Montecito Mountain Top
This secluded spot up tucked above Montecito might be the perfect private oasis, with expansive views of the Pacific Ocean and panorama of the Santa Barbara coastline from Goleta to Ventura was the ideal blank canvas for a new landscape design.
The first was the redesign of the front entry. Guests continually used the door to the kitchen and stairs to the office because they couldn’t find the front door. The existing concrete paving was dated and in fact distracted from the beauty of the home. The solution was to visually lead guests to the grand entrance and “hide” the two entrances we didn’t want them to use. The unusual use of curving lines in Travertine along with carefully placed trees was effective and genius.
The second task was to create shade for a south-facing room. The solution was to create an allée of trees under which was built a flagstone patio. The trees softened the lines of the house, created the shade that was needed and didn’t interfere with the view.
Two Travertine patios were added on the ocean view side of the house and a “country lane” lined with wild flowers was created that meandered along the hill and continued through the Oak Woodland. This easily walkable path of crushed stone creating easy access to the entire property. A sauna, some raised beds and mini-orchard tucked behind the retaining wall on the east side, all out of view from the rest of the home was the final touch.
