Old Leeds
Perched atop a small wooded ridge in the rolling hills of Mountain Brook, Alabama this new construction home built in 2016 is grounded in tradition with a modern point of view. We kept the exterior spaces simple, echoing the tone of architecture, creating garden rooms that are gracefully tucked into the slope of the lot with the help of moss rock walls capped in brick.
The drive spills into the motor court on center with the front door through moss rock piers and walls with reclaimed brick caps enclosing the motor court. The brick border surrounds a gravel court with a circular moss rock pad centered on the space. The simplicity of the space is complemented with carpets of Mondo and appropriately placed Boxwoods. An Amur Maple tucked behind a boxwood hedge helps frame the entrance walk, softens the architecture, adding some shade to the gravel courtyard with a limestone fountain adjacent to the front walk. The limestone fountain bowl and pedestal are loosely based on a baptismal font that the clients saw on a recent trip, with the proportions adjusted to the scale of the space.
Sized to limit tree removal and reduce retaining wall cost, the rear garden is a simple lawn terrace overlooked by screen porch and partially covered bluestone terrace, once again, with modo and appropriately placed boxwoods. Looking across the lawn into the forest beyond, a moss rock wall with brick cap allowed for a second fountain element. We pierced the wall with a bluestone rill spilling water into a centrally placed a basin at grade.
Architecture: Paul Bates Architects
General Contractor: Camp Construction
Landscape Contractor: Southern Roots Nursery
Fountain Contractor: Fountains of Birmingham
Sylvia Martin Photography