In a city where private outdoor space is at a premium, sometimes the best solution is to go vertical, converting roof space into usable square footage for a garden. This transformation from Sunset shows how one family (and their brilliant designers) turned some tiny rooms into a rooftop paradise.

Gorgeous, isn't it? By adding the roof deck, designed by architect Jonathan Feldman and landscape designer Loretta Gargan (and built by Lorax Development), the Gosselin family essentially built themselves a view; from the corner of the deck, you can see parts of the city that were previously hidden from inside the house. An oversized pivot door creates a way to really open up the indoor space, and on cold days all the large windows provide garden and city views from inside.

The planting is as whimsical and lovely as the idea for the deck itself, with bushy grasses and pops of orange and pink against lime green foliage.

To read about the project, and to see more photos of the whole house renovation, click on over to Sunset.

(Images: Thomas J. Story/Sunset Magazine)