Zen gardens · Landscapes · Basalt furniture

Gardens and furniture, built around stone.

Ishi Basalti is a garden and furniture studio in Amman. We design and build zen gardens and landscapes, bring tired gardens back to life, and make benches, tables, bars and water features from basalt and reclaimed wood.

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Drag a stone. The gravel follows.
ishi · stone

The name

Ishi is Japanese for stone. Basalt is the stone we work with.

Basalt is a dense volcanic rock. It keeps its edges, stands up to summer heat and winter frost, and turns deep black when it’s wet, which is why it looks so good with water. We pair it with reclaimed timber, raked gravel, moss and moving water to make spaces that feel calm and stay that way.

Jordan knows this stone well. In the north, the black basalt houses of Umm el-Jimal have stood for more than a thousand years. UNESCO added the town to its World Heritage List in 2024.

A dark basalt stepping stone beside a weathered timber plank, set in mixed gravel.
Basalt and reclaimed timber in gravel.

Gardens & landscapes

From a courtyard corner to the whole garden.

Every project starts with a visit and a drawing. Choose one service or combine several.

Zen gardens

Dry gardens of raked gravel, set stone and moss, from a small courtyard to a full karesansui.

Courtyards · Rooftops · Entrances

Landscape design

Complete outdoor plans covering levels, paths, planting, lighting and seating, drawn before anything is dug.

Villas · Hotels · Offices

Garden rescue

Overgrown, tired or half-finished? We clear, repair and replant until the garden works again.

Clearing · Soil · Replanting

Water features & fountains

Basalt column fountains, stone basins and still pools on recirculating pumps, so they run quietly and use little water.

Column fountains · Basins · Pools

Stepping stones, paths & gravel

Basalt stepping stones, paving and gravel beds, laid to walk on comfortably and drain properly.

Stepping stones · Paving · Gravel supply

Gardening & care

Regular visits to rake, prune, feed and keep the water running, so the garden stays the way it was built.

Monthly · Seasonal

Furniture & objects

Basalt and reclaimed wood, made to order.

Benches, tables, bars and water features, each made for its place, indoors or out.

A reclaimed timber beam bench on two black basalt blocks, against a vine-covered wall, with stepping stones in the gravel in front. From our gardens

Garden bench

A reclaimed timber beam resting on two basalt blocks.

A long, rough-edged stone table built around the trunk of a palm, with covered chairs and dense planting. From our gardens

Stone dining table

A rough-edged stone slab, built around the trunk of a palm.

Made to order

Tell us the size and the room, and we’ll draw it for you.

Side table

One basalt drum, cut flat and honed smooth on top.

Indoor or outdoor · Basalt

Coffee table

A low basalt slab on timber blocks, for living rooms and majlis seating.

Indoor · Basalt, reclaimed wood

Outdoor bar

A stacked basalt base with a timber counter, built on site.

Outdoor · Basalt, timber

Column fountain

Drilled basalt columns that bubble over and darken where the water runs.

Water · Basalt

Stone basin

A carved tsukubai-style basin fed by a bamboo spout.

Water · Stone, bamboo

Stepping stones & gravel

Basalt stepping stones, cobbles and gravel, supplied for your own projects.

Outdoor · Supply

Projects

Gardens we’ve built.

Gravel and stepping stones, planting and stone, from gardens we’ve designed and built.

A low view across a gravel courtyard: weathered timber planks and dark basalt stepping stones lead to a beam bench, with pampas grass, cypress trees and a vine-covered wall behind.
Reclaimed planks and basalt stepping stones cross the gravel to the bench.
Basalt stepping stones and a moss-ringed black rock in gravel, seen between tall cypress trunks, with a bench and dark boulders at the back.
Stepping stones run between the cypress trunks.
The gravel courtyard seen from above: a curve of basalt stepping stones, a timber beam bench, a mossy black rock and a cat crossing the gravel.
From above, the stepping stones curve through the courtyard.
A cluster of black volcanic boulders and pampas grass under the cypresses, with basalt stepping stones leading to them through gravel.
Black volcanic boulders at the foot of the cypresses.
The courtyard at dusk: a garden light glows between black boulders, beside a timber bench and a line of basalt stepping stones.
At dusk, a light glows among the rocks.
A curving path of dark stepping stones through gravel, with shrubs, a hedge and a pomegranate tree in a large planter.
Stepping stones curve through gravel past a potted pomegranate.
Dark stepping stones leading through gravel towards a stone table under palms.
A stepping-stone path leads to the stone table.
Creeping groundcover spreading over a pale rock beside a stepping-stone path in gravel.
Creeping groundcover spills over a rock beside the path.
A pitted, weathered rock with pampas grass, bamboo canes, purple pansies and river pebbles against a cypress hedge.
A weathered rock with pampas grass, bamboo and river pebbles.
A path of pale stone slabs with gravel joints, lined with clipped shrubs and low bollard lights.
Stone slabs with gravel joints between clipped shrubs.

Materials

What we build with.

Basalt

Volcanic, dense and cool to the touch. Finished honed, flamed or left with its split face.

Reclaimed wood

Old beams and boards, cleaned up and oiled, with their history left in.

Gravel & cobbles

Raked gravel for dry gardens, river cobbles for edges and drainage.

Water & moss

Moving water for sound, and moss and low planting to soften the stone.

How we work

From first visit to finished garden.

  1. Visit

    We see the space, the light and how you use it, and we listen.

  2. Design

    You get drawings, a materials list and a clear quote before any work begins.

  3. Selection

    We choose the stone and timber for your project, piece by piece.

  4. Build

    We prepare the ground, set the stone and finish the details by hand.

  5. Care

    Optional visits keep the gravel raked, the plants healthy and the water running.

Contact

Book a site visit.

Tell us a little about the space and we’ll get back to you to arrange a visit.

    What are you planning?

    Next, you’ll copy your message and send it to us on Instagram.