An Island on the Thames reached by a chain link ferry with little community of houses facing the river bank in Kingston. The house is single story on a double plot with an existing deck and paved area. To the right of the house was an underused section of the garden which was astro and pebbles with absolutely no plants, character or privacy.

The brief was to make it feel more like a garden, to be pretty and organic with plants growing and buzzing with life, and to create a welcoming haven to relax in, read a book and drink a glass of wine.

In order to soften the space we created a narrow path adjacent to the river enclosed with tall corten steel troughs and edged with roof-form Mulberry trees to provide natural shade and privacy, with a pretty egg chair as a focal point at the end. Another path leads to a private garden room edged and enclosed by soft plants, for lounging on comfortable sofas with twinkling light hanging from the trees, a fire bowl and gentle billowing planting. The planting is lush with lots of evergreen structure such as libertia, shaggy taxus domes, heuchera, anemones, verbena and masses of geraniums.