Coastal Estate Garden, Isle of Wight
BRIEF
Set within a sensitive coastal landscape on the Isle of Wight, this substantial private estate called for a garden design that could bring together the architecture of the house, ancient woodland, significant level changes and open views towards the sea.
The brief was to create a clear progression in character across the property. Close to the house, the landscape needed to feel formal and architectural, with clipped forms, ornamental planting and a stronger sense of arrival. Moving away from the house, the garden was to become progressively softer and more naturalistic, allowing it to settle comfortably into the surrounding woodland and coastal landscape.
Key areas included the entrance and drive, swimming pool and terraces, routes around the house, the gym and wellness garden, and a new entertaining area beside the boathouse with outdoor kitchen, dining and fire pit. Existing outbuildings and practical access also needed to be carefully integrated.
The wider challenge was to connect these different spaces within one cohesive estate masterplan — preserving important views, responding sensitively to the woodland and coast, and allowing each part of the garden to develop its own distinct atmosphere.
DESIGN SOLUTION
Our design uses the journey through the estate as its organising principle, creating a gradual transition from a more structured landscape around the house to increasingly immersive woodland and coastal planting.
At the entrance, clipped planting, formal hedging and carefully composed ornamental planting create a stronger sense of arrival while retaining the gravel drive and the character of the wider setting. Around the house, this architectural planting language continues, giving definition to the principal spaces without allowing the garden to feel overly formal.
The swimming pool sits within a generous planted terrace. Substantial planting creates enclosure and atmosphere around its edges, while the central view remains open, drawing the eye beyond the pool towards the sea.
Routes around the house have been reconsidered to make movement through the garden a more immersive experience. Paths pass through planting rather than simply around it, creating changing views and moments of discovery. Beside the study, a reflecting pool and sculpture form a focal point from both the house and main drive, with stepping stones providing an occasional route towards the wine cellar.
As the garden approaches the woodland, the character becomes softer. A redundant access track is returned to a more naturalistic landscape, while beside the gym a sauna and cold plunge sit within lush woodland planting. Decking develops into a boardwalk through the planting, making the journey between gym, water and woodland part of the experience.
Towards the shoreline, the landscape opens again. New retaining walls and generous steps negotiate the change in level and create a more dramatic arrival at the boathouse. Here, an outdoor kitchen and dining area provide a generous setting for entertaining, with a separate wood-fired fire pit creating a more informal place to gather close to the sea.
The result is a landscape with several distinct experiences but a consistent underlying character: structured and refined beside the architecture, progressively softer through the woodland, and increasingly open and natural as the garden reaches the coast.
