Houzz Tours
Before and After
Garden Tour: A Car Parking Spot Becomes a Chic Entertaining Space
See before photos of this cool, contemporary urban garden – when it doubled as a car park
The owner of this garden works full time and wanted something fairly low maintenance but pretty. “She’s keen on entertaining and likes to sit in the garden in the evening with a glass of wine,” Tom Howard of Tom Howard Garden Design and Landscaping says. But first, the designer came up with a money-saving and stylish way to disguise the former owners’ car parking facility.
The owner has some back problems, so part of Tom’s design brief was to ensure there wasn’t any ground-level planting that she’d have to bend over to maintain.
Tempted to rework your outdoor space? Find garden designers in your area.
Tempted to rework your outdoor space? Find garden designers in your area.
“The bench is 400mm high and the bed behind it is 800mm,” Tom says. The middle-height bed is 600mm and, at 400mm, the one in the foreground is the lowest.
“This bed does require a little bit of bending to reach it, but if you build beds too high in the foreground, you risk dissecting the garden, so we made this one at the front lower.” This ensures there’s a full view of the garden from the house.
Fence painted in Mole’s Breath; render painted in Worsted, both Farrow & Ball.
“This bed does require a little bit of bending to reach it, but if you build beds too high in the foreground, you risk dissecting the garden, so we made this one at the front lower.” This ensures there’s a full view of the garden from the house.
Fence painted in Mole’s Breath; render painted in Worsted, both Farrow & Ball.
You may have noticed there’s no dining table. This is deliberate, as the garden backs onto the kitchen. The owner has a table just inside the door, which she can bring out if she ever wants to eat outside.
“The owner wanted to keep the space as clear as possible, and she’s more into sitting around the fire,” Tom says.
Plants in the higher beds at the back include Salvia ‘Love and Wishes’, Salvia nemorosa ‘Caradonna’, Salvia ‘Amistad’, carex, Heuchera ‘Chocolate Ruffles’ and Achillea ‘Credo’.
The trees on the left are silver birch (Betula pendula); the one on the right is an Acer palmatum ‘Sango-kaku’. The climbers, meanwhile, are evergreen Trachelospermum jasminoides (star jasmine).
Firebowl, The Pot Company.
The trees on the left are silver birch (Betula pendula); the one on the right is an Acer palmatum ‘Sango-kaku’. The climbers, meanwhile, are evergreen Trachelospermum jasminoides (star jasmine).
Firebowl, The Pot Company.
The pots are used for herbs and are close to the house. “They contain thyme, parsley, sage, rosemary, chives and oregano, all pretty hardy herbs,” Tom says. “And I always say, if they do die, go to the supermarket, buy another £2 pot and stick it in.”
In this low raised bed (the rest of it is visible in the previous pictures) there are Ilex balls. “These are very similar to box,” Tom says, “but because of box caterpillar, we used this, which is a close alternative.”
There are also some different grasses, including Carex testacea and Carex ‘Evergold’, the fern Dryopteris affinis, and Muehlenbeckia. “In a lot of our schemes, we start with the evergreens – that’s your structure. You might not be out there all year round, but you’ll see the plants from your living room or kitchen.”
There are floor lights in some of the paving stones and corresponding ones in the decking on the other side of the garden for atmosphere after dark.
Polystone frost-resistant planters, sourced by Tom from a trade nursery.
In this low raised bed (the rest of it is visible in the previous pictures) there are Ilex balls. “These are very similar to box,” Tom says, “but because of box caterpillar, we used this, which is a close alternative.”
There are also some different grasses, including Carex testacea and Carex ‘Evergold’, the fern Dryopteris affinis, and Muehlenbeckia. “In a lot of our schemes, we start with the evergreens – that’s your structure. You might not be out there all year round, but you’ll see the plants from your living room or kitchen.”
There are floor lights in some of the paving stones and corresponding ones in the decking on the other side of the garden for atmosphere after dark.
Polystone frost-resistant planters, sourced by Tom from a trade nursery.
Tom has laid 10mm white limestone gravel between the pavers to break up the expanse. “Gravel or grass for this purpose stops it feeling like a car park,” he says.
