Christmas in April (continued)


We left the story, dear reader, right after Town Mouse had bought the patio furniture and Mr. Mouse had, as a Christmas gift, agreed to having a patio built. The next step was getting a builder. Town Mouse knew she could probably patch something together herself, but she wanted something attractive. So, in early spring, she got in touch with Ryan of BuenaLuna Landscape Design. Town Mouse had followed Ryan's blog and had seen some of the flatwork he'd done here. Very attractive indeed! However, Ryan lived in Richmond, which seemed a fair distance to a mouse. Still, Town Mouse got in touch, and Ryan and his partner Anita came to have a look at the patio site and the garden.

Town Mouse already thought BuenaLuna might be a good choice when they arrived, not in a big SUV, not in a big truck, but in a small station wagon. Some conversation ensued, and the professionals thought they could maybe do the patio in a day, so the distance was not a big problem. They were less impressed with the leftover flagstone Town Mouse had to offer. 


But they enjoyed the garden, and left agreeing to do the work later in the spring.

Town Mouse wasted no time and used up the flagstone for a new fountain (read more about that here).

 

Town Mouse also took a trip to Lyngso Garden Materials, where she much enjoyed the display garden, fountains, and laterns.


And then the agony of the stone choice. The Arizona flagstone was beautiful. 


And many colors were available. But the carbon footprint of that stone, while not bad, wasn't great. Stone is heavy, so you need to burn a lot of gas to get it from one place to another. 


Walking around, Town Mouse also saw Mariposa Flagstone, and found out that it comes from the Sierra foothills. Town Mouse really liked that stone, dark gray with yellow and rust highlights. And when she talked to Mr. Mouse about the stone choice, he was immediately in favor of the stone that had traveled a shorter distance, asking neither about color nor about price. 


And then Town Mouse started to exchange some email with Ryan....

Will Ryan be able to find a day in his schedule before the garden tour? Will a horrible downpour stop the work and delay completion? Can a dry-stone patio be made with Mariposa Flagstone, which is a slate? Can a round patio be made from a slate, which has a lot of straight edges?

To find out, come back for the final installment of Christmas in April!

Comments

Well, even though I was routing for the 'Arizona' flagstone, I do like the contrasting colors of the Mariposa. It is beautiful. I am looking forward to the next installment :-)
Christine B. said…
Good heavens...it reads like a soap opera! Hopefully the patio install will be finished in time, but what a cliffhanger.

Christine in Alaska
Anonymous said…
Oooh, excellent choice! I love a spouse who does not ask *how much does it cost*!!! I know Ryan will make this the most beautiful patio ever, and your fountain is fab. But those fountains at the shop blew me away! I can't wait for the big reveal! :-)
Frances
Chandramouli S said…
This is so exciting. I hope you don't get any bad weather and get the patio done soon. I can hardly wait. I love the chair especially and would love to see pots to bright-colored flowers in the patio! Have fun!
I'm not a fan of Arizona flagstone, in part because it seemed to be everywhere when I lived in the central valley. I've always loved the look of Blue Stone, so commonly used on the East coast (not that I'd use it here for same carbon footprint issue). The Mariposa stone is gorgeous though. I love the variability in the color. It seems it would pull more colors together in the garden. I can't wait to see how it turns out!
Diana Studer said…
Not only do we share the climate, our floors in the house and on the verandas are slate. African Blue, and then some Autumn toned like yours. Ours comes from up north (in South Africa). But I rejected Indian - all that way by ship, for a special colour?!
susan morrison said…
TM, the Mariposa flagstone is beautiful! I'm a complete hardscape junkie. Good thing Mr. TM didn't ask about cost because Arizona sandstone is the least expensive flagstone you can get so no question you've upgraded. Separate from the transportation issues, it's extremely porous and both breaks and stains easily. A denser stone will wear better. (Sorry, I know you mice are all about sustainability, but the designer in me can't shut up.)
And to build on Susan's comments, if something gets broken or stained and unsightly to the point where you'd want to replace it, going with something longer lasting does has some advantages, and might end up being greener...

Fun project. I can't wait to see how it turns out.
wiseacre said…
I could have shown you some sandstone that would have made you forget about it's carbon footprint :)

I like your choice of stone. My pick over any of the Arizona stuff.

And thanks for posting that photo of the rock lanterns. I believe I'll try making a fountain instead though.