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Mid-Century Backyard Landscape - Fox Point, WI

Our clients had recently purchased a mid century Leenhouts designed home in Fox Point, Wisconsin and the existing landscape was in need of a complete makeover. As is the case with most homes of this period, the existing landscape consisted of mostly yews and junipers. To update the design we included a simple palette of long blooming perennials and ornamental grasses as well as boxwood and flowering hydrangea among others. The concrete front walk is more welcoming now with inlaid bluestone runnels. 

The backyard conceptual landscape design was more complex than the front due to the exposed lower level. The upper main patio is triple the size of the existing patio and replicates the pattern of the window framing on the back of the home with inlaid bluestone runnels. Dry-stacked lannon stone retaining walls allow for the patio to cut into the hillside slightly. A separate fire pit deck is one step above the patio. The lower level patio is more intimate and great for a morning coffee or chilling in the hammock. Modern low voltage landscape lighting completes the design. 

Designed by James Drzewiecki, APLD and Hannah Paulson, landscape designer

Mid-Century Leenhouts Landscape - Fox Point, WI

Mid-Century Modern Front Landscape - Fox Point, WI

Hand drawn and ink-rendered conceptual landscape design for the front yard of this mid-century modern home in Fox Point, Wisconsin. The home was designed by Abe Tannenbaum, one of Milwaukee's most prolific mid-century architects. Our client wanted to do something different than lawn around the existing front walk which consisted of concrete circles original to the home. We moved about 25% of the circles and had new ones poured to match to better connect with the half-circle driveway in front of the home. We also added a small sitting area to the right of the front door in bluestone. 

The existing masonry address wall was retained but we designed new plantings around it to carry through on the circle theme inspired by the front walk. All new plantings were designed across the front of the home, including linear groups of 'Karl Foerster' grass to emphasize the vertical elements on the home. The plantings become more natural in placement and layout on the edge of the property. New low voltage landscape lighting was also part of our design.

Designed by James Drzewiecki, APLD and hand rendered by Hannah Paulson, landscape designer

Mid-Century Tannenbaum Landscape - Fox Point, WI

MId-Century Modern Front Landscape - Ann Arbor, MI

The owners of this Mid-Century Modern home in Ann Arbor, Michigan were ready to enhance the front landscape after preserving much of the architecture of the home. They reached out to us because of our expertise with Mid-Century landscapes and our familiarity with the midwest plant palette. The entire design process was done virtually. 

Our clients wanted to remove the original front walk that led out to the street. This meant the new design would incorporate a long walk from the drive to the front door. A Zen gravel garden with specimen boulders, and an Eastern Redbud tree welcomes visitors upon their arrival. Drawing from the architecture of the home, we designed a series of overlapping rectangular concrete panels to form the front walk, and punctuated them with wedge-shaped landings on either end. The angles of the landings help inform the angular shapes of the planting beds and invites visitors to move and pause throughout the area. A new deck at the front door offers a sitting area, while a line of ornamental grasses help frame the entry-way. Slate chip mulch was incorporated under the large roof overhangs and with low-voltage landscape lighting completing the design.

Designed by James Drzewiecki, CPLD and Hannah Paulson, landscape designer

Mid-Century Modern Front Landscape - Ann Arbor, MI

Modern Backyard Patio - Mesa, AZ

This newly constructed home in Mesa, Arizona offered us a blank slate and also the opportunity for us to design with an entirely new palette of plants. After researching plants approved by the HOA and discussions with our client, we narrowed down the mix of native woody plants and succulents and set to work on the plans. For the front yard we kept the design more minimalistic, as the space was limited. The backyard is where we had some fun, splitting the area into three zones. The foreground zone is similar to the front landscape with more open space and less plants. The second zone wraps around most of the back of the property and the east side. The idea was a lusher, denser planting that helps to hide the ubiquitous concrete block privacy wall. The third zone required some buy-in from our client, as we proposed an enclosed area where a rescued desert tortoise could live. Our clients loved the idea and they are looking forward to the day that they can provide a home for this native, endangered reptile.

Designed by James Drzewiecki, APLD and Kristin Klimaszewski

Modern New Home Landscape - Mesa, AZ

Modern Backyard Landscape - Fox Point, WI

Our clients had decorated the inside of their Fox Point, WI home in a modern style so they asked us to create a landscape design that also had that flavor. For the front yard our goal was to downplay the driveway across the front of the house. The new concrete front walk directs visitors to the front door and creates an area for passengers to exit their vehicles easily off the driveway. A bluestone pad off the front walk is meant for a future bench.

The design also included the backyard where the existing patio space was too small for entertaining, so we designed a new expanded concrete patio with room for grilling, dining and lounging. The bluestone dining area has a custom cedar pergola overhead with built-in downlighting. For phase 1, our clients chose to not include the fire pit area we had designed. Beach pebble runnels help to visually separate the outdoor rooms of the patio and slate chip in some of the plant beds adds a Zen aspect to the design. 

Landscape lighting was designed for the entire project as shown in the evening photos. We also designed the stone and cedar address marker at the end of the driveway.

Designed by James Drzewiecki, APLD and hand rendered by landscape designer Hannah Paulson

Modern Landscape Makeover - Fox Point, WI

Mid-Century Backyard - Bayside, WI

Midwest Mid-Century

2022 Silver Award Residential Design - Association of Professional Landscape Designers

Our clients had already decorated the inside of their cute midcentury ranch in Bayside, WI with period correct furnishings when they contacted us. They had made an attempt at making their landscape midcentury, but in the end they knew they needed to call in for professional help. Since midcentury landscapes are our specialty, it was a perfect fit for us to work with them on renovating the entire property. The existing half circle concrete patio was in great shape, but it was surrounded by looming arborvitae that were original to the house. They were so large that the patio was essentially cut off from the rest of the backyard.

