In a section of my own front yard, the inkling of a re-design came together when I traveled to Japan in the fall of 2013.  In the finely-swept gravel garden at Shisendo Villa in Kyoto, unlike other gravel gardens, one section of the swept-clean-sand is a pass-through space, and is intended to be walked upon.  It is an imitation of a pond garden, but instead of the usual "view only", this section welcomed us to walk through.  This concept turned a key in my brain. The flat, finely-swept space...partly to be gazed upon from verandas, partly to be traveled as a path towards the woods...this dry garden/pathway became an element in our new front yard.  

(Visiting the Portland Japanese Garden was great help to me during the conceptual phase of this design. I frequently visited its flat garden that emulates a lake, sitting peacefully with the "edge of pond" treatment, and noting the scale and placement of the rocks.)

A second influence to this section of our garden was the Arts & Crafts movement--specifically the garden construction of British architect Edward Lutyens, and his influence on Herman Brookman, architect of the Frank Estate in Portland Oregon.  Our curbstone steps came from memories of summers spent on the Lewis & Clark College campus (my father was a professor there), which was designed by Brookman in the Lutyens style.  The college's gardens--the former Frank estate--was our playground on summer days, and I admired the large chiseled stone steps and gazebos, even then.  In our own garden now, looking down on the curbstone steps from the porch above, pleases me tremendously.