Once a setting for the imaginative adventures of little girls, a charming playhouse in Leila and Bill Brazeal’s backyard holds fast as the cornerstone of their flourishing garden, Leila’s labor of love for decades. “The work is worth it, because when I sit on my screened porch and look out at that, it just makes me happy,” says Leila, whose devotion to her yard’s flowers and foliage began when she and her husband purchased the woodland property in 1999. Bill constructed the cottage for their two daughters at a previous home years earlier, and moved the quaint structure to the new acreage.
Leila Brazeal incorporates a variety of hydrangeas throughout her backyard garden, such as creamy ‘Limelight’ and French hydrangeas that bloom in a spectrum of hues from vivid pink to purple and blue. In addition to the beds around a quaint playhouse, a tranquil nook surrounded by plantings is a hideaway among the flowers. Wooden furnishings make the space ideal for quiet reflection or catching up with a friend.
