Sometimes there is a call for a party in the garden. in this case, the Texas-born gentleman’s 60th birthday. He invited 60 friends to celebrate with him; getting the garden ready for this many guests was my job. As he particularly likes yellow, as in yellow cars, clothes and cowboy boots, and anything else, as long as it is yellow, yellow flowers it was. A late August date meant sunflowers were available at our farmer’s market; yellow gerbera daisies in the centers of these arrangements suggested a little fireworks-appropriate for such an occasion. The yellow food coloring in the water was pure fun.
The black and white cowhide patterned tablecloths on the buffet celebrated the beloved home state, and were a dramatic foil to all those yellow flowers. An overscaled buffet says welcome, Texas-style.
A landscape should be designed to accomodate those once in a great while events-as those events can be so important in the scheme of things. Even a small garden can be outfitted to comfortably seat unusual numbers of guests. For this reason, I am fond of walls at seat height in gardens. They do a great job of providing a place to sit for numbers of guests when needed, in addition to providing beautiful structure to a landscape.
The fountain, holding forth with its own refreshing rendition of fireworks, welcomes guests on a hot August night. A giant pot filled with Miscanthus “Zebrinus” adds to the festivity. Yes, that was planned in advance. Advance notice I do not always get, but when I do get it, there’s time for touches like this.
As guests arrive, and start out to the garden, one can’t help but think of all the things a beautiful landscape and garden can be. A setting for birthday celebration is one of many. As good lighting can set and sustain a mood, special party lighting was in order.
A garden designed for good traffic flow, and different places to visit, encourages people to sit for a while, and then move around. The small tables encourage people of like mind and interests to congregate as they please.
Though we battled wind, votives in glass are such an inexpensive and festive way to light a party. the more, the better. It is an easy way to mark steps, as the natural light wanes. Garden torches are not the most elegant garden accessory, but they are a great party accessory.
Good friends and family, big water, a little fire, a breeze, a garden – all the makings of a great party.
Does Milo not look like he is having a grand time?
Its my idea to eat outdoors for 120 days of the year at the very least. I like summer food- grilled burgers, fresh corn and tomatoes, big salads with chicken. I am at my most vulnerable for good potato chips, and ice cream, as well. I am impatient for this first day of the outdoor dining season, and so sorry to see it end. In Michigan we have a lengthy dose of “lets go inside” weather. For this reason I will still be having dinner outdoors in October, with my blanket around me. Just get me outside, under any and every circumstance. Dinner in the garden is my idea of fine entertainment. This 22 foot long pine and steel table can handle lots of dinner guests with ease. Pine is a very traditional material for American garden furniture; it just requires upkeep. Its traditional material aside, it has a decidedly sleek and modern silhouette. It interests me how overscaled furniture has such strong visual interest. This long table suggests a lot of people, close together, having fun. 
If you are a like me, you do not sit much in your garden. I can always find a weed to pull or something to stake, trim, or otherwise fuss with. But as I subscribe to the notion that a landscape is a place to be, a place to sit seems like a very good idea. A place to take a break, to contemplate your future, to watch the birds, to have a glass of tea-excellent.
We make this scrolled steel furniture, galvanize it, and acid wash it. It has the look of lead, that blue grey with a white bloom. This furniture is amazingly comfortable for being made of steel. I think it is very good looking and appropriate in either a traditional or contemporary setting. But most of all I like that it looks like garden furniture-and not the furniture I have in my living room. 
In the past few years I have seen plenty of garden furniture, made from weatherproof materials, that looks like indoor furniture; this does not appeal to me. I like everything in the garden, to look like it belongs there. Thus I prefer my sofa in my living room, and not on my terrace. I very much like these 18th century Coalbrookdale chairs, in the nasturtium pattern. They look like they were made for a garden.
This is an early 20th century French faux bois bench. Literally translated, faux bois means false wood. The bench is concrete over a steel armature, that was carved to look like wood. I doubt it is a place you would want to sit for long, but it most definitely is a lovely place to sit and enjoy a garden moment. It is just as lovely as a garden ornament. 
