Magnolia Vista
Lake Elmo, MN
Completed 2023
“I partnered with Mom’s and the results far exceeded my expectations! They thought of design and function elements that I hadn’t even considered. I highly recommend working with Owen – he is incredibly creative, has deep expertise, and is very ethical. Plus he is just a great guy! We’ve loved working with Mom’s!”
The Magnolia Vista project involved working with wonderful homeowners in a new development with minimal established trees. The main goal was to create a comfortable and private outdoor space, ideal for entertaining. A pergola was designed to provide comfort overhead while allowing natural light to filter through the windows into the adjacent space. Additionally, a look-through wall was strategically placed to beautifully frame a magnolia tree beyond, adding to the overall aesthetic and ambiance of the space.
Before
TA-DA!
Designed by Owen Sweeney
Behind the Design
Design Notes
Before
A single-level home in a new development with barely a tree in sight — and a primary bedroom that looked straight into the neighbors’ windows. The owners described it as living in a fishbowl.
The Idea
Two connected outdoor rooms: an entertaining space under a pergola that still lets light pour through the kitchen windows, and a private garden off the bedroom — closed to the neighborhood by a look-through stone portal wall that frames a magnolia tree beyond.
After
The pergola reads like it was built with the house — beams in powder-coated aluminum, trim in Azek, the wall’s siding color-matched to the original. A Kafka wax-granite path wanders the garden, dimmable pergola lights switch from inside, and the yard still stays open for running and playing.
The Brief
- —Transform builder-grade landscaping into something personal
- —Privacy for the bedroom — no more fishbowl
- —An outdoor dining space for hosting friends and family
- —Keep the light flowing into the kitchen and family room
- —Make it look original to the house
Materials & Craft
- Full natural stone veneer portal wall
- Powder-coated aluminum pergola beams
- Kafka wax-granite path
- Azek maintenance-free trim
- Dimmable LED pergola lighting
01
The portal wall
A look-through wall of full natural stone veneer frames the magnolia beyond it — a focal point that blocks sightlines while giving the eye somewhere better to go. Over-mortared stone gives it soul.
02
Light-first pergola
The pergola shades the patio without darkening the house — proportioned so natural light still filters through the kitchen windows, with electrical routed for future infrared heaters.
03
Two rooms, one garden
The entertaining space and the private bedroom garden are separate but connected — intimate and grand at once, in neutrals that play off the house.
The hard part
The existing rooflines were tall and never meant to take a pergola, the framing of the portal circle had to be perfect, poor soil had to be replaced wholesale for the plantings — and the long-lead aluminum beams made the whole schedule a planning exercise.
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