{urban oasis} outdoors
perfectly formed The transformation of this compact city garden in Sydney’s east shows that bigger is not always better WORDS JANE PARBURY STYLING ADAM ROBINSON PHOTOGRAPHY NATALIE HUNFALVAY
homebeautiful.com.au {MAY 2015} 205
“The blackboard fills in space at the side and the kids love it!” ~ Louisa
when a home is renovated. Not so at Rob and Louisa’s gorgeous home in Sydney’s east – every aspect of this small, north-facing plot was carefully considered alongside the overhaul of their house, resulting in a space that feels entirely like an extension of the indoor living area. “We wanted a tropical garden that looked fabulous, that the kids could run riot in, and in which we could entertain small or large groups of people,” says Louisa, mum to Monty, eight, and Kingsley, six. “Of course, as an Australian male, Rob also had to have a fully functioning barbecue area, and this was high on the list of priorities!” The couple drafted in their friend, Andrew Donnola of Smart Landscaping Solutions, to do the renovation of both house and garden. “The externals must complement the house or else it’s, ‘Lovely house, shame about the backyard’,” explains Andrew. Louisa, having lived in Japan, was influenced by how the Japanese interweave interiors and exteriors, and use natural opposites. “The garden needed to extend and balance the contrast theme of the house, which grew from my love for black interiors and Rob’s love of white interiors,” she says. One of landscaper Andrew’s biggest challenges was fitting everything into the spatially challenged plot, but he has fulfilled the family’s wishlist… and then some. The sparkling pool is the hero of both the garden and the adjacent family room, where a floor-toceiling fixed pane offers uninterrupted outdoor views (page 208). “Kids jumping into the water and splashing on the floorboards won’t work, but a solid wall would have enclosed the whole area,” says Andrew. “The glass creates a fishbowl effect, looking right onto the pool.” Every aspect of the planning, build and finishes was carefully considered to create this inviting space. The excavations were dug when the house renovation took place, which avoided access issues later on. As well, various outdoor elements speak to the indoors – honed black granite surrounds the barbecue as it does the fireplace in the family room; built-in bench seating echoes a similar banquette in the dining area; a 3.6m-wide blackboard framed in blackbutt panelling conceals the party wall, and the monochrome interior palette carries through to the outside. The whole experience has exceeded Louisa’s wildest expectations. “Our kids love the pool and the front garden is a little magical paradise,” she says. “Even people walking down the street [comment] – I had one lady tell me that she stopped every time she came past the front to look at the garden, as it just made her so happy.” Contact: Smart by Andrew Donnola, Smart Landscaping Solutions 0417 788 983, smartlandscapingsolutions.com.
Top left & above: A built-in barbecue was a must for the family.
Designer Andrew delivered a brick-built compartment and topped the barbecue with a slab of Indian black granite with a honed finish. Left & above right: Built-in seating extends from the barbecue to create a delightful resting spot, with a range of pretty cushions from The Design Hunter and Tait softening the effect. A wooden Tait table is the perfect landing place for evening snacks and drinks.
(FAR LEFT AND LEFT) FLOOR CUSHION, TOWEL, CARAFE AND TUMBLERS, ALL THE DESIGN HUNTER; POUF, COSH LIVING. (OPPOSITE AND LEFT, CENTRE, ON BARBECUE) POP PLANT, TAIT; POT WITH KALANCHOE, GARDEN LIFE
THE OUTDOOR SPACE is often the last area to be considered
In another nod to the home’s configuration, built-in seating reflects a similar arrangement indoors, while the neighbour’s “borrowed” strelitzias ensure protection from the heat of the day. Cement sheeting topped with powder-coated aluminium has been battened on to the original, treated-pine boundary fence, to provide a restrained backdrop. “The white gives depth and brings out the greenery,” says landscape designer Andrew. >
homebeautiful.com.au {MAY 2015} 207
outdoors {urban oasis}
Above right: The pretty pattern for the laser-cut poolside
screens was inspired by an old tile Andrew had in his garage. He sketched it, then had it scaled up and transformed into three aluminium panels powder-coated to specifications from Dulux. “With a northerly sun you have to be careful with white powder-coating,” he explains. “If it’s not the correct system, in six months the laser-cut panels may end up losing their colour.” At night, the panels are lit from behind to make a dynamic feature of the garden wall.
Left: A large window ensures the pool and garden view
are the star feature of the living area. “When you put a pool into the kind of space we have, by necessity it needs to be a focal point of the house and garden,” explains homeowner Louisa. A comfy Cosh Living chair and side table make the deck difficult to resist.
“I can’t believe that so much has been achieved in such a small space” ~ Louisa
208 {MAY 2015} homebeautiful.com.au
(ABOVE RIGHT & LEFT) FOOTSTOOL, ECO OUTDOOR; CUSHIONS, TAIT; TOWEL, THE DESIGN HUNTER; MINI GRASS BUCKET, POT WITH RHIPSALIS AND URN WITH ‘ORIENTAL PEARL’, ALL GARDEN LIFE
Above left: A row of champaca standard trees from the magnolia family, along with alcantarea, fig, agave attenuata and blue chalk stick succulents, were placed along the boundary wall. The plan is to develop a box hedge. “In the spring, they shoot out beautiful lime green leaves,” says Andrew.