Welcome To

5 When you think of the great outdoors, what comes to mind? Perhaps you've witnessed the metamorphic power of your exterior surroundings, or you're familiar with the dreamy impact of fanciful landscaping. Maybe a perfect-for-you backyard space serves as the ultimate sanctuary for both relaxing and entertaining. No matter how you experience—or want to experience—your own slice of the outdoors, what will become abundantly clear as you flip through these pages of our latest tome, Inspired Outdoor Living, is that creating an aesthetically stunning and thoughtfully designed exterior living space has been elevated to nothing short of an art form. But this wasn't always the case. Over the last 40 years, I've been honored to produce more than 200 coffee table books, the vast majority of which have featured high-end residential architecture and design. And I've personally witnessed the evolution of design, materials, methods, and approaches by the thousands of leading architects and designers whose work has graced our pages. But, without reservation, I feel the biggest shift in residential design is in the importance of outdoor living spaces of our dream homes. In the last four decades, we've collectively seen the space outside of a home go f rom mere afterthought to all- encompassing masterpiece. What once was basic landscaping and possibly a functional pool and deck is now a jaw-dropping outdoor living and recreation destination that rivals even the finest luxury resorts. The outdoor design professionals who orchestrate every single setting are visionaries. No longer are these industry leaders operating in singular, siloed roles, either. While they are masters in their areas of expertise, very often, they contribute mightily to the outdoor living space as a whole. They are fully integrated in the entire project, f rom construction to completion, bringing in specialized teams as necessary to help complete the plan. When a home's outdoor environment is designed with the blank canvas of raw land, magical things happen. You'll see many enchanting design-builds featured in this book along with equally impressive redesigns and renovations. You will observe one-of-a-kind craftmanship in tile and masonry across master plans. We'll also shine a light on how far landscape lighting has come with technology, materials, and creativity. And you'll be enthralled by flourishing gardens, remarkable fire features, and dazzling poolscapes. Ultimately, architects, interior designers, and builders are designing outdoor living environments where the lines are beautifully blurred; where the outside becomes part of the inside and vice versa. Enjoy the immersive power of these outdoor living environments in the pages beyond. Getting outdoorsy has never looked better. Brian Carabet Publisher Introduction Designed by FineLines Design Studio, Dallas, TX, page 315 Designed by Michael Glassman & Associates, Sacramento, CA page 318

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