Before & After: How 3 Backyards Gained Privacy & Improved Views
Built and planted screens add interest and solve common design dilemmas in these reworked outdoor spaces
Some backyards feature less-than-ideal views or enable neighbours and passersby to observe people inside the property. But there are plenty of ways to screen your outdoor living space to add more privacy, create a sense of seclusion or enhance your view within your backyard. In these three outdoor makeovers, see how designers addressed a backyard’s screening challenge while creating eye-catching features.
After: A new bluestone patio and dining area replaces what had been the unused patch of grass. The team framed the space with a black-stained western red cedar pergola and a decorative lattice screen, blocking the neighbour’s garage while anchoring the new design. “I worried a black pergola in the backyard would dominate the space, but in the end it blended in seamlessly,” says Algozzini.
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New electrical wiring travels to the dining area underground and up through a hidden channel on the pergola to a junction box overhead, illuminating the waterproof chandelier and adding to the ambience of the backyard bistro.
Lush plantings, both in the ground and in containers — including Japanese white pine (Pinus parviflora), Quick Fire panicled hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata) and ‘Big Daddy’ hosta (Hosta ‘Big Daddy’) — surround the seating area, further screening and softening the perimeter while adding coluor and texture.
Lush plantings, both in the ground and in containers — including Japanese white pine (Pinus parviflora), Quick Fire panicled hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata) and ‘Big Daddy’ hosta (Hosta ‘Big Daddy’) — surround the seating area, further screening and softening the perimeter while adding coluor and texture.
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2. Secluded seating area
Backyard at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple
Location: Chiswick, West London, UK
Size: Just over 300 square meteres. The backyard runs around the house and includes a long, thin garden at the front, a small terrace at the back, a winding path and a triangular section.
Designer: Charlotte Rowe
Before: Turning a shady, irregular-shaped spot at the front of this London home into an inviting, secluded seating area was a top priority for landscape designer Charlotte Rowe. Part of making the space feel more enjoyable meant creating more privacy from the surrounding homes.
Backyard at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple
Location: Chiswick, West London, UK
Size: Just over 300 square meteres. The backyard runs around the house and includes a long, thin garden at the front, a small terrace at the back, a winding path and a triangular section.
Designer: Charlotte Rowe
Before: Turning a shady, irregular-shaped spot at the front of this London home into an inviting, secluded seating area was a top priority for landscape designer Charlotte Rowe. Part of making the space feel more enjoyable meant creating more privacy from the surrounding homes.
After: Here we can see the same wall in the previous photo, now covered in lush greenery and topped with a black fence that recedes into the background. Rowe also planted multistem trees, including Persian ironwood (Parrotia persica) and serviceberry (Amelanchier lamarckii), along the backyard’s boundaries to increase privacy, screening and the feeling of being in a more secluded garden space.
As the new leafy canopy adds to the backyard’s already shady conditions, Rowe and the homeowners opted against adding a lawn that would need plenty of sunshine to thrive. Instead, the area now features a mix of limestone gravel and Spanish limestone paving. Planted channels and yew hedging break up the paving with colour and texture.
As the new leafy canopy adds to the backyard’s already shady conditions, Rowe and the homeowners opted against adding a lawn that would need plenty of sunshine to thrive. Instead, the area now features a mix of limestone gravel and Spanish limestone paving. Planted channels and yew hedging break up the paving with colour and texture.
Looking in the opposite direction, you can see the new outdoor seating area. Densely planted edges and geometric paving help reduce the feeling of being in a triangular-shaped space.
See more of this outdoor transformation
See more of this outdoor transformation
3. Fire feature focal point
Backyard at a Glance
Who lives here: Lily Gray and Josh Weiner; their daughter, Norah; and their golden retriever
Location: Salt Lake City, USA
Size: 390-square-metre backyard and side yard
Design and construction oversight: Landform Design Group
Before: After moving from the San Francisco Bay Area to Salt Lake City, USA, Lily Gray and Josh Weiner wanted to turn their blank slate into a destination for outdoor living. The backyard connects directly to the driveway, which didn’t create an attractive view for the family nor separate what would be their dream outdoor living space from the utilitarian driveway.
Backyard at a Glance
Who lives here: Lily Gray and Josh Weiner; their daughter, Norah; and their golden retriever
Location: Salt Lake City, USA
Size: 390-square-metre backyard and side yard
Design and construction oversight: Landform Design Group
Before: After moving from the San Francisco Bay Area to Salt Lake City, USA, Lily Gray and Josh Weiner wanted to turn their blank slate into a destination for outdoor living. The backyard connects directly to the driveway, which didn’t create an attractive view for the family nor separate what would be their dream outdoor living space from the utilitarian driveway.
After: As part of the backyard overhaul, which included adding an outdoor kitchen and living area, the team at Landform Design Group also installed a freestanding board-formed concrete wall and a series of weathering steel panels to physically separate and visually screen the backyard from the driveway.
The design team used rough cedar for the board-formed concrete, adding an aggregate-texture finish. The effect ties the wall in with the horizontal board fence used around the yard’s perimeter.
A gas-powered fire feature breaks up the concrete expanse and acts as a focal point for the backyard and dining area. It also extends the backyard’s possibility for enjoyment into the evening and cooler months.
The design team used rough cedar for the board-formed concrete, adding an aggregate-texture finish. The effect ties the wall in with the horizontal board fence used around the yard’s perimeter.
A gas-powered fire feature breaks up the concrete expanse and acts as a focal point for the backyard and dining area. It also extends the backyard’s possibility for enjoyment into the evening and cooler months.
You can see how the concrete wall and steel panels block the view to the driveway. A gap between the two features enables the homeowners to move easily between the home, yard, driveway and garage. The design team carried the weathering steel into other portions of the yard, including new raised vegetable beds.
Scotch moss (Sagina subulata ‘Aurea’) growing between the concrete pavers adds colour and softens the paved area.
Your turn
What do you think of these ingenious designs? Share your thoughts in the Comments below, like this story, save the images for inspiration, and join the conversation.
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Want more on great design around the globe? Read this USA Houzz Tour: A Couple Meets in the Middle of Its Forever Home
Scotch moss (Sagina subulata ‘Aurea’) growing between the concrete pavers adds colour and softens the paved area.
Your turn
What do you think of these ingenious designs? Share your thoughts in the Comments below, like this story, save the images for inspiration, and join the conversation.
More
Want more on great design around the globe? Read this USA Houzz Tour: A Couple Meets in the Middle of Its Forever Home
Backyard at a Glance
Who lives here: Cara Buffa, Josh Weitzman and their two teenage children
Location: Irving Park, a neighbourhood of Chicago, USA
Size: 74 square metres
Designer: KD Landscape Management
Before: Homeowners Cara Buffa and Josh Weitzman contacted KD Landscape Management for their Chicago backyard renovation after discovering the landscape design firm’s work on Houzz. “When they reached out to me, they had a pretty good idea of what they wanted,” says designer John Algozzini. “The first thing Cara told me was that she wanted a pergola and that it had to be black.”
The backyard was pretty much unused by the family at the time and featured minimal plantings and what Algozzini describes as “a chewed-up chunk of lawn”. This section of the yard also butted up to the neighbour’s detached garage.