We love this job. Rolph and Rebecca were great clients, who we now think of as friends. Both are originally from the Midwest, but had been living in NYC for many years - Brooklyn to be exact - so it had been a long time since either had enjoyed having an actual lawn. They were really excited about their new yard, especially the space it provides for their young daughter (and now their son, too!) and the family dog.


Rolph and Rebecca's home is located in an area of Saint Paul called Highland Park, in the vicinity of other great examples of mid-century architecture - so much strong character to build on. We added a slightly elevated, steel-encased patio that almost feels like a thin drawer that's been pulled out from the base of the structure. To help redefine some areas of the site, we used dark brown organically-dyed timbers that created some heavy but gently toned geometry. For privacy, we installed the horizontal slat cedar fence we use very often (so often, in fact, it's become known by its nickname around the studio: “The Agrarian”).


It's been great to get updates from the family and hear about their quiet evenings spent outside with friends. Even though we're sure they miss a lot about living in Brooklyn, hopefully we've furnished them with a reminder of why they love the Midwest, too.