An Hour of Play

#InTheMoment Tuesday

An #InTheMoment Tuesday letting this playful image speak all the words. Sometimes you need to regroup, rethink, reinvent, or just catch up on that year of conversation in an hour of play. No flowers, garden or design thoughts today - there's always the archives for that. 

It's just an #InTheMoment Tuesday to pave the path for creativity. Maybe just catch up with something or someone you've lost touch with - take an hour for play.

© Image by Ann Bilowz 

If you like this blog, check in for your daily share's worth of garden inspiration, landscape architecture and design tips; always original, not cookie cutter and copied. Just like our design work, we strive for unique! We invite you to contact Bilowz Associates, Inc., or to browse our portfolios. Like our Facebook follow on Twitter or subscribe to the blog to receive posts daily via email or a feed. You can follow with visuals on Pinterest and find us on LinkedIn and Houzz, too.  And you can also find us back on our Google+ Business Page. (Landscape architects/Landscape Design/serving Massachusetts and New England.)

Why Water Matters

Early Morning #PostCardMoments from the Lake

It’s another one of those #PostcardMoments from an early morning cycle along the lake. Sorry if boredom might be setting in but once again, this invaluable element wins out, even over the slowly turning foliage. And there’s always time for garden and design discussions, which leads us to that million dollar question - why does water really matter to us?  It’s not a water 101 lesson, although this invaluable resource serves us in so many ways. Our gardens and our reservoirs could definitely use a natural boost of water as this past summer proved a bit stingy on providing it in the way of precipitation. 

But what draws us to these #PostcardMoments from the lake? Can you define or explain that inspirational phenomenon of what leads us to water - that gravitational cause and effect; one that makes us brake and take it in? Margaret Atwood sums it up best – the reason why water matters. Hope you click the like or retweet button if you agree.  

“Water does not resist. Water flows. When you plunge your hand into it, all you feel is a caress. Water is not a solid wall, it will not stop you. But water always goes where it wants to go, and nothing in the end can stand against it. Water is patient. Dripping water wears away a stone. Remember that, my child. Remember you are half water. If you can't go through an obstacle, go around it. Water does.” 

It seems relevant on this Monday morning as we start off on our work week routines; one more important lesson from the lake. “If you can’t go through an obstacle, go around it. Water does.”  That’s all she wrote from Lake Waschacum. 

© Image by Ann Bilowz 

If you like this blog, check in for your daily share's worth of garden inspiration, landscape architecture and design tips; always original, not cookie cutter and copied. Just like our design work, we strive for unique! We invite you to contact Bilowz Associates, Inc., or to browse our portfolios. Like our Facebook follow on Twitter or subscribe to the blog to receive posts daily via email or a feed. You can follow with visuals on Pinterest and find us on LinkedIn and Houzz, too.  And you can also find us back on our Google+ Business Page. (Landscape architects/Landscape Design/serving Massachusetts and New England.)

The Bluebirds of Fall

The Bluebirds of Fall - 'Aster laevis 'Bluebird'

When there's only an image to share...enjoy.

© Image of ‘Aster laevis 'Bluebird' by Ann Bilowz

If you like this blog, check in for your daily share's worth of garden inspiration, landscape architecture and design tips; always original, not cookie cutter and copied. Just like our design work, we strive for unique! We invite you to contact Bilowz Associates, Inc., or to browse our portfolios. Like our Facebook follow on Twitter or subscribe to the blog to receive posts daily via email or a feed. You can follow with visuals on Pinterest and find us on LinkedIn and Houzz, too.  And you can also find us back on our Google+ Business Page. (Landscape architects/Landscape Design/serving Massachusetts and New England.

Thursday's Design Point

"Out of clutter, find simplicity." ~ Albert Einstein

When you rid yourself of clutter, there’s a sense of space opening up. Think of a room that’s being remodeled, emptied of all its contents. Peering into that empty space gives you some room for fresh thought. Removing the cluttered contents often opens the door for a brand new look. 