Pierre Blue porcelain paving, London Stone.
Pierre Blue porcelain paving, London Stone.
This shows the back of the garden before Tom got to work. “One third of it was bog-standard stone paving,” he says. “The other part was fake grass with a shed in the corner and a raised brick bed. It was clean and fine, but not very exciting.” The new different levels and surfaces break up the square patch.
A Corten steel panel against the back wall provides a focal point, especially at night, as it has an LED strip behind it, allowing light to shine through the laser-cut design at the top.
“This shows the panel early on in the rusting process,” Tom explains. “It provides a nice contrast between the fence and the wall. The idea was that it’d be a focal point from the house and complement the render and the wall by contrasting with their cool tones, as it will be a warm colour.”
Tying into its orangey tones are the decking and the Heuchera ‘Caramel’ in the low bed.
Corten steel panel, Stark & Greensmith.
“This shows the panel early on in the rusting process,” Tom explains. “It provides a nice contrast between the fence and the wall. The idea was that it’d be a focal point from the house and complement the render and the wall by contrasting with their cool tones, as it will be a warm colour.”
Tying into its orangey tones are the decking and the Heuchera ‘Caramel’ in the low bed.
Corten steel panel, Stark & Greensmith.
A slatted fence panel runs down to the bed on the left. Tom explains the reason: “When the owner bought the house, there was a gate here [see the next photo]. Outside, there was a dropped kerb and the previous owners used to drive their car in to park it. The area took up most of the garden,” he says.
“The original idea was to get rid of the gate, continue the bricks and have a walled garden.” However, the owner was advised not to brick it up in case it encouraged the local council to reinstate the kerb. With parking in London so scarce, she wanted to keep the option in place, as it would be a valuable selling point should she ever decide to move on.
“The original idea was to get rid of the gate, continue the bricks and have a walled garden.” However, the owner was advised not to brick it up in case it encouraged the local council to reinstate the kerb. With parking in London so scarce, she wanted to keep the option in place, as it would be a valuable selling point should she ever decide to move on.
Here, you can see the garden gate before it was panelled over, as well as the artificial grass parking area. From the street side, the original gate is still visible.
Disguising rather than removing the gate was also more cost-effective. “Reclaimed bricks cost £1.50 each, and we’d have needed to put in a double-skin wall for strength and to follow the existing line, so it would have added up,” Tom says. “Cladding the inside instead worked out well.”
Disguising rather than removing the gate was also more cost-effective. “Reclaimed bricks cost £1.50 each, and we’d have needed to put in a double-skin wall for strength and to follow the existing line, so it would have added up,” Tom says. “Cladding the inside instead worked out well.”
Tom built a cupboard into the space. “As with every London house, storage is an issue,” Tom says. “The owner wanted to blend it in as much as possible. We would have liked to keep it the same height as the raised bed, but obviously you wouldn’t have been able to fit much in it.
“It’s still as tucked away as possible, though,” he says, “and it blends with the decking. The owner uses it to store cushions, wood, secateurs and so on.”
Thermo-treated pine, Loknan.
“It’s still as tucked away as possible, though,” he says, “and it blends with the decking. The owner uses it to store cushions, wood, secateurs and so on.”
Thermo-treated pine, Loknan.
A double door from the kitchen is the only access to the garden from the house. A decked path runs from it down the side of the patio area, where it rises to become to the bench.
A large window (see next photo) provides further views from the house into the garden.
A large window (see next photo) provides further views from the house into the garden.
The patio before work began.
Tell us…
What’s your favourite thing about this urban garden transformation? Share your thoughts in the Comments section.
Tell us…
What’s your favourite thing about this urban garden transformation? Share your thoughts in the Comments section.
Who lives here? A single female professional
Location Twickenham, south-west London
Property A Victorian terraced house
Garden dimensions Approximately 7 x 5m
Designer Tom Howard of Tom Howard Garden Design & Landscaping
Photos by Tom Howard
“This is the view from the back of the house,” Tom explains. Since the work was completed, the owner has also added a key purchase. “The decked area now has one of those egg-shaped swing seats on it – somewhere she can sit and read a book. There’s further seating on the right that creates a more sociable area around the firebowl.”