Top 2024 Calabasas Yard Renovations

The top Calabasas yard renovations for 2024 include embracing sustainable landscaping with native plantings and rain gardens, and expanding outdoor living with multifunctional patio designs and kid-friendly safety features. Garage conversions by EHD Builders offer a practical way to increase home space, transforming garages into stylish living areas.

1. Sustainable Landscaping Trends in Calabasas

For households looking to refresh their outdoor spaces, Calabasas’s sustainable landscaping trends present many advantages. They promote the use of native plants and the sort of water-efficient, handsome design elements that might make any residence the envy of its neighbors. Chief among these features is the rain garden, which captures and cleanses stormwater runoff before it can make its way to the local creek. The native plants here do best when “drenched” in sunshine for most of the day, and they also exist in a sort of “zone” where they’re sheltered from the wind.

Plants that are native to the local climate require much less water than non-natives that are imported from other parts of the world. Thus, they are a much better choice for Calabasas’s drought-prone conditions. This conservation practice, when paired with rainwater collection systems, yields a dramatic reduction in the footprint that the average residence has on the environment. But even more so, they demonstrate the benefit of replacing traditional lawns with eco-friendly alternatives like decomposed granite or pea gravel.

Projects close at hand, like the Culver Boulevard Stormwater Capture Project, show Calabasas residents how effective management of rainwater can help drive conservation at the community level. Pioneering nearby efforts reveal how the clever use of hardscaping can eliminate the need for turf, while reducing runoff and delivering rainwater right where it’s needed most.

The shift toward sustainable landscaping underscores a commitment to aesthetically pleasing and environmentally beneficial outdoor spaces. These practices make for good visuals and even better sense environmentally.

2. Expanding Outdoor Living with Innovative Patio Designs

In 2024, the patio layouts in Calabasas embrace an even greater degree of multifunctionality, having evolved from the linear and principled designs of the past. If these spaces were once simple extensions of the home—rooms with roofs that, when it was nice out, allowed for living to happen outdoors—they now serve as crossover zones, interstitial spaces that are equally conducive to living, entertaining, and, above all, relaxing.

Homeowners wanting to maximize indoor-outdoor harmony are investing in huge sliding glass doors and aren’t skimping on seating. They use these elements to literally and figuratively bridge the divide between indoor and outdoor living, creating spaces that are not just pleasing to the eye but also practical for the kind of effortless living that spills right out into the fresh air.

Patios are flexible spaces now, capable of accommodating a range of activities. They are no longer just places where the average American family can pop outside for a few minutes of half-hearted R&R. With outdoor kitchens and plush “living room” furniture, those pop-up patios have morphed into the kind of architecture that can pull a casual party together—so much so that, in some upper-crust households, the patio is edging out the traditional dining room as the best place for a summer shindig.

Innovation emphasizes comfort and personalization. Motorized pergolas possess not only aesthetic charm but also functional versatility, boasting features such as retractable shades that ensure effortless operation when integrated into a smart home ecosystem. They also come with adjustable louvers that allow for light control, ensuring that you are always “in the right light.”

The desire for enjoyable seating emphasizes the trend of bringing indoor comforts to the outdoors. Sofas and sectionals take the place of not-so-comfortable outdoor chairs, promising cozy evenings with durable, performance fabrics that ensure comfort and longevity. As with most of what goes into these outdoor “rooms,” the look is stylish, with welcomed nods toward both environmental and social responsibility. Bamboo, anyone? Recycled plastics?

Keely Smith, an interior designer, points out, “Materials that might seem too informal are increasingly common for porches and outdoor rooms. That includes stone, wood, and tile—materials that also work well for paved passes and outdoor room walls. If these look and feel right for the inside of your home, then they can work just as well for the outside.” This melding of indoor and outdoor materials is all part of a growing trend toward luxurious transitional spaces.

3. Safety First: Kid-Friendly Yard Renovations

Making sure children have a safe and enjoyable backyard is a serious matter in Calabasas. It is possible to practice safety without sacrificing creativity or fun. With the look of your yard in mind, new trends emphasize protective elements that blend in with designs you might think of as more conventional.

An essential aspect of safety renovations involves applying soft surfaces like grass, sand, or rubber mulch around our play areas. These materials cushion our falls and reduce our risk of injury. The Kid-Friendly Backyard Safety Renovations blog provides an in-depth look at how we can use these materials to safe our play zones. A key consideration is evaluating natural grass versus turf options. While natural grass is softer, offers cooling effects, and improves our air quality, turf poses some substantial safety risks. Those risks include the use of infills, which can be unsafe, while alternatives like organic infills or silica sand are much safer options.

A dependable outdoor space is often characterized by a strong enclosure around its pool, enhanced by the sort of clever gadgets one might associate with a house. These add-ons—the automatic cover and the alarm, for instance—don’t exactly make the pool area look inviting, which is how it should be if the space is to remain kid-friendly. After all, it would be pretty tough for a pool to be both secure and fun, wouldn’t it?

