Australian Beachhouse

This rustic and delightful house belongs to my sister and her family on the coast south of Geelong in Victoria. I was naturally asked to come up with some ideas for the garden and it is a fun process watching the garden evolve – and helping to build bits of it whilst on ‘holiday”! There are some lovely details here worth sharing, built entirely by the very creative family who also built all the renovations to the house, including an entire floor on top of the old council house.

An old garage on the north side was removed to allow the driveway area to be developed for outdoor living and garden space. A new garage and parking area was created on the south side of the house.

The first stage of a substantial deck has been completed. This enlarges the living area of the lower floor and is roofed over to provide a year-round dry area and essential shade in summer. The small garden is a happy symbolic mixture of Australian and New Zealand drought-tolerant plants which creates a very relaxed, casual feel. Locally sourced materials have been used for the red dirt and stone pathways and the wonderful gate and archways which highlight the entrances to the property.