This is a project from the winter of 2010 into 2011 in Annadale, Virginia (Fairfax County). The homeowners had an existing timber retaining wall and a patio made of clay paver bricks that they installed themselves over a decade prior. The patio had settled, the timbers were starting to deteriorate, and it was generally time to redo the walls in a more permanent materials palette.
After a lengthy discussion, we settled on exposed aggregate concrete for the patio and walks, and Techo-Bloc Quarry Stone for the retaining walls. Since the steps ascending the hill on the right side of the house were such a dominant element, we opted for Techo-Bloc Rocka steps instead of either building the stairs from wall block or pouring the steps.
One element in the existing layout that I really liked was the set of steps leading from the patio up into the woods. Since the walls were fairly close to the house and the deck, this prominent exit really opened the space up and integrated the woods with the design.
Because the clients have a great little strip of woods on the right side of the house, we made that a more natural area and used fieldstone steps instead of a more formal material palette. I absolutely love the pathlights, too. Their tastes are clean and contemporary, so I found this great fixture from Focus Industries.
The final touch was redoing the driveway in an exposed aggregate concrete to match the rest of the flatwork. I love how this project turned out. We made minor tweaks to the space so it flowed better, picked a great material palette, and used the wooded setting to our advantage.