We designed all new plantings for the backyard, based on a circular theme to play off the patio geometry. We replicated the granite stone mulch our client had already used in the front yard. For the front part of the property we simply refined and adjusted what our client had already started, to create a cohesive whole between front and back. One of our favorite medium-sized projects!

Designed by James Drzewiecki, APLD. 

Mid-Century Landscape - Bayside, WI

Best of Houzz 2023

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Design ideas for a mid-sized mid-century modern full sun backyard landscaping in Milwaukee for summer.

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Photo of a mid-sized modern partial sun backyard stone landscaping in Milwaukee with a pergola.

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Modern Backyard Landscape - Mesa, AZ

Mid century Front Landscape - Racine

<div class="rt-pg" style="text-align:center">At Ginkgo Leaf Studio, we believe exceptional landscape design is creating art through nature’s inspiration. This is our passion.</div><div class="rt-pg"></div>

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I’ve always dreamed of having a clean, modernist home, and I’m happy to say that Alice and her team at Atelier Cohen led the way to making that dream a reality! I couldn’t be more happy with the project, my house looks like it could be featured in a Kinfolk magazine. I expressed my wishes of having a clean, natural interior aesthetic and they truly delivered – the natural light in my newly designed home is to die for. They also helped me turn my dated, drab living room into a spacious and cozy space in which I can’t wait to host a party. I couldn’t recommend Alice more, if you’re looking for easy collaboration and top-notch design, you have to reach out to them!

I’ve worked with Alice on a few renovation projects and am still floored by her dedication to design and space planning. Never have I experienced a hiccup or missed communication with Atelier Cohen, and home projects tend to create those sorts of problems! They are professional, approachable, and innovative in a way that anyone with any level of home renovating or staging experience will feel like they are in good hands.

Alice’s eye, advice, and service is extremely rare in this business. If you get the chance to work with them, don’t think twice about it!

I had the pleasure of working with Alice on redecorating my childhood home that hadn’t been touched up since I was a teen in the 80’s. I knew it needed a huge refresh aesthetically, but I wasn’t sure where to start. I had a consultation with Alice about my hazy ideas and she was able to understand my tastes and needs after just one chat! The whole design process was so streamlined and thorough that my fears of things going awry totally vanished after the first few meetings. She walked me through every step of the process, from sharing sketches and moodboards to purchasing the final pieces of furniture and decoration. Working with Alice at Atelier Cohen has got to be my greatest investment, I highly recommend their services.

I’ve always dreamed of having a clean, modern farmhouse kitchen, and I’m happy to say that Maison Kitchen and Bath led the way to making that dream a reality! I couldn’t be more happy with the project, our kitchen looks like it could be the envy of Pinterest. I expressed my wishes of having a light, airy feel with natural but polished finishes, and they truly delivered – the kitchen in my home is to die for. They also helped me turn my claustrophobic galley kitchen into a beautiful open-space plan that makes me actually want to cook and entertain in the kitchen. I couldn’t recommend Maison K&B more, if you’re looking for easy collaboration and top-notch design, you have to reach out to them!

I’ve worked with Maison Kitchen and Bath on a few renovation projects and am still floored by their dedication to design and construction. Never have I experienced a hiccup or missed communication with them, and home projects tend to create those sorts of problems! They are professional, approachable, and innovative in a way that anyone with any level of home renovating experience will feel like they are in good hands.

Their advice and service through all stages of any project large or small is extremely rare in this business. If you get the chance to work with them, don’t think twice about it!

I had the pleasure of working with Maison Kitchen and Bath on renovating my childhood home that hadn’t been touched up since it was built in the 50’s. I’m quite environmentally minded, so I knew the appliances and electrical elements needed an update. I also knew it needed a bit of a refresh aesthetically, but I wasn’t sure where to start. I had a consultation with them about my hazy ideas and they were able to understand my tastes and needs after just one chat! The whole renovation process was so streamlined and thorough that my fears of things going awry totally vanished after the first few weeks. Working with Maison Kitchen and Bath has got to be my greatest investment, I highly recommend their services.

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I’ve always dreamed of having a clean, modernist home, and I’m happy to say that Haus Design + Build led the way to making that dream a reality! I couldn’t be more happy with the project, my house looks like it could be featured on Architecture Digest. I expressed my wishes of having high ceilings and large windows, and they truly delivered – the natural light in my new home is to die for. They also helped me turn my claustrophobic galley kitchen into a beautiful open-space plan that makes me actually want to cook and entertain in the kitchen. I couldn’t recommend Haus DB more, if you’re looking for easy collaboration and top-notch design, you have to reach out to them!

I’ve worked with Haus Design and Build on a few renovation projects and am still floored by their dedication to design and construction. Never have I experienced a hiccup or missed communication with them, and home projects tend to create those sorts of problems! They are professional, approachable, and innovative in a way that anyone with any level of home renovating experience will feel like they are in good hands.

Their advice and service through all stages of any project large or small is extremely rare in this business. If you get the chance to work with them, don’t think twice about it!

I had the pleasure of working with Haus Design + Build on renovating my childhood home that hadn’t been touched up since it was built in the 50’s. I’m quite environmentally minded, so I knew the appliances and electrical elements needed an update. I also knew it needed a bit of a refresh aesthetically, but I wasn’t sure where to start. I had a consultation with them about my hazy ideas and they were able to understand my tastes and needs after just one chat! The whole construction process was so streamlined and thorough that my fears of things going awry totally vanished after the first few weeks. Working with Haus DB has got to be my greatest investment, I highly recommend their services.

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