The same can be said for our outdoor spaces. Whether it’s a terrace, a perennial bed, or even a naturalized stand of trees, what accumulates in those spaces might need more than just a few adjustments. Sometimes it’s clearing an area to allow yourself some creative room to rethink your space. Things get overgrown, outdated. But that clean sweep of those cherished areas can offer a fresh start; an open slate. 

Are you ready to rethink your outdoor space? Maybe you're hoping for a new look, an open view. A trim and a fluff might be refreshing but noticeable and wow factor often come from clearing some excess out. Even in our outdoor rooms, over time, clutter can build up. 

Albert Einstein once quipped about the subject, “Out of clutter, find simplicity.” But simplifying things often takes some serious perspective. To sum up this thought process, Victoria Moran states something similar with a few more words. “When you’re clear about your purpose and your priorities, you can painlessly discard whatever does not support these, whether it’s clutter in your cabinets or commitments on your calendar.” Or in those outdoor spaces, sometimes it’s clearing an area to allow yourself some creative room to rethink your space. 

© Copyright note: this image and design have been developed by and is the property of Bilowz Associates Inc. and should not be reproduced in any manner nor are they to be assigned to any third party without the expressed written permission and consent of Bilowz Associates Inc. 

If you like this blog, check in for your daily share's worth of garden inspiration, landscape architecture and design tips; always original, not cookie cutter and copied. Just like our design work, we strive for unique! We invite you to contact Bilowz Associates, Inc., or to browse our portfolios. Like our Facebook follow on Twitter or subscribe to the blog to receive posts daily via email or a feed. You can follow with visuals on Pinterest and find us on LinkedIn and Houzz, too.  And you can also find us back on our Google+ Business Page. (Landscape architects/Landscape Design/serving Massachusetts and New England.)

Elegance

Elegance should captivate your audience.

There is one word that describes the application of excellence – 'Elegance'. When applying this principle to landscape architecture and design, this one word, ‘Elegance,’ should captivate your audience.

© Copyright note: this image & design have been developed by and is the property of Bilowz Associates Inc. and should not be reproduced in any manner nor are they to be assigned to any third party without the expressed written permission and consent of Bilowz Associates Inc.

If you like this blog, check in for your daily share's worth of garden inspiration, landscape architecture and design tips; always original, not cookie cutter and copied. Just like our design work, we strive for unique! We invite you to contact Bilowz Associates, Inc., or to browse our portfolios. Like our Facebook follow on Twitter or subscribe to the blog to receive posts daily via email or a feed. You can follow with visuals on Pinterest and find us on LinkedIn and Houzz, too.  And you can also find us back on our Google+ Business Page. (Landscape architects/Landscape Design/ serving Massachusetts & New England.)

Welcome #Fall2014

Welcome #Fall2014

It’s official – we can celebrate #Fall2014. Did you welcome in the morning?

I did. From one of my favorite places – the lake.

Peaceful yet awake...where's your favorite place? 

Happy autumn; welcome it in today. Choose your favorite place. Carve some time and celebrate. 

Another view of daybreak on the lake.

As the Turkish playwright, Mehmet Murat ildan brilliantly stated, “Not every lake dreams to be an ocean. Blessed are the ones who are happy with whom they are.” It's the reason I love to spend time at the lake.

 Happy Autumn - celebrate!

©Images by Ann Bilowz  

If you like this blog, hope you check in for your daily share's worth of inspiration, design, and garden tips; always original, not cookie cutter and copied. Just like our design work, we strive for unique! We invite you to contact Bilowz Associates, Inc., or to browse our portfolios for inspiration. Like our Facebook follow on Twitter or subscribe to the blog to receive posts daily via email or a feed. Either way, we hope you follow the postings somewhere in cyberspace and share it with your gardening friends. You can follow with visuals on Pinterest and find us on LinkedIn and Houzz, too.  And you can also find us back on our Google+ Business Page. (Landscape architecture/Design/ Massachusetts.)

Monday #InTheMoment

It's beginning to look a lot like pumpkins.

