By Bethany Williamson Landscape Architecture
This home in Melbourne's inner east, features the original front façade with a contemporary renovation and extension. The garden was designed to sit comfortably with the house but with a contemporary design to make it feel current and yet timeless. It is simple in design but contains many layers and textures making the space feel comfortable and well balanced. It is a garden that is easy to spend time in.
We wanted to play with the elements usually found in traditional front gardens and give them a contemporary and current feel. The main element we played with was the undulating mounds of Japanese Buxus. Buxus is commonly seen in traditional gardens but we wanted to use it for its ability to clip neatly but give it some personality. The mounds add a sculptural element, while providing the garden with constant green when the Birches drop their leaves and the perennials have finished flowering.
Landscape Architect: BWLA
Photography: Martina Gemmola
At BWLA, we are passionate about great design. Being able to create a space for someone that reflects who they are, but also enhances the way they live, is what inspires us. Our gardens need to perform in so many ways. Whether they are an escape from the business of life, a place to entertain and be social, or to produce food to eat and flowers to cut; they need to fit seamlessly into how we each live every day.
We understand that the success of our work relates to how well the garden speaks to the architecture of the house, but also how it respects and blends with the landscape beyond. Working on gardens from courtyards to acreages, from coastal to rural and city properties, we love the challenge of working in different environments, different cities, and different climates. Each site has its own story to tell and we feel privileged to discover and tell these stories.