Backyard Escape
Writer Meg Fox | Photographer Marco Ricca | Location Upper Saddle River, NJ | DESIGN/BUILD LANDSCAPE CLC Landscape Design | PAVILION DESIGN & CONSTRUCTION S Scott Construction and Design | FURNITURE SELECTION, LAYOUT & FINISHES Jennifer Pacca, ALLIED MEMBER ASIDAn at-home getaway with all the makings of a five-star resort
Upon completing all the interior spaces of their Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, home with help from Jennifer Pacca Interiors in Wyckoff, homeowners Vida Mylson and Eric Weiner decided to “continue the vibe on their patio,” Pacca says.
“The outdoor project started when the family of four decided they needed an alternative to traveling vacations or to enjoy a resort experience any day of the week,” says Pacca, a state-certified interior designer and allied member of the American Society of Interior Designers. “Whether it be a place to relax, eat, hang with friends, watch sports on TV or even take a work Zoom call, the design needed to be multifunctional and to look and feel like an outdoor haven.”
Pacca collaborated with design/build firm CLC Landscape Design and a team of professionals to create the outdoor retreat, encompassing designated areas for cooking, dining, entertaining or relaxing in durable, stylish settings that weather the elements. The outdoor kitchen — equipped with such features as a large grill, sink, refrigerator and granite-topped island — “perfectly suits the owners’ entertaining needs,” Pacca says. A built-in, stone-encased pizza oven area completes the gourmet kitchen experience.
“My husband, Eric, loved the idea of making pizza and having kids join in on the fun,” Mylson says. While his first year of making pizza “was humbling, for sure … he’s very excited for year two!”
The same stone used to construct the pizza oven reappears in the covered pavilion’s woodburning fireplace. “This helps unify the spaces and pull the color palette through the entire outdoor area,” Pacca explains. The pavilion is a great place to curl up by the fire or catch a game on television, and it’s heated so the owners can use it late into fall, she says. A separate seating area sheltered by a large umbrella doubles as an ideal gathering spot for the entire family or as a quiet place to work from home.
The client’s love of neutral colors influenced the design scheme’s black, white and tan palette. “It’s an ultra-sophisticated counterpoint” to all the greenery of the landscaping and raw materials of the outdoor kitchen, Pacca says. The organic, architectural shapes of the furniture help define each space, coupled with resilient stone cocktail tables and chunky woven lounge chairs that add texture. Teak “adds just the right amount of warmth to the black-and-white scheme,” Pacca says.
All the attention to detail translates to happy clients. “We designed our backyard to not only expand our living space and create a relaxing and beautiful environment to entertain friends and family, but also to bring the feeling of being away to our home,” Mylson says. “During the spring and summer, we spend most of our nights outside using the pizza oven, the barbecue and especially the living room in the pavilion to watch movies and shows together as a family.”
Editor’s Note: Jennifer Pacca won a 2023 Gold Design Excellence Award for this project in the Outdoor Living Spaces category from the American Society of Interior Designers, New Jersey Chapter.