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This renovated patio in La Jolla doesn’t for a minute lose sight of the property’s world-class ocean view. “Most of the time, the weather is perfect,” says architect T. Dustin Hauck. The homeowners now can sit on the back patio pretty much year-round and look through the main house to the ocean. And on those cooler coastal nights, they can warm up around the fire pit.

As part of a complete renovation of this ranch house, Hauck replaced the two-car garage with a guest house and home office, and included a covered patio as a transitional space for lounging, dining and cooking. “San Diego’s climate lends itself to these shared inside-outside spaces,” he says.

Threshold: Coastal San Diego’s year-round mild climate makes it easy to eliminate the separation between indoors and outdoors. Hauck installed roll-up overhead doors like those found in many garages. “We used clear glass here to maintain visual access in and out of the pool house,” he says. ”These same doors are on the garage, but there with smoked glass for privacy but still to allow light to come through.”

He maintained the same floor level between the pool house and the deck for a smooth transition. Inside, the floor is stained, polished concrete. The pool deck is colored concrete pavers.

Patio Details: Color and Industrial Touches Transform a Narrow Spot

Patio floor: 12- by 24-inch CalArc precast concrete pavers by Stepstone with poured-in-place accent pavers with a pebble finish. The pavers themselves are not pervious, but Hauck spaced them so that water drains between the gaps directly back into the landscape, containing all stormwater on site.

Pergola structure: 3½- by 3½-inch steel tube posts with 4- by 10-inch steel beams around the perimeter. All the steel has been painted black.

Patio cover: 2- by 6-inch western red cedar slats rest on a 2- by 2-inch angled steel piece welded inside of the perimeter beams. Blocks between the slats help with stability and continue the solid-wood look around the frame’s perimeter. The slats are stained with a semi-transparent, oil-based stain to match the wood siding of the house.

Pergola dimensions: 10 feet deep, 20 feet wide and 9 feet tall (to the bottom of the beams)

Attached or detached? Detached. The pergola is 30 inches away from the pool house, and the posts are aligned with the pool house edges and garage door openings, and centered in the other direction on the grill.

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Plants surrounding the patio: Plants that thrive in coastal Southern California’s mild year-round temperature were selected. All require plenty of sun and good drainage. “These plant combinations mainly focus on silvery gray-blues and burgundy-purple hues, evoking an untamed coastal look with wildly contrasting foliage texture,” says landscape architect Michael Douglas Brennan. A similar palette could create the same drama.

● Silver carpet (Dymondia margaretae, USDA zones 9 to 11) ● Echeveria (Echeveria spp, zones 8 to 11) ● Giant wild rye (Leymus condensatus ‘Canyon Prince’, zones 7 to 11) ● Milk bush (Euphorbia tirucalli, zones 10 to 11), in a container

Considerations: “Most of the outdoor materials are very versatile and could be used just about anywhere,” says Hauck. “The countertops have no resins or glues that could discolor in direct sunlight. The only concern is maintenance of the stained woods. They should be monitored and restained probably once every few years depending on their exposure.”

Architect: T. Dustin Hauck of Hauck Architecture Interior designer: Jessica Bishop of Hauck Architecture Landscape architect: Michael Douglas Brennan of Carson Douglas Landscape Architecture Builder: Mike Bonfield of MBB Construction Furniture selection: Carol Kaplan of Everything Creative Designs and Nicky Kaplan ofNicky Kaplan Interiors

More: Make Your Patio Plans a Reality

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