Lively Landscapes: Portfolio of an Artist on Whidbey Island

Westside Terraced Rock Walls: work-in-progress photos

2010-05-18T08:55:00.000-07:00

This rock wall project consisted of 3 long rock walls (pictured above) and 2 shorter ones, including a staircase/planter. The home and rock walls look out at a magnificent west side view on Whidbey Island (see below).

The view (above)

above: work-in-progress. Luc is spreading compost for the newly terraced planting beds

Spreading compost with the excavator

Marina and Stella head for the play set after a picnic lunch at the job site.

Above: one of the shorter rock walls in the foreground. Stella is standing in front of the stone staircase. I love how the slide is placed!

Above: the other shorter rock wall. The wall is topped with rocks to make a staircase-planter. The homeowners planted small ground cover plants between the rocks.

Building a Rock Wall with an Excavator (in the rain)

2009-11-12T10:20:00.000-08:00

Finished rock wall, puddles and all!

Luc's latest job, above, a long rock retaining wall that transitions the large hill above the resident's new house into a flat backyard. The past few weeks have been very wet with lots of rainfall, which poses unique challenges for building a rock wall, especially one like this that retains a hillside next to a house. Extra work was done to aid in drainage around and through the rock wall, including drain rock/gravel and a small culvert. Below are some pictures of the process:

above: the house is being built at the same time as the rock wall.

Some of the rocks that will be used

Luc and his girls

walking the line, on top the work-in-progress

staking it out

putting in the gravel

What do you have that will last hundreds of years?

2009-09-25T21:47:00.000-07:00

Stella smiles high atop her daddy's rock wall project

Luc is currently making a very long rock wall that's about 4 feet tall. The wall frames the home owner's property line, then curves around to meet the driveway. Stella and I stopped by on a sunny weekday to record the progress. Luc is using his excavator to place the large rocks and shape the earth. It is an often times tedious process, but it is incredibly rewarding to see the wall in all of it's magnificence! It may stand for hundreds of years, who knows? It will likely last longer than the house itself. That is some kind of responsibility!

Visit Luc's landscaping blog at: http://www.livelylandscapes.blogspot.com

or for a free job estimate call: 360-914-6022

Volunteer Work for Island (the Kids') Coffeehouse in Langley

2009-06-11T20:58:00.000-07:00

The "BEFORE" picture, above, with Luc's excavator parked and ready for work the next day . . .

Luc and his excavator (above) do the work of many people in just one day

Marina visits with dad at the work site

Above: this is how the landscaping looked after Luc removed some of the bushes on the west side of the coffeehouse

Above: paths are being put in and soil is being moved

Luc has been volunteering his time, excavator, and expertise to help the Island Coffeehouse and Book Store in downtown Langley renovate their landscaping.

Plans for the coffeehouse include expanding the building to include a second story, taking out the previous landscaping, and adding paths and plantings.

Island Coffeehouse's website describes the business as a "community-building showcase for collaborating with youth voices – in song, in art, and in poetry and prose. Through programs like Friday Night Live, Youth In Philanthropy and the sales of youth art, we give young people a space to contribute their artistic visions and their service to the South End of Whidbey Island."

The store is a non-profit business and is a program of the South Whidbey Community Engagement Center, and the South Whidbey Commons, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.

For more information on the coffeehouse and book store visit their website at:
http://www.islandcoffeehouseandbooks.org/values.html

Clearing Loads of Blackberries to Reveal a Barn and Field

2009-04-05T11:00:00.000-07:00

Before: Blackberries were taking over the field and had climbed all the way up to the barn's roof line.

Another view (to the right of the barn): massive amounts of blackberries

R: Before picture L: after some initial blackberry removal work was done via the excavator

Luc and excavator in action

More action pictures

Right: clearing the blackberries to reveal a very old stone building

L: Progress! R: some remaining blackberry branches in the barn windows

L: the girls watch and record Luc's progress R: Stella points to Daddy

L: Removing the blackberries reveals . . . the barn! R: Luc at work on a cold, wet day

Dealing with the blackberries: burning

The girls watch the fire with dad and warm their hands

Above: some of the massive piles of blackberries.

