From the lush tropics of Hawaii to the arid desert of Arizona, one couple thrives in their new surroundings.

Eight years ago, Julie and Bill Yarbrough made a major transition in their lives.

Having lived in the tropical paradise of Honolulu for more than 40 years, they were ready for a change. “We visited a good friend in Paradise Valley, fell in love with the desert and decided to make it our home,” Julie says. “It definitely was different from living on the ocean and changing from tropical plants to cacti, succulents and boulders.”

The couple bought a home in Paradise Valley and designed a landscape filled with specimen cacti and succulents reminiscent of a botanical garden. “Bill spent a lot of time finding the plants and building up our collection,” Julie remarks. Seven years later, they moved a few miles away to the gated Casa Blanca neighborhood. Ironically, the new property was filled with tropical flowers and shrubs. Loving the low maintenance of their former yard, they made an agreement with the home buyers that would allow the Yarbroughs to take their desert plants with them. “It took a good 10 days to transfer everything over, but it was well worth it,” Bill says.

Built in 2000, the Casa Blanca house already had a putting green, a sports court and an infinity-edge pool with four water features. Working closely with landscape designer Chad Norris, they reworked the grounds into a lush desert oasis by removing several messy trees, as well as a number of high-maintenance tropical plants and flowers. In their place, Norris revegetated with saguaros, agaves, yuccas, barrel cacti, euphorbias and other low-water-use vegetation. “The idea was to integrate vertical, spiky and spherical plants into the rest of the landscape,” the Phoenix Home & Garden Masters of the Southwest award winner explains.

With nearly an acre of land, there was plenty of room to add a second putting green and a pitching area for Bill that was more suitable to his liking. “Our two dogs love it,” Julie enthuses. “The problem is, when my husband chips, one of our dogs invariably intercepts the ball before it has a chance to land.” To bring more focus to the pool, which was well-hidden by iron fencing and hedges, Norris removed everything obstructing its view and reworked the walkway to open up the area and re-imagine the outdoor living space.

Inside and out, the four-bedroom residence, which includes an attached casita, was brightened up with lighter shades of paint so that plants and interior art would stand out. With the help of their friend, architect Robert Miller, who built two of their previous homes, they constructed two large guest suites from what originally was four rooms. Julie, a retired interior designer, then created different themes for the bedrooms, including traditional, Western and Oriental with contemporary mixed in. Dark furnishings can be found throughout the house. “I have always loved homes with white walls, to show off the art, and dark furniture,” she says. Flooring throughout is a deep shade of hand-chiseled walnut, which grounds the interiors and adds warmth.

Julie’s eclectic design style seems to come naturally to her, as does a flair for mixing the couple’s 59 years’ worth of furnishings and art collections. “I don’t care about trends,” she admits. “I buy what I love and am constantly adding new finds. However, I always try to make sure that everything works together as a whole.” Having traveled all over the world, the Yarbroughs have a diverse collection of pieces from China, Korea, Japan and Africa, as well as those with a more traditional, contemporary and Southwest aesthetic. Julie also likes to browse consignment stores, and one of her favorite local shops, Tierra Del Lagarto, is her go-to place for items from India, Indonesia, Morocco, Mexico and Turkey.

Her artistic sensibility can also be seen in the master bathroom, where she had a stained-glass window commissioned by Scottsdale artisan Chris Powers for over the Jacuzzi to create privacy from the yard without losing light. “Originally there were curtains, but I wanted to brighten up the room,” she explains. Reminiscent of something that might be found in a cathedral, the opaque design was also replicated in four additional niches in the room.

Throughout the house, animals are a recurring theme and can be found in fabrics, art and accessories. Live animals, as in their 6-year-old Shih Tzu, Coco, and 5-year-old Havanese, Bandit, also play a role in the design. “We have eight dog beds and one tepee for them to sleep in,” Julie says with a smile. In the master bedroom, an antique wooden chicken coop from Korea doubles as a coffee table and a cozy dog bed, which sits inside the coop. “They really do have it made,” Bill remarks. As the Yarbroughs’ love of the arid Southwest continues to grow, so does their flourishing garden and their well-nuanced collection of treasures from around the globe.

House renovation: Cullum Homes. Landscape designer: Chad Norris, High Desert Designs,

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