into the fireplace, kitchen area, steps, and along the walkway that we added. But the homeowners really wanted the glow of the fireplace to set the mood for the evening hours. With outdoor lighting, less is usually more.
Plantings were also critical to completing the look of this total space. The homeowners didn’t want anything super high maintenance but they wanted plants that would help enhance the overall aesthetic appeal so that they could be enjoyed when spending more time outdoors.
A Re-Finished Basement Walk-Up
Another important aspect of this Leesburg, VA landscape design was refinishing the existing basement walk-up, which was made from standard concrete and paint. It also had your typical, builders-grade railing.
Once the plan was in place to transform the backyard, keeping the unattractive walk-up was clearly going to stick out as an eyesore. So, the family decided to upgrade this area to natural stone to be at the same aesthetic level as the rest of the design.
This included not only adding natural stone to the entire walk-up but also raising the wall and then adding a smaller, sleeker, custom railing to the top. It now fits much more comfortably into the overall design.
A Beautiful Stone Slab Walkway
A final aspect of this landscape design was the addition of a large stone slab walkway leading from the front yard to the transformed backyard. When family and friends visit, they can now head right to the backyard on this natural stone path.
The Beauty of Natural Stone in this Leesburg, VA Landscape Design
One of the most stunning aspects of this project is the use of natural stone throughout the entire outdoor area. Here in scenic Northern Virginia, we truly believe that the use of natural stone is the best there is.
Natural stone is superior in aesthetic appeal, durability, and elegance. One of the key reasons that we like using natural stone for our Leesburg, VA landscaping projects is the fact that it will truly stand the test of time. Natural stone is not going to go out of style and it perfectly suits the picturesque settings we have here in Leesburg, VA.
When it was time to design and build this particular project, natural stone was the obvious choice. When we complete natural stone projects, they truly are one-of-a-kind as the stones are all unique.
One additional way that we made this project original was the implementation of a circular pattern near the slab pathway to the basement walk-up. This added some interesting appeal while also having the visual effect of complementing the circular bump-out of the terrace patio.
Finding the Best in Leesburg, VA Landscaping Companies
In order to get the results that these homeowners desired, they knew that working with a great landscaping company would be a key to their success. There are a lot of companies that build patios which end up being cookie-cutter designs that you see again and again driving around Northern Virginia. But they wanted something original.
They also knew that they had a narrow space to work with but wanted to get the most out of it. That meant choosing a landscape company with out-of-the-box thinking and ideas that could directly translate into functionality.
These particular homeowners have been long-time clients of Rock Water Farm. We’d already redesigned their front yard with walkways and plantings so when it came time to redesign the backyard, they knew who to call.
In the end, the homeowners say the project is everything they could have wished for and more. They finally feel as though they have the backyard they’ve always wanted. As a result, they’re now spending more time outdoors, making memories they will cherish for a lifetime.
Check Out This Video Featuring This Project!
Are you ready to find an expert who will bring your ideas for your Ashburn, Aldie, or Leesburg, VA home to life? If so, talk to an expert, choose a solution that rocks, and get ready to see those dreams become a reality.