Raised Rock Planter makes a circular driveway

2009-03-25T16:24:00.000-07:00

Placing rocks after dumping off many many yards of dirt (see below pics) to make a planter and a circular driveway.

BEFORE: with rock pile and dirt piles. A lot more dirt to go . . .

And more dirt . . .

AFTER: There it is with the dirt smoothed and rocks placed to make the planter.

Rock Wall frames an entryway in the Woods in Langley

2009-01-24T08:33:00.000-08:00

This newly constructed home in the woods called out for a beautiful rock wall to frame the entryway and bring the elegant elements of nature from the surrounding woods in toward the home. Luc created this short rock wall, which will be the foundation for landscaping around the home. Above: the rock wall is under construction. Luc's hand tools are in the foreground.

The rock wall will act as a retaining wall for what might become a planting bed or a beautiful lush lawn. This time of the year there is a lot more water to work with both in the soil and raining down during work days. Above you will see some water that has puddled due to digging and earth moving that has taken place.

Above: measuring the length and width of the wall: a line marks the angle at which to build the back section of rock wall.

Completed rock wall!

Baby Stella's First Ride on the Great Yellow Machine (excavator)

2009-01-23T21:00:00.000-08:00

Luc takes baby Stella (1 year old) on the excavator, for the first time and...

... they load her wheel barrow with a rock ...

... and Stella takes over the controls

... I have this under control dad...

Here is how you move the bucket, Stella... well, she loved it!

Neighbors have a job too: excavating a road, spreading dirt, and making a 1st class RV perch

2008-12-18T17:26:00.000-08:00

Luc was working on the neighbor's terrace (see December 16th post) and the neighbors hired him and sometimes partner Doug Roraback to haul dirt to their site to create a parking spot for their RV on a steep embankment. The job consisted of filling in a large "dip" in the hillside with dirt and creating a road to the site. Once filled in, the area will serve as a parking spot for the home owners RV. The proposed parking site will also have a magnificent view of the water.

Doug hauled more than 25 large dump truck loads of dirt from Greenbank & Coupeville to the site in Clinton. Luc used his excavator to move the dirt, shape the land, fill in the dip, and lie gravel on the newly formed road. Here is where the road meets the new road Luc made

Filling in the "dip" and the view of the water.

Just beginning the filling in process. Look for this stump in the following pictures to get an idea of how the job progressed.

Part of the road to the RV site

RV site-to-be

Moving the dirt in to the site

Stump is pictured on the left. Excavator perched precariously.

Now this is perched precariously!

Road to the RV site with Doug's dump truck (blue) dumping a load at the future RV site.

the road to RV site
Above: the final finished platform

Terracing a steep hillside to create planting beds in Clinton: excavator, land remodling, dump truck work

2008-12-16T21:53:00.000-08:00

The owners of this property wanted to make their steep hillside into planting beds. Luc used his excavator to sculpt the land into 5 even terraces. This meant moving and bringing in a lot of dirt, including a nice layer of compost for the top (notice how dark the soil is!). The end result is a beautiful wave that undulates down the hillside. Next: planting!

Above: terraces with natural weed-reducing newspaper layer and on top of that compost

Above: terraces as viewed from hilltop

dump truck and excavator at work...

Terraces before adding newspaper and compost layers

Luc with his Lively Landscape Mobile competes in Langley's Soup Box Derby

2008-10-03T20:54:00.000-07:00

The prize! Luc with daughter Marina at the finish line

Marina watching the race from the curb, ready with umbrella for a possible down pour.

Above & Below: Luc and his friend Luke (yeah, same name different spelling) competed in the Soup Box Derby in Langley on Sept. 20th. Luc made the bicycle-inspired 3 wheeled vehicle and adorned it with fresh flowers and lawn chair. It was quite rainy, but lots of fun for all of us!

The Two Luc/Lukes in their costumes to match the flower mobile: bee and daisy. Aren't they brave?

Luc riding down the hill in his derby vehicle

Working in the Garden in October

2008-10-02T12:02:00.000-07:00

Clearing Trees & Brush in Greenbank

2008-09-08T20:54:00.001-07:00

ABOVE: Before clearing

ABOVE: After clearing. There are many more views not included of the lot, but this picture gives you an idea of the site.

