September 24, 2026
Ah, an artist’s garden — these are always fun to explore, accented with original art and inventive details. Such was the final garden I saw on the Boulder Open Days Tour back in June. I rolled in minutes before the tour ended, but the owner, Kimmerjae Macarus, a sculptor and former garden designer, kindly let me wander even though I’m sure she was ready to close up.
Kimmerjae lives in Old Town Lafayette, 20 minutes east of Boulder and 30 minutes north of Denver. Her pistachio-green farmhouse is charming with a green metal roof and airy front porch.
You enter the garden through a trumpet vine arch, a portal that surely turns electric when the vine erupts with orange-red, bell-shaped flowers.
Kimmerjae loves to garden for fragrance. Roses and the aromatic foliage of Mojave sage and lavender were scenting the porch.
Roses and Mojave sage
An apricot rose
Mojave sage
Lavender grows along the porch steps, where you can’t help brushing against it, releasing its scent.
A sculptural spiral on a tree stump gathers spent blossoms.
Oregano, maybe ‘Kent Beauty’?
Potted plants are tucked in too.
Around the side of the house, a second porch is partly veiled by a vine creeping along a string trellis.
‘Carol Mackie’ daphne is a pretty shrub for part shade, with cream-edged evergreen leaves, plus fragrant pink flowers in spring.
On the porch, potted purple oxalis, red geranium, and Norfolk Island pine add lushness.
Lots of shady seating to enjoy a Colorado summer
Wire art
A gutter extension connects a rain chain to a skinny rain barrel. But the fun part is an overflow sluice of layered tiles.
It snakes out into the garden, delivering overflow every time it rains.
A path of tightly jointed stone starts at the porch…
…and leads to an outbuilding, getting more jazzy as it goes. It kind of has a boardwalk look, right?
The garden becomes meadowy here.
A wooden figure watches over the garden as bees hum around a hive.
There’s also a cowboy made of copper tubing.
In the middle of the garden, a young English oak stands over a stone patio. Kimmerjae told me she planted the oak so that one day a swing can hang from it, even though she doesn’t think she’ll be around to see it.
A sculptural vessel of water anchors the center of a boulder-edged raised bed.
It’s an eye-catching focal point.
A deep perimeter bed contains fruiting trees and pines that screen the street.
As I was leaving, I spotted a playful wire sculpture on the side of the house, a sign that a creative spirit lives and gardens here.
This ends my coverage of the Boulder Open Days Tour. For a look back at Cary’s garden with a mountain view, click here.
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