To put you in the fall mood, it’s a touch of imagery to set the tone. The content wagon is short on words, making today’s post a Monday #InTheMoment kind of space.

Beautiful autumn sunsets match the turning foliage.

And if you need a perfect quote to get you thinking autumn, Bill Bryson sums it up best in ‘I’m a Stranger Here Myself: Notes on Returning to America after Twenty Years Away.’ “It was one of those sumptuous days when the world is full of autumn muskiness and tangy, crisp perfection: vivid blue sky, deep green fields, leaves in a thousand luminous hues. It is a truly astounding sight when every tree in a landscape becomes individual, when each winding back highway and plump hillside is suddenly and infinitely splashed with every sharp shade that nature can bestow – flaming scarlet, lustrous gold, throbbing vermilion, fiery orange.”

Wherever you find autumn, it's our favorite time of year.

©All Images - property of Bilowz Associates Inc.

If you like this blog, hope you check in for your daily share's worth of inspiration, design, and garden tips; always original, not cookie cutter and copied. Just like our design work, we strive for unique! We invite you to contact Bilowz Associates, Inc., or to browse our portfolios for inspiration. Like our Facebook follow on Twitter or subscribe to the blog to receive posts daily via email or a feed. Either way, we hope you follow the postings somewhere in cyberspace and share it with your gardening friends. You can follow with visuals on Pinterest and find us on LinkedIn and Houzz, too.  And you can also find us back on our Google+ Business Page. (Landscape architecture/Design/ Massachusetts.)

#Inspiration in Grapes

As we inch into the fall harvest season, everyone thinks apples and pumpkins but what about grapes?

It’s a Friday garden moment - #Inspiration in Grapes. As we inch into the fall harvest season, everyone thinks apples and pumpkins but this lovely fruiting berry (grapes) often get forgotten or left behind. Check out a local vineyard in your area. Plan a fall road trip to include the wineries and discover these hidden jewels. If you live in the New England area, there are so many wineries to choose from plus you can include in the apple and pumpkin picking, too. Share your favorites. Plan your route.   

As Allan Sichel states, “Wine is a living thing. It is made, not only of grapes and yeasts, but of skill and patience. When drinking it remember that to the making of that wine has gone, not only the labor and care of years, but the experience of centuries.” As we inch into the fall harvest season, think of this lovely fruiting berry. That’s it in a Friday moment - #Inspiration in Grapes.

© Image by Ann Bilowz -  Friday Garden Moment

If you like this blog, hope you check in for your daily share's worth of inspiration, design, and garden tips; always original, not cookie cutter and copied. Just like our design work, we strive for unique! We invite you to contact Bilowz Associates, Inc., or to browse our portfolios for inspiration. Like our Facebook follow on Twitter or subscribe to the blog to receive posts daily via email or a feed. Either way, we hope you follow the postings somewhere in cyberspace and share it with your gardening friends. You can follow with visuals on Pinterest and find us on LinkedIn and Houzz, too.  And you can also find us back on our Google+ Business Page. (Landscape architecture/Design/ Massachusetts.)

#ThrowbackThursday Thoughts

What defines your neighborhood? Are people lingering, is it a vibrant hub?

When you hear the word ‘neighborhood’, what thought first pops into your head? Is it defined within a social context or is it geographical as in denoting a specific location? Now do the #ThrowbackThursday thing and go back a few decades or a century if you wish. How you thought of a neighborhood twenty to fifty years ago might be quite different than how you might define it today. Now ask yourself after thinking back, how do you define that same word, ‘neighborhood’ as you repeat it again? Is your definition different or the same?

Of course there’s an Annie tie-in, a direction on this #ThrowbackThursday post that parlays into the aspect of design. It requires a quick read on an interesting article, ‘Eastern edge of campus to become pedestrian-friendly.’ In a snapshot, this piece talks about “transforming urban streets…into vibrant hubs.”  What is specifically of design interest - how the United States is thinking a bit more European in its current neighborhood designs. As this article points out, “Since cars became the focus of landscape design in 20^th century American cities, urban streets have acquired “hostile environments that are only conducive to getting people from point A to point B.”  What drove American landscape design for cities (cars) is now revisited and revamped for pedestrian-friendly revitalization.  The end goal of this particular revitalization project is to create more than just a ‘means to an end.’ It’s an attempt to draw people back into the street scape and create a social and vibrant hub.