ABOVE: (left) Luc's dump truck full of debris (right) the excavator bucket, repaired by Luc after he lost an excavator tooth.

ABOVE: clearing a home site and making a driveway for a couple who are going to build their home in Greenbank. They wanted to leave many of the trees and to clear out the brush and small trees. Luc did topple some large trees on this lot, taking good care to avoid the neighboring homes and a close-by fence! He hauled the debris away in his dump truck and accomplished all of the clearing with his excavator.

ABOVE: some of the trees (with stumps) that were removed from the lot.

Bulkhead in Sandy Hook

2008-09-06T21:23:00.000-07:00

Luc worked for Doug R. to create a bulkhead in Sandy Hook for a home on the water. The bulkhead is replacing an old bulkhead. Each block weighs 4,000 pounds, and they are called ecology blocks. The blocks were lifted and placed by the 28,000 pound excavator during low tide. Doug welded 3"x3/4" metal plates to the blocks to hold them into place. The men worked around water and electrical lines that ran out to the pier. The bulkhead is tied to the bluff by steel channel.

Blackberry and Land Clearing for Real Estate Sale

2008-09-05T11:32:00.000-07:00

ABOVE: Here is a "before" picture. Luc cleared a 1/2 acre area for the homeowners so that they could sell the lot for a better price. The excavator did the work of 3 men (one week +) in just 2 days and increased the value of the land. Now the potential buyers can really see what they are buying.

ABOVE: this picture shows how clean the excavator/Luc can leave the ground.

ABOVE & BELOW: More views of the clean ground from the excavator

Rock Walls with a View (Spring 2005)

2008-09-01T21:17:00.000-07:00

Luc began this job in the spring of 2005 and finished it early that summer. It consisted of 2 rock walls one above the other, separated by a steep slope. The Lower Wall is situated at the base of a steep slope and served to increase the parking space and aesthetic appeal of the driveway. Before the wall, the homeowners had some trouble turning in their cramped driveway. The property is located on the east side of the island and their home is on a bluff that drops off into the water. The Upper Rock Wall is located at the top of the property and was made by dumping and compacting a large amount of soil to make the slope at the top level enough to increase the usability of the land. All in all the job consisted of:
-building of 2 large rock retaining walls with an excavator
-one rock stairway (upper rock wall)
-delivery of rocks and soil to property
-moving of soil from delivery zone through a 5 foot wide path to the Upper Rock Wall with a loader

(Above) A picture of the finished lower rock wall, with Luc in front of it. Luc worked very hard to make sure that the Kinnickinnic bush (with red berries above his head) was left undamaged. It is such a beautiful plant and at the time there were bees all over it!

Above: the Upper Rock wall. This wall serves as a retaining wall for a (now) flat grassy area. This location was originally a sloped grassy area that turns into a vertical drop (right after where the photographer is standing). At the bottom of the vertical drop is the Lower Rock Wall (pictured first on this post), then the homeowner's parking and after that their home. While Luc was working on this wall, he had to be especially careful with how he placed the rocks as to not let one go rolling down hill into their home! All went well and the Upper Rock Wall now raises the slope so that there is a flat, grassy outdoor space that the homeowners can use for entertaining and for enjoying the beautiful sea view.

ABOVE: working on the Lower Rock Wall. Placing the base level rocks and sifting through the rock pile to piece the puzzle together (BELOW).
BELOW: Luc with baby daughter Marina in the loader that he used to move dirt to make the Upper Rock Wall and flat grassy area.

BELOW: A lot of dirt to move!

Honeymoon Lake Rock Wall and Stairs

2008-08-26T21:08:00.000-07:00

"After" picture of the rock wall (above), only a partial picture of the wall. There is also a staircase in the middle of the wall to the left of this picture.

BEFORE the rock wall & stairs (above)

Luc transported his excavator, trailer and dump truck to the site. Luc used the excavator to prep the ground for the rocks that eventually made the wall. The excavator was also used to move and place rocks. (ABOVE) finished wall, stairs, and garden beds.
The rock wall makes a nice clean line and gives an organized, natural feel . The stairs provide easy access to the grassy field above.

