Laura Haskell, Laird Stoneman and Andrew Stoneman stand under a Japanese maple at the front of their 1960 house. The couple created an elegantly spare courtyard in front of the 1,500 square-foot home using patterned cinder blocks. “I liked the motif,” Haskell says of the blocks, though she adds that there aren’t as many options as one might think. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
The view from the street: The house makes its statement in white-on-white minimalism. Though the couple transformed the frontyard with the patterned blocks, they left the existing olive tree as the heart of the new courtyard. (Andrew Stoneman)
The couple designed the front courtyard together, adding a concrete patio and decomposed granite. A concrete planter surrounding an enormous olive tree (foreground, at left) provides extra seating and serves as a table in a pinch. “I wanted to create something minimal and peaceful and calming,” Haskell says. The gray table and chairs were $50 on Craigslist. The two chaises and side table in the background are from the couple’s Haskell Collection. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
The bougainvillea and other plants in front came with the house. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
Papyrus plants, also remnants of the old landscape, line the walkway to the front door. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
Inside the front door, the family’s living room leads to the backyard. To create the triptych on the wall, Haskell enlarged photographs from a trip to Italy. “While napping in a park in Rome, I took a photo of the trees above me,” says Haskell, a vintage textile consultant for Marc Jacobs, Stussy, Paul Smith and other firms. " I am always looking for calm and serenity. The triptych makes me feel like I am lying underneath those trees again.” (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
Haskell, whose vintage clothing finds serve as inspiration for designers, works from home. She covered the bulletin board in her office with an Eastern Indian printed dress. On her right is a selection of vintage textiles for the Gypseye Vintage Home collection of pillows that she sells on Etsy. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
The couple created a delightful wall graphic in son Laird’s room by sketching the tree on the wall, taping the outline and then painting the tree and leaves with acrylic paint. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
The backyard is a series of spaces where the family can live, work, play, dine or simply relax. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
Succulents and lava rocks, found on site. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
Stoneman created a lounge area using found rocks for the fire pit and scrap wood for seating. He edged the perimeter with dried bamboo and succulents. “I cut long lengths of the bamboo and wove them to create a border,” he says. “It’s more about creating definition between the lawn and everything else.” (Andrew Stoneman)
Stoneman used cuttings of succulents to create a low-cost border around the lawn. (Andrew Stoneman)
A path underneath a navel orange tree leads from the fire pit to another seating area. Elsewhere in the backyard, a raised bed includes broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, parsley, red onion, butter lettuce and strawberry. Stoneman crafted the raised bed from scrap lumber as well. “He sees things in what people throw away,” Stoneman’s wife says. His response: “It’s amazing what you can do with what you have.”
