Courtyard Garden with Hot Tub

Private Residence

Location: Marlow, Buckinghamshire

Private Client

Status: Completed

Service Offer: Design, Landscaping

A Garden Designed for Inside-Out Living

This compact courtyard garden in Marlow was designed with precision and purpose, enclosed on two sides by the home and viewed through extensive glazing. With visibility from almost every internal room, the space needed to offer structure, visual interest, and a sense of enclosure all year round. The client wanted a private outdoor retreat that could be used for entertaining, while also enhancing the feel of the house itself. The result is a highly detailed courtyard that balances calmness with creativity, contemporary design with warmth.

Sculptural Features and Contemporary Detailing

At the centre of the space is a bespoke cedar hot tub, set into a clean-lined layout that features a series of sculptural water rills. These elements introduce sound and movement while drawing the eye through the courtyard. Decorative corten steel panels mounted on the boundary walls add texture and depth, mirrored by a custom corten gate at the side entrance. These hard landscaping choices are softened by the integration of a new glazed garden room that blurs the line between indoors and out, offering a seamless connection to the garden.

Planting, Lighting and Year-Round Atmosphere

Architectural planting forms the backbone of the garden, with carefully selected species delivering colour, contrast and seasonal variation. Splashes of bold planting tie in with the tones of the corten panels, while evergreen structure provides form throughout the year. The layout includes subtle lighting to enhance the space at night, highlighting the water features and casting gentle light across the textured planting. Elegant furniture ensures the space functions for both entertaining and quiet retreat, creating a courtyard that is compact in scale but rich in detail and experience.

Service offered: Design, Landscaping