featured property Wellesley Four-Season Escape

Wellesley, MA | Set in Wellesley, this featured property began with a practical goal: make the backyard easier to use. What emerged was something far more complete. The homeowners wanted a landscape that could support the pace of family life while offering a sense of calm, privacy, and connection close to home.

Our team reworked the sloped site into a welcoming sequence of outdoor spaces that feel intuitive, comfortable, and fully integrated with the house. The result is a landscape designed not for occasional use, but for everyday living in every season across one of Greater Boston’s most desirable residential communities.

At the heart of the property is a custom pool terrace paired with a screened porch addition, covered circulation, an outdoor kitchen, and a natural stone fire feature. Each element was planned to work together, creating a seamless relationship between indoor and outdoor space.

Large openings from the home improve flow for entertaining, while radiant heat, retractable screens, and snow-melt systems help extend comfort well beyond summer. In a New England climate, details like these make a meaningful difference. The landscape feels equally suited to a quiet family evening, a relaxed weekend afternoon, or a larger gathering with friends.

One of the defining challenges of this Wellesley property was the grade change that had made the backyard feel disconnected, underused, and difficult to navigate. Before the project, the rear yard lacked clear grading and spatial definition, leaving it without the structure, circulation, or comfort needed for everyday use.

Through careful regrading, terraced construction, and coordinated architectural and landscape planning, we transformed the site into a series of linked outdoor rooms with clear circulation and strong visual cohesion. Working closely with New England Design & Construction, the project also respects the character of the home, extending its architectural language into the landscape with a sense of permanence and ease. Broad stone terraces, a custom pool, a screened porch with retractable screens, an outdoor kitchen, and a fire feature now give the family distinct places to gather, relax, entertain, and spend time outdoors in more seasons of the year. The result is a landscape that feels not only beautiful, but intuitively organized and genuinely useful from one space to the next.

In the completed property, the backyard now reads as a fully realized outdoor environment, with each space positioned to support how the family lives and gathers. Layered planting beds soften the masonry, frame views, and deliver seasonal interest throughout the year. Hydrangeas, flowering shrubs, evergreen structure, and long-lasting perennials bring texture and rhythm while supporting a refined, low-maintenance landscape experience. Just as important for a busy household, the materials and layout were selected to balance visual impact with durability, comfort, and ease of use over time.

As the ongoing stewards of the property, we continue to care for the gardens so the landscape matures beautifully over time. The result is a true outdoor retreat in Wellesley: elegant, functional, and designed for the way this family wants to spend time at home.

Location: Wellesley, MA (02482)
Features: custom pool, patio, outdoor kitchen, fire feature, terraced stonework
Project Type: four-season outdoor living
Services: landscape design, construction, seasonal planting, maintenance
Landscape Design: a Blade of Grass
Architect and Builder: New England Design & Construction