SubscribeSign In
Collection by Allie Weiss

Striking Backyard Transformations

With a little creativity, these outdoor areas went from misused plots to go-to hubs.

View 7 Photos
Shah, Suttles, and their daughter, Tesla, use their outdoor space as an extra room. Near the pool is a seating area with Bistro chairs from Fermob.
Shah, Suttles, and their daughter, Tesla, use their outdoor space as an extra room. Near the pool is a seating area with Bistro chairs from Fermob.
The backyard sports a sequence of raised flower and vegetable beds and two green roofs—one atop the workshop and other atop the back entrance.
The backyard sports a sequence of raised flower and vegetable beds and two green roofs—one atop the workshop and other atop the back entrance.
A prefab pool- and guesthouse designed by LABhaus frames views of a Massachusetts property’s original structure, a Dillman model Sears, Roebuck kit house from 1928.
A prefab pool- and guesthouse designed by LABhaus frames views of a Massachusetts property’s original structure, a Dillman model Sears, Roebuck kit house from 1928.
The outdoor area features an Apaiser tub. Opposite the house, on the other end of the garden, sits a music studio. "We are aiming to have the garden and house flow into each other,” says resident Michelle.
The outdoor area features an Apaiser tub. Opposite the house, on the other end of the garden, sits a music studio. "We are aiming to have the garden and house flow into each other,” says resident Michelle.
“When I come home, this is like a sanctuary. I open up the doors and sit outside and read, or work around the house,” says resident Colleen Nusinow.
“When I come home, this is like a sanctuary. I open up the doors and sit outside and read, or work around the house,” says resident Colleen Nusinow.
With ingenuity and plenty of elbow grease, architect John Tong turned an old Toronto dairy into the ultimate family clubhouse. Photo by Christopher Wahl.
With ingenuity and plenty of elbow grease, architect John Tong turned an old Toronto dairy into the ultimate family clubhouse. Photo by Christopher Wahl.