So that’s the #ThrowbackThursday thought; intended to throw you back just far enough to encourage your own design food for thought. What do you notice as you drive, pedal or walk through your own neighborhood or those areas you pass to get from ‘point A to point B?’ Are people lingering, is it a vibrant hub?

© Image by Ann Bilowz - #ThrowbackThursday image of Florence, Italy

If you like this blog, hope you check in for your daily share's worth of inspiration, design, and garden tips; always original, not cookie cutter and copied. Just like our design work, we strive for unique! We invite you to contact Bilowz Associates, Inc., or to browse our portfolios for inspiration. Like our Facebook follow on Twitter or subscribe to the blog to receive posts daily via email or a feed. Either way, we hope you follow the postings somewhere in cyberspace and share it with your gardening friends. You can follow with visuals on Pinterest and find us on LinkedIn and Houzz, too.  And you can also find us back on our Google+ Business Page. (Landscape architecture/Design/ Massachusetts.)

Late Summer #WordlessWednesday Moments

This rare and endangered flower, Gentiana andrewsii (Bottle gentian or Closed gentian) can be found blooming at this time of year. Nestled along the edge of the water, this one small patch was waiting to be found. 

On this #WordlessWednesday, the best kept late summer moments...

 

are those you happen to fall upon.

And if you missed yesterday's imagery of the Franklinia Alatamaha’s blossom, take another peek. 

 

The Franklinia Alatamaha Blossom 

Plus the link to the post, #InTheMoment - Tuesday's Landscape Focal Point to tell you all about the Franklin tree.

 
© Images by Ann Bilowz 

If you like this blog, hope you check in for your daily share's worth of inspiration, design, and garden tips; always original, not cookie cutter and copied. Just like our design work, we strive for unique! We invite you to contact Bilowz Associates, Inc., or to browse our portfolios for inspiration. Like our Facebook follow on Twitter or subscribe to the blog to receive posts daily via email or a feed. Either way, we hope you follow the postings somewhere in cyberspace and share it with your gardening friends. You can follow with visuals on Pinterest and find us on LinkedIn and Houzz, too.  And you can also find us back on our Google+ Business Page. (Landscape architecture/Design/ Massachusetts.)

#InTheMoment –Tuesday’s Landscape Focal Point

A garden focal point for the late summer, early fall -

© Image of a Franklinia Alatamaha blossom (Franklin Tree) by Ann Bilowz

When looking for focal points in your landscape, we often turn to a specimen tree. So here’s the Tuesday’s #InTheMoment landscape focal point. Named after Benjamin Franklin, the Franklinia Alatamaha, commonly known as the Franklin tree is not a typical choice for many landscape plantings. Yet with so many wonderful features and attributes, including its blossom alone, it’s deserving of the spotlight today. 

This Fletcher Steele favorite blooms in late summer, early fall; the perfect filler when much of your flowering landscape might appear tired. But this is more than fill and fluff. This specimen tree also becomes the focal point of your garden with its amazing fall foliage. Coupled with its delicate late blooming flower,  is there more you could want in a garden focal point?   

As Benjamin Franklin once pointed out, “If everyone is thinking alike, then no one is thinking.” So when everyone’s landscape looks typical and similar, it’s time to think out of the landscape box. Think Franklin, late blossoms and amazing fall foliage. That’s it for your #InTheMoment – Tuesday’s Landscape Focal Point.  And if you missed yesterday’s post, ‘Fallingfor the Landscape’  there is plenty of incentive for an outdoor facelift this fall.

