We have a small back garden, in fact it’s a garden that most people would probably look at and say you’ve no garden at all. With our house taking up the majority of the 315m2 of land it sits on, most of the outside space runs along the side of the house, meaning I knew I’d have to get creative and use every inch of space.
One of the biggest things we did out here and the thing that started it all off was pouring a concrete slab that stretched as far as we could to the wall of our neighbours house and as far to the back fence as we could go – instantly creating the shape that would become our entertainment area.
The slab pour happened last September and since then, all through a hot Brisbane summer I might add, we worked hard to transform this space from a dingy, weed infested area to the oasis it is today; adding a bamboo roof, a lush garden bed, painted all of the bricks, tiled the concrete and so many other jobs too many to list, but as hard as it was its been as equally rewarding, which you’ll soon see why…
Its the entertainment area reveal and I can’t not make a special mention of this chunky table and bench seat that Darren made! It’s definitely one of the stars out here and has been a bit of a conversation started with any guests we’ve had over. I could not love it more and it adds exactly the right feel to the space rounding out the Mediterranean vibes we wanted to create.
This coffee table was another piece that really added to the theme and when I saw it on Facebook Marketplace it instantly said Spain to me, but it was in need a some love; I chopped the legs to make it the right height, painting it white and re-grouted it, bringing it back to life.
Another element of this space I have to mention is the bamboo roof, also made by Darren. It has to be one of my favourite elements out here, I love the texture and interest it brings to the space plus is disguises the plastic corrugated roof that sits on top of it, making it both beautiful and practical.
I didn’t want this area to just be for entertaining, I wanted the garden to be a part of it so a section of ground was left exposed to create this generous garden bed. The heliconias at the back will grow to about 3 metres adding more privacy, the tree will provide extra shade to the entertainment area as it grows, and the star jasmine climber will take over the fence behind the dinning table adding more garden vertically.
It’s been a long road to get to this point, but the rewards have been the sweetest. I love this space we created and out of all the project we’ve done in the house this one has to be my favourite for the simple reason that its changed our lives the most, plus the transformation is pretty mind blowing : )
