Our Two-Year (and counting) Renovation Adventure

I’m the Los Angeles Gardener, the accidental owner of a Spanish-style historic home in sunny Los Angeles! Yes accidental, I’ll get to that in a minute. This journey started during the pandemic my partner and I were cooped up in a Hollywood townhouse, not a patch of green in sight. “Think of how incredible it will to have a yard!” we’d say. We couldn’t stop dreaming of having a Mediterranean inspired garden.

Escaping The Edit Bay

As a TV editor, I’m no stranger to long days in the edit bay, often finding myself glued to a computer screen for 12 hours at a stretch. I love what I do, but let’s be real, that kind of schedule can make anyone feel like they’re teetering on the brink of insanity. The Covid era, with its apocalyptic undertones, didn’t help either.

The Quest for Sanity

In our quest for sanity, we found ourselves daydreaming about the perfect house with the outdoor space we were fiending for. My partner and I, filled with unwavering optimism (or perhaps it was the cabin fever), starting hunting for a house with that elusive yard. We stumbled across this fixer upper…

Transforming a Blank Slate into a Mediterranean Style Landscape

The house’s stucco was in terrible condition. We made a significant decision to redo it. This choice came with a difficult trade-off – we had to say goodbye to the mature plants hugging our home’s edges. One after another, we sadly began to dig up these plants, silent sentinels of our home’s past. As they left, they signaled the close of an old chapter but also paved the way for the new one we were about to start. In their absence, a fresh canvas appeared, filled with potential and waiting for us to bring our dreams to life.

As we delved deeper into the remodel process, a local expert startled us with surprising news – “I’m pretty sure your house is historic,” they proclaimed. Caught off guard, I exclaimed, “What?!” We swiftly unearthed the evidence buried deep within our paperwork, confirming our house’s esteemed historic status. Remarkably, the previous owners had conveniently omitted this significant detail, likely due to the extensive renovations the house required.

Overcoming Hurdles in Restoring Our Historic Property

Embarking on the restoration of a historic home unveiled an intricate web of challenges. We soon realized that remodeling a historic property meant navigating additional layers of approval from the city, significantly expanding the complexity of our project. Every alteration, every design concept had to undergo meticulous scrutiny to ensure it aligned with the house’s historic integrity. This meticulous approval process demanded heightened attention on our part, while simultaneously extending the timeline required to bring our vision to life. Yet, with each carefully laid brick, each meticulously replaced window, and every thoughtfully designed element of the Mediterranean-style landscape, we steadily advanced, meticulously adhering to the city’s regulations to preserve and honor the cherished historic allure of our beloved home.

Our lively, green lawn shriveled up and died, and we had to yank out almost all our plants. It seemed like our front yard had turned into a barren wasteland. Our bright, green lawn dried up and died. We also had to pull out most of our plants. Our front yard looked like a desert. The problem wasn’t just inside our house anymore – the yard needed a big fix too. Clearly, we had a huge job ahead of us!

Embarking on Our Mediterranean Style Landscape Journey

After countless months of tireless work and stucco application, our front yard was finally ready for its metamorphosis. Standing on the threshold, looking out onto the now barren space, a blank canvas, I was buzzing with excitement and anticipation. The vast scope for creating a Mediterranean style landscape was thrilling. I’ve always had a deep appreciation for the laid-back and charming Cali-Mediterranean aesthetic. Given our Spanish style home, it felt both appropriate and respectful to echo that architectural style in our yard. We set out to design, cultivate, and manifest a space that truly embodied this distinct, radiant style.

So, picture this: I’m immersed in stacks of gardening books, my browser history becoming a virtual manual of small-space gardening. Even my ego took a hit each time a plant decided not to grow. This journey has been one of uncovering new knowledge. First, I learned how to nurture a garden in a tight space. Then, I got creative, making a green screen for some privacy. Finally, I learned about the waiting game that comes with plant growth (and yes, I’m still working on mastering that one). The process has been full of ups and downs, but every step forward has been worth it.

Cultivating Change: Unearthing Lessons in Our Mediterranean Inspired Garden Transformation

This blog emerged from a whirlwind education – a crash course in the art and science of home and yard remodeling. We were thrown into the deep end, learning everything from plant care to mastering the intricacies of Mediterranean garden design, all while navigating an unexpected journey of mental wellbeing. Our journey has been filled with learning moments, big wins, and yes, a few missteps. We’ve learned so much, we just have to share it. We hope that by sharing what we’ve learned, the good and the bad, we can help others who are starting their own makeover journeys. We want to inspire you and show you that you can do it too!

Join the Adventure

It’s been a wild ride and there’s still much ground to cover (pun absolutely intended). Follow along as we continue to navigate the thorny path of urban gardening.