Pool furniture almosts asks for cushions. Hot steel and bare legs is not such a good combination. Be sure if you buy of have cushions made for your garden furniture, that they are constructed using exterior foam, which drains quickly and dries out. Hauling cushions inside when there is a threat of rain is a nuisance. The technology of new fabrics rated for exterior use is considerable. These fabrics are sunfast, and mildew resistant. This suite of furniture looks like a cool spot to sit on a hot day.
Not so fancy, but plenty charming are vintage American garden chairs. I like everything about them-the shapes, the old paint, and the rust and how they rock. They are easy to find a spot for, and they are easy to move to another spot, should you have a mind to.
This very fine iron furniture comes from a small company in England. The black and white checked fabric on the cushions is very smart looking, and elegant.
This very old English wood bench has great style; the spindle back and the curved arms are very handsome. The yews and pots do a great job of highlighting its form. It is a friendly size .
The chaise lounge is a bed for the garden. Its scale and size makes it stand out in the landscape; the grouping suggests the company of friends and family. White fabric in the garden looks as fresh and crisp as white flowers. I cannot imagine using a chaise, but I like looking at them.
Stripes seem especially appropriate for a garden too. Reminiscent of vintage awnings, they are inviting and pleasing to the eye. These chairs are great for an extended visit in a garden.
A place to sit in a garden is an essential element of landscape design. Plan where you will sit in your landscape with as much care as you plan what you will see when you sit there.
I live in a very urban area-there are endless buildings and paving of all descriptions. Thus I am always admiring of any business that makes an effort to plant. These sassy boxes we did for a jazz club downtown out of exterior sign board board are very durable, and certainly did doll up the location. Even freshly planted, they look great.
I did this planting outside a local art museum. Public parks and the like come with land, and that land can be planted-but city businesses are typically located in an ocean of paving designed for cars, pedestrians, and delivery trucks. It just takes some ingenuity and effort to put up a little garden against all the hardscape. Business owners tell me that any effort they make to dress up their businesses outdoors gets noticed. My feeling is that the presentation of the business on the outside says a lot about how things are done on the inside.
These window boxes were made to sit on a wall that divided the restaurant parking from the sidewalk. The restaurant owner is an avid gardener herself, and she maintained these boxes herself. Her committment is obvious. She was sure that people driving by were drawn in by the flowers-and the idea that she probably maintained her restaurant with the same level of care as she did her landscape. 
Any landscape in an urban area is bound to attract attention. These boxes get a new look every season. The women who own this shop, Tender, have a considerable involvement in their community-its not hard to believe, looking at the front of their store. I really like the idea that they appreciate that the community at large keeps them in business-and they give back to that community by making trying to make their part of that community a little more beautiful. 
This gated community made a big investment in a beautiful landscape, and lots of flowers, with me. Anyone who lives there benefits. The pots at the entrance have a much more residential, than commercial look; the plantings are at eye level to whomever passes under the port cochere.
The landscape at my store is simple, and evergreen. It allows me to change out the seasonal part of the planting, and still have structure. What is most beautiful about this to my eye is how it is looked after. It speaks to my respect for the natural world, and the people who come here.
I had these boxes made of heavy gauge galvanized sheet metal from a heating and cooling contractor- very reasonably. We set them up off the ground on steel ball feet. The client was more interested in what would be in the boxes, than the boxes themselves. He says the boxes are a constant topic of conversation between he and his clients. New clients say they were interested in what kind of business would plant outside their store in this way. Even though the boxes are on the north side of the building, a lot of light is reflected from the street. The choice of plant material and colors is very much his taste. I like businesses that take the inside, out there.
This monochromaticplanting of Australia canna, red-leaved hibiscus, Gartenmeister fuchsias, and chocolate potato vine is a sophisticated statement-appropriate for an advertising agency. 