The sandy mud (above) and the placing of cottage stone for the staircase.

The staircase turns to the left to keep the slope of it gentle enough to easily walk down and to end where it does. Because the staircase was build on a steep lot it needed to turn to the left to slow the downward momentum.

ABOVE: Luc's excavator and the wall-in-progress (unfinished). You can get an idea of the length of the wall in this picture, even though some of it is not included to the left.

Verbena Road: Large Rock Retaining Wall (the step by step process in pictures)

2008-08-25T21:10:00.000-07:00

(Above) Luc's finished retaining wall on Verbena. A sight to see. Pictured below is also a rock staircase that scales the hillside on the far right. Read further to see the process that went in to creating the wall.

Pre-rock wall picture (below).
This job was very complicated in that planning to access the wall site was needed as well as materials to get down there. In the picture below you can see Luc's excavator scaling the hill. To the left is the proposed rock wall site. the wall will curve around farther to the left to retain the hillside and provide a usable and aesthetic view for the home owners.

(Above) Some of the large rocks that will be used for the wall.

(Above) Beginning to place rocks to make the wall's foundation. Behind the wall will be gravel to aid in the water drainage. This is a process of sorting rocks, placing and sometimes re-placing.

(Above) Still lots of work to do! The top level of rocks on the wall is not yet completed. The wall will also curve more arond the right side and there will be a cottage stone walkway on the far right from the top of the hill to the bottom of the rock wall.

(Above) Wall-in-progress. Lots of clean-up and "polishing" to be done.

I like how the wall ends in a clean angle (above). Now for work on the staircase which will be on the right.

Finished staircase (above)

finished rock wall (above). Whew! A job well done!

Edgecliff Cottage Stone Patio and Paths

2008-08-15T12:43:00.000-07:00

Here is the pre-patio and path picture. There is a rough outline of where the patio will go and the path will wind up toward the garage/mother-in-law. A Path will also wind over to the left in front of their house to their deck. A third path will go from their deck to their driveway.

Here is the third path being measured and drawn up.

Here is the 3rd path completed (above)

Step 1: Remove all sod. The entire job was done by hand and all sod was hauled away. The clients golden retriever enjoyed the company and helped oversee the project.

Step 2: lay down newspaper to kill weeds. Begin placing stones in measured area over newspaper (above). Newspaper is a great low-impact way to prevent weeds from coming up under the patio. As Luc put the stones in he used sand to fill any space between the stones. The sand makes the patio look seamless while giving it a subtle flexibility.

Here is a close-up of the cottage stones as they meet the grass. (above)

Here is the finished path (above). The patio is on the far left (not pictured). Now the rain will help work the rest of the sand into the cracks.

The finished patio and path. Luc also did work in their flower beds, transplanting plants and cleaning up.

Luc's Lively Equipment: Excavators and Dump Trucks

2008-08-11T16:31:00.000-07:00

The Excavator
(pictured above and below lifting a log)

Luc's Drive-Around Truck,
(pictured above)
can haul small amounts of stuff

The Big Ford Dump Truck

(pictured above)
The heavy-duty Work truck

The Trailer:
(pictured above)
for moving the excavator

Big jobs often require big equipment. It can actually save a customer money to have their landscaper use an excavator for example. Larger-scale work like clearing, rock retaining walls, tree transplanting, foundations, and blackberry removal can all benefit by using an excavator and dump truck. The excavator clears away a building lot full of blackberries in a day or two, whereas a man, or team of men, will take a week or more. Luc does a lot of jobs with his excavator. Using an excavator also entails moving it from one place to another with a trailer and large truck and having a dump truck to load dirt, land waste, rocks and any other material that he may need to move. Luc's excavator is a medium size one that can fit into tight areas, leave smaller environmental impact and yet it can take good sized trees out, do lite clearing, and lift large rocks for retaining walls.

2008-07-21T22:26:00.000-07:00

COMING SOON ! Please check us out in the coming weeks . . .