Showcasing flourishing native plants and an array of natural finishes, these outdoor spaces fit hand-in-glove with the seaside setting.
Living in a sunny seaside suburb is the stuff of which dreams are made, so the owners of this contemporary Hamptons-style new-build in Seaforth on Sydney’s Northern Beaches wanted to make the most of the opportunity. They sought easy-to-maintain front and back gardens that evoked a modern coastal ambience and provided spaces for outdoor relaxation and entertaining — for this, they turned to Andrew Nicholson, head designer of icreate landscape and design.
“They liked the idea of native plants and natural materials, but it all had to be low- to medium-maintenance, and they wanted functional spaces which connected easily with one another,” explains Andrew.
“We also had to address the large step-down from the alfresco entertaining space at the rear of the home to the backyard and find a way to create privacy from the neighbouring two-storey house.”
Andrew’s design delivers the desired modern coastal native feel and perfectly complements the house and location. In the shady pockets of the backyard there are hints of tropical planting and throughout the front and rear yards there are curvy garden beds and paved areas to soften the angularity of the built structures.
The zoned rear garden is the family’s main entertaining space. A deck built using Australian blackbutt timber provides an area off the lounge room, with a privacy screen of Queensland spotted gum, for relaxing in the sun and cleverly morphs into a built-in planter, cantilevered seating and a series of broad landing-style steps.
“This is a carefully thought-out space, which gradually leads you from the alfresco down into the sunken fire pit area. Floating bench seats add wow factor while the pyramid steps inject some style into the space,” says Andrew. “Decking offcuts were used for the bench seat and run perpendicular to the decking boards for visual interest. The seating is under-lit to enhance the floating effect at night while the space beneath is perfect for storing wood for the fire pit which keeps the lower lounging area warm in winter.”
Sandstone crazy paving adds to the natural feel of the fire pit area — a space cossetted by a palette of mainly native plants. Unlike the front garden, the backyard does feature a few plants that lean towards the tropical, including a frangipani that offers dappled shade and fragrant blooms during the warmer months. “The shaded spots in the garden are also home to bird of paradise and bromeliads, with clumping bamboo to create textured lushness and privacy from the neighbours,” adds Andrew.
In the front garden, hardy native plants and succulents flourish in the exposed, sunny conditions. There are banksia trees to provide a shaded entry, and in the garden beds coastal rosemary and agaves happily sit in harmony along with other hardy plants. Recycled stone boulders complement the native planting and add texture, as does the meandering path of sandstone crazy paving.
From the planting and paving to the impressive timber work, the icreate landscape and design construction teams completed every element with precise attention to detail to fully realise Andrew’s design intent.
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