Outdoor Living

PROJECT 1:

Landscapers on the Eastern Shore create diversity in properties through their work. In a region where flat yards rule the land, to encounter much of anything else at the inception of a project becomes the proverbial exception. So when Bryan LeCompte set foot on a Salisbury property in need of a backyard makeover because the land sloped too dramatically to use, his creative juices went into overdrive.

 

“This truly was a neat project for us because the homeowners had no yard to speak of whatsoever,” Bryan said. “The slope began at the back off their home and immediately started dropping off towards the lake below. This was a scenario that allowed us to utilize our talents and employ some techniques we traditionally do not get to use on a daily basis.”

 

Over the course of the next nine days, LeCompte and his Yard Designs crew essentially created a setting the homeowners had only dreamed of.

 

“Everything that we did was strategically catered to maximize the elevations and the incredible views of the lake,” Bryan said.

 

They began by re-grading the entire terrain and relocating massive amounts of dirt to predetermined positions that were then crafted into a series of plateaus. Adjoining areas of the property were again re-graded and shaped to gracefully slope down to the water’s edge.

 

From the back of the home, a series of steps now leads to an attractive and functional Devon stone patio that provides uncompromised views of the newly reconstructed landscape and lake. A second set of steps points to an intimate path marked by handsome walking stones that concludes at the aesthetic highlight of the transformation.

 

“We built a high retaining seat wall and a firepit that separates the wall into two distinct seating areas,” Bryan said. “The firepit also extends outward creating the illusion that it is floating similar to a vanishing edge on a swimming pool, and we camouflaged the backside of this area with landscaping to create privacy for the homeowners from adjacent residences.”

 

This project has evolved without a master plan,” said Bryan LeCompte, owner of Yard Designs, Inc. “Most properties have one, but they are absolutely not mandatory by any means. The homeowner and I have collaborated numerous times about the possibilities and potential of this yard.”

 

That’s the beauty of beginning with a blank canvas, LeCompte said. The backyard of this property in Wicomico County has undergone four different phases to date. In the initial development, Bryan and his crew created a spacious brick paver patio, a fire pit, knee and sitting walls, a handsome, curving walkway that leads to the driveway and two pillars flanking the entrance curbside.

 

The second phase of the project saw the addition of the family’s popular pizza oven
– a design Bryan produced to accommodate the client’s needs for entertaining on a grand scale. The structure was furnished with handcrafted fire brick which allows the pizzas to cook properly and come out with an Old World flavor.

 

“This is how they used to build them in the old days. The more that oven is used, the more the fire bricks will cure and the maximum temperature output will continue to rise,” Bryan said.

 

LeCompte noted that the homeowner has tested its thermal power with a heat gun and recorded temperatures of up to 800 degrees Fahrenheit – hot enough to cook a large pizza in about 7 to 8 minutes.

 

Bryan also outfitted the pizza oven with a charcoal grill topped by a stainless steel grid, a firewood box, space for an outdoor refrigerator and an additional storage compartment.
The third and fourth phases saw the implementation of a bar, waterfall, landscape lighting and extensive landscaping.

 

Stately. Regal. Majestic. These are just a few adjectives that describe the fireplace Bryan LeCompte created as a showpiece of his company’s latest addition to their expansive and impressive landscaping resume. Suitable for royalty, it measures 18 feet tall, 5 feet deep and 20 feet wide and contains two chimneys and two wood boxes – just for starters.

 

“I’ve been thinking about this project for a long time,” Bryan said. “I wanted to build it on a large scale so people can see a grand fireplace. I want them to imagine that they can experience the feeling of relaxing outdoors at a luxury hotel and yet be in their own backyard.”

 

Comprised of 14,000 white painted bricks, the fireplace features two brick chimneys with a wrought iron fixture between them and a set of custom concrete keystones above the fireplace arch and the wood boxes. A pair of impressive columns bearing a bluestone mantel enhance the firebox and its handsome herringbone back wall. The patio is made of thermal-faced bluestone measuring 1.5 inches thick and is highlighted by a 6-foot by 9-foot clay brick circle inlay.

 

“People on the Eastern Shore are embracing the theory of an outdoor room / living space now more than ever,” LeCompte said. “Outdoor fireplaces provide functional and aesthetic value. It’s really a niche I feel our company fills exclusively on the Eastern Shore.”   

 

Bryan noted that there are only a few residential and commercial fireplaces of this magnitude on the Peninsula. He said that his company has designed and built more than 25 different outdoor fireplaces in recent years – all created to the homeowner’s wants and needs and all possessing their own distinctive look and characteristics. 

 

“Our job is to work within a homeowner’s budget to create an inviting, functional and beautiful space,” Bryan said. “Fireplaces are becoming a popular addition locally and we have the talent and experience to get the job done right.”



Yard Designs, Inc.

410-742-8003
b.lecompte@comcast.net
 

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