Boxhill is a specialized landscape design firm with over 25 years of experience. We are based in Marana, Arizona, and we have a wide breadth of experiences with both modest and expansive projects. We pride ourselves on developing intriguing designs with longevity and appeal for both commercial and residential properties.
Our mission is to create a beautiful custom outdoor space for you. A commitment to mindfulness is brought to every design – we are mindful of your budget, your desired scope, and the environment. Overall, we strive to make beautiful and functional spaces that are both crafted to suit your individual aesthetic and designed to solve spacial challenges.
Our perspective is formed by a reverence for classical architecture and beauty, punctuated by a passion for modern design that is fresh and innovative.
Our approach is designed to be flexible and responsive to you. Whether you are someone who knows exactly what you want, or appreciate guidance with defining your style, we will be there every step of the way to assist you with your vision.
Our experience covers every area of a design, and our expertise extends to a variety of projects, including residential design, commercial design, and professional styling assignments.
Have a quick Question? Email our lead designer: elizabeth@shopboxhill.com
Design Brief: A modern take on a traditional shade pergola and outdoor living space. Our hardscape design combines contemporary materials and clean architectural lines to create a covered veranda with a built-in fireplace, a minimalist pool, and windowed exterior walls to expose views of the Tucson skyline.
“This is not a typical South Western garden — it has much more of an Ibiza beach club feel with muted, monochromatic tones. The homeowner is German and wanted the garden to evoke a peaceful, calming feel so we choose not to include any colors for hardscape, plants, or accents that would come across as garish or assaulting. Instead, we choose a palette of sea glass green, white, grey, and accents of turquoise. The name of the pool tile —“Caribbean fog”— captures the feeling well.” Said designer, Elizabeth Przygoda-Montgomery. “If you look carefully, there are little bits of sea shells imbedded in the floor tile.”
Design Highlights:
Shaded veranda – In this contemporary design, beams radiating from a built-in fireplace support a corrugated metal roof. The color palette is kept muted, celebrating the subtle texture of the building materials—the brushed surface of raw concrete, dull metal of the roof, and pattern of the flooring.
Evening glow – A second shot of the shaded area shows how cafe lights and the glow of the fire transform the area from cooling in the day to warm and inviting past sundown.
Garden details – Other areas of the garden rely on clean lines of hardscape and large-scale cacti as structural, living art.
Tiered walls – The exterior walls of the garden mimic the natural grade change of the hillside, descending in gradual tiers as the slope drops beneath. The walls also form the backdrop for mature trees—celebrating their stature and rooting the landscape in the land.
Fire pit and city views – A second fire pit creates an inviting evening destination across the yard. The garden wall was designed with a lowered notch for taking in views of the city skyline.
Santa Fe-style stucco home with classic, enviable lines and a recently-added guest house. Active family with three children that loves outdoor sports, and the natural, uninterrupted desert.
The objectives for the client were:
• Visually connect the newly-constructed guest house with the main residence.
• Construct a pool large enough to accommodate kayak rolling and training.
• Develop a harmonious natural, desert landscape design with low-water maintenance.
The main residence and the guest home were connected via natural, walking pathways. Stabilized, decomposed granite combined the utility of pavement with the organic beauty of the surrounding desert. Full-sized trees, boulders, and indigenous cacti allowed us to blur the transition from our design in to the rustic surroundings.
A deep, natural-style pool was surrounded with valuable, specialized desert plants. Added visual impact was accomplished through large groupings of single plant species, arranged in massive waves. Adhering to the client’s low-water philosophy, this design was completely removed from drip irrigation after needing only 1.5 years of maturation.
Romantic details included ethnic columns, mosaic inlays, an outdoor shower, and watering holes for quail. An open-flame fire feature became a design focal point, with artistic, metal demi-walls that protect the open flame from the canyon winds.
Historic renovation of a midtown Tom Gist residence. Avid golfers who desired a secluded backyard for relaxing and socializing.
The objectives for the client were:
• Conduct a color consultation to revise the existing color palette.
• Create a New Modern landscape that would complement their Mid-Century Modern home.
• Incorporate a putting green with a Modernist design.
This breathtaking Tom Gist residence originally had a large pool, which was beyond repair. After filling it in, the clients hired Boxhill Design for a new look. Refining their palette through a color consultation, our New Modern design began with defining the entertainment areas. Charcoal-colored perimeter walls provided ample privacy. In keeping with the clients’ eco-friendly wishes, we chose a material that resembled wood, but was made with crushed, recycled paper and tires. Tiered level walls were painted a contrasting black which hugged the landscape and made the expansive space feel instantly manageable.
Mexican feather grass, bottle tree, milkweed, and citrus plants popped against the dark, neutral hardscape. A bright, L-shaped putting green became the centerpiece of this yard, and we surrounded it with a generous spa, several lounging areas, and an outdoor entertaining space that contained a custom island barbeque with a waterfall edge. A Modernist water feature with uplighting and color contrast provided a pleasant focal point.
To see our full portfolio of memorable and inspiring designs, go to www.boxhilldesign.com. Visit us at www.shopboxhill.com to browse for unique accessories, furniture, and modern outdoor style.
A 3,2000 sq. foot, 1967 single level house perched in the hills above Tucson with a view of both the city and the mountains gave us a fantastic opportunity to blend two of our favorite styles – boho and modern – to create a unique and functional outdoor living area.
Our first look at the property, though, confirmed that we had our work cut out for us. The home’s original was a parking lot, an expanse of weeds and gravel that was not only an eyesore, but a waste of space. In the back, there was a murky old pool with a diving board and a couple of ladders, surrounded by bricklike pavers. The original back of the house had no shade, and upon exiting the house, you immediately stepped down onto the hot, barren patio.
We knew that our client, a former interior designer, would be especially attuned to the look and feel we created in the outdoor spaces, but we never want a place to just look pretty. We want our spaces to be livable.
As soon as you drive up to your house, you should feel relaxed and ready to sink into the comfort of your own home. Guests should instantly feel at ease and welcomed. We made this happen by re-landscaping the front using a variety of stones, pavers, plants, gravel, and wood. A lot or yard entirely of pavers has a harsh feel. By varying the textures, we blend the landscape into its surroundings (more on that later), and create a softer entry experience. Rather than building a fence that obscured the front door, we enclosed the space with a wall slightly shorter than the height of the house. It is still tall enough to provide privacy, but preserves lines of sight during entry and exit.
Inside the courtyard we snuggled a custom built u-shaped sectional against a crook in the wall and wrapped it around a fire pit. In another area of the courtyard, a comfy reading chair piled with weather-resistant cushions now waits for an occupant.
To encourage relaxation and rejuvenation, we built a shallow sunbathing pool adjacent to the main pool and dropped a in boulder, further blending the pool to the surrounding landscape. Two modern lounge chairs add a sculptural element when not in use.
In the heart of Clayton, this balcony has views for days! This penthouse balcony gave us a vast amount of space to work with. We decided to break this space out in little vignettes. We had the "Outdoor Dining" area, the "TV Room" ( still waiting for custom TV stand to be finished) and then we had the "Lounge Area", then right off the french doors, is what we are calling the Morning Coffee spot.
We had paver installed so we could run electric and irrigation through out the space for watering the pots and for the outdoor fountain. The Cresent Condo association, only allows shades of tan, gray, black and white. We decided to work of the brick and go for rich blacks and grays to play against the buildings brick work.