© Image of a Franklinia Alatamaha blossom (Franklin Tree) by Ann Bilowz

If you like this blog, hope you check in for your daily share's worth of inspiration, design, and garden tips; always original, not cookie cutter and copied. Just like our design work, we strive for unique! We invite you to contact Bilowz Associates, Inc., or to browse our portfolios for inspiration. Like our Facebook follow on Twitter or subscribe to the blog to receive posts daily via email or a feed. Either way, we hope you follow the postings somewhere in cyberspace and share it with your gardening friends. You can follow with visuals on Pinterest and find us on LinkedIn and Houzz, too.  And you can also find us back on our Google+ Business Page. (Landscape architecture/Design/ Massachusetts.)

Falling for the Landscape

What draws you into a beautiful home? A well-thought out design inside and out. 

Making your landscape stylish and welcoming is a selling feature for your home.

What draws you into a beautiful home, especially when you haven’t seen its interior, its inner structure and bones? It's a Monday morning, fall wake-up call for anyone putting a home on the market. There's a lot of planning involved in successfully selling a home.

What's first on your agenda? The landscape should reflect the wonderful features waiting to be discovered inside the home. Your potential buyer might envision certain rooms before entering but it’s the architectural lines and the well-designed landscape that define a home's welcome. And while beautiful, pristine locations can be an easy sell, this recent article from Ball Publishing’s newsletter Buzz spells out why it is that perception, that first impression of what you see on the outside first, that setting, the landscape that can often sell your home.
 
If you live in New England, fall is an optimum time to market your home. Think foliage, pumpkins and apple pie as helpful selling features but if certain outdoor curb appeal is lacking, there could be lots of potential buyers taking that infamous U-turn before one even sets foot inside your home.

Take a few tips from this Ball Publishing article – fall for the landscape and then the home. And one big P.S. - never underestimate the value of a well-thought out landscape lighting plan. Light is a welcoming element and it should not get the axe or cheapened out when lighting your home. 

© Copyright note: this image and design have been developed by and are the property of Bilowz Associates Inc. and should not be reproduced in any manner nor are they to be assigned to any third party without the expressed written permission and consent of Bilowz Associates Inc. 

If you like this blog, hope you check in for your daily share's worth of inspiration, design, and garden tips; always original, not cookie cutter and copied. Just like our design work, we strive for unique! We invite you to contact Bilowz Associates, Inc., or to browse our portfolios for inspiration. Like our Facebook follow on Twitter or subscribe to the blog to receive posts daily via email or a feed. Either way, we hope you follow the postings somewhere in cyberspace and share it with your gardening friends. You can follow with visuals on Pinterest and find us on LinkedIn and Houzz, too.  And you can also find us back on our Google+ Business Page. (Landscape architecture/Design/ Massachusetts.)

Stepping Out

Bilowz Associates Inc. Landscape Design - 'Stepping out'

It's a known fact that a walk outdoors or spending time in a garden aids in our breathing. Another plus - creativity often flows better in places where it's easy to unwind. But these days, finding that OFF button means we must literally 'unplug'. One of the best ways to leave behind the tedium - create a green space where it's easy and available for 'stepping out'.

Not ready for a landscape challenge? Lace up your sneaks. Make a date with nature to enjoy on any given day. 

What sets the tone for creativity is experiencing nature firsthand.

© Top Image –‘Stepping out’ Copyright note: this image and design have been developed by and are the property of Bilowz Associates Inc. and should not be reproduced in any manner nor are they to be assigned to any third party without the expressed written permission and consent of Bilowz Associates Inc. 

© Sneaker and Sunrise Image by Ann Bilowz

If you like this blog, hope you check in for your daily share's worth of inspiration, design, and garden tips; always original, not cookie cutter and copied. Just like our design work, we strive for unique! We invite you to contact Bilowz Associates, Inc., or to browse our portfolios for inspiration. Like our Facebook follow on Twitter or subscribe to the blog to receive posts daily via email or a feed. Either way, we hope you follow the postings somewhere in cyberspace and share it with your gardening friends. You can follow with visuals on Pinterest and find us on LinkedIn and Houzz, too.  And you can also find us back on our Google+ Business Page. (Landscape architecture/Design/ Massachusetts.)