Landscape designer Chloe Greenfield says, “Yards for children are friendly and fun while also being safe. I think it is very possible to have an environment where a child can have their own sort of world that is also very safe and secure.”

Integrating the design elements of safety and exploration creates an environment in which young children can thrive—an environment where they are given the freedom to grow, play, and just be themselves in a sort of private utopia. Families can achieve this balance with the help of experts like the EHD Builders, who recently penned a blog post about the elements that go into a “kid-friendly yard.”

4. EHD Builders: Garage Conversions Transforming Yards

Residents of Calabasas are finding creative ways to enlarge their homes without resorting to conventional additions. These innovative thinkers have discovered that the garage is a great place to start when looking to repurpose underutilized areas of the home. EHD Builders is one of the firms that handle these not-so-simple projects with a level of expertise that ensures that the finished space is both code-compliant and livable. The garage-conversion—as a concept and a practice—fits right in with what builders and designers in California and elsewhere have come to call “granny flats.”

Garages that aren’t being fully used can be turned into comfortable guest rooms or vivacious game rooms, if the lighting is planned and installed strategically, the doors are kept French, and the ceilings are vaulted. Then there’s inviting.

An adequately planned garage conversion makes the most of an already constructed structure and affords a cost-effective alternative to new builds. For those of us needing a little more space in our homes, this approach is kinder to the budget and adds far more value to the property than a similarly priced basement remodel.

In a way, a garage conversion is more space-efficient than an attic or basement remodel could ever hope to be. Besides, a garage is just a semi-conditioned space away from the outdoors, with the prospect of potential living space in any number of configurations.

EHD Builders guarantees a smooth transition because they emphasize adherence to local zoning regulations and building codes. Their experienced team assists homeowners with assessments of feasibility, optimization of design, and management of necessary permits. One satisfied client, John Smith, recounted the following:

“The transformation of our garage to a stylish, modern above-ground living space was one that required serious consideration, as we had to ensure we followed all building codes and regulations. EHD Builders walked us through the process, and they were well worth the investment.”

– See Client Stories

Families contemplating the renovation of their garages can look to EHD Builders’ portfolio for inspiration. The portfolio showcases the many successful projects they’ve completed for homeowners just like you. Do you envision a garage as a serene retreat, a lively art studio, a spacious playroom for your children, or possibly a combination of all three? If so, you might be the perfect candidate for a garage reno. Learn more about EHD Builders and how they can make your dream a reality.

FAQ

What are the benefits of sustainable landscaping in Calabasas?

Sustainable landscaping isn’t just about looking good. It offers a plethora of benefits, from conserving resources—especially water—to supporting local wildlife. It may not be common knowledge (or common practice) even among landscape professionals, but “sustainable landscaping” describes much more than what meets the eye. It involves practices, principles, and the application of science that can have a direct effect on the planet’s health, from the very local to the mile-high perspective.

How can homeowners integrate indoor-outdoor harmony in their patios?

Achieving harmony between indoor and outdoor spaces can be as simple as sliding open a door. Homeowners target the visual and spatial blending of indoor and outdoor areas, using moveable walls of glass and carefully considered furnishings. The effect is beautifully practical, allowing effortless transitions between the two realms for both relaxation and entertaining.

What are the popular materials used for sustainable patios in 2024?

Bamboo and recycled plastics are common materials for eco-friendly patios, exemplifying a commitment to responsible environmental practices. Both materials confer a durable and stylish look to sustainable outdoor living spaces. Even better, they take virtually no toll on the planetary ecosystems that make human life possible.

How can backyard renovations prioritize kid safety without sacrificing fun?

Backyard renovations with an emphasis on safety can include play area surfacing that cushions falls. The best options if you live in the sort of climate that allows for outdoor play year-round are grass, sand, or rubber mulch. Each of these materials has its pros and cons, but all of them allow for comfy, easy landing and a sense of peace while your child plays. Playgrounds also need sturdy, secure, and clear enclosures. Counselors at Playworks, a nonprofit that promotes safe play through national standards, visited 113 schools in 2017. They found that 70 of them had unsafe playgrounds.

What are the advantages of garage conversions for expanding living space?

Converting a garage into extra living space is a low-cost, low-hassle way of expanding a home, especially if you have a two-car, you’re-home-a-lot kind of garage. (Okay, my invitation to sing “The Anacostia River” is rescinded.) But you can also keep going if you don’t have much garage to work with. Either way, the ceiling insulation is the same. And that’s what aids in adding value to an already solid structure. So, if you’ve got the kind of garage that can do this for you without too much work, you’re better off than quite a few folks already.

How does EHD Builders assist in garage conversion projects?

EHD Builders helps clients follow local zoning laws and building codes. Our team works with homeowners to carry out feasibility assessments, to optimize designs, and to manage the permitting process. We ensure the conversion is as smooth and efficient as possible.