All Photos/outdoor/landscapes : grass/fences, walls : horizontal/patio, porch, deck : small/lighting : hanging/locations : side yard

Outdoor Grass Horizontal Fences, Walls Small Patio, Porch, Deck Hanging Lighting Side Yard Design Photos and Ideas

At midcentury-style Pavilion Haus in Houston, the home of StudioMET Architects principal and partner Shawn Gottschalk, Gottschalk ensured that kids could play freely in the contained courtyard while parents kept watch through the sleek glass panels. A large pedestrian gate doubling as the front door establishes a dialogue with nature found throughout the pavilion.

Mahogany decking continues onto this balcony, while a full-length slider makes it easy to fill the indoor spaces with fresh air. Curtains from The Shade Store provide privacy when needed.

"By using a shou sugi ban facade. we softened the materiality somewhat but pushed the intent further by creating a highly-faceted detail (almost like a latticework) that contrasts with the multi-colored and varied landscape and lakeside setting," Buhler explains.

"The house features two distinct approaches," says Schiller. "The family arrives via a long dirt road to the back side of the house, shaped as a single-story barn. Below the house, guests park in a dirt pull-off and arrive via a long grass path through meadow grasses, entering the house from the south via a wide, glue-laminated exterior stair."