The lawn sets the tone immediately. It sits against dark stone paving, gravel beds and a narrow run of planting, so the garden reads as a series of clear surfaces rather than one large open field. In this custom garden design, the different wishes of the clients have been drawn into a restrained private city garden where the eye moves from grass to stone, then on to a quiet seating spot.

Lawn as the main surface

The grass occupies the largest visible plane, which keeps the garden open even when the surrounding materials become denser. Along one edge, a band of planting softens the line between lawn and hardscape. The result is straightforward: the garden can be crossed quickly, but it can also be read slowly, by following the edges where the green gives way to gravel and natural stone. That measured layout is what gives this minimal garden design its clarity.

Near the back, a dark timber screen and tall greenery form a thicker layer of privacy. The screen is not treated as a decorative backdrop; it works as a visual stop, holding the space in place and shielding the garden from views beyond it. The planting in front of and around it is kept loose enough to let the stonework remain visible. This is a small but telling move in a garden with lawn and natural stone: the soft planting does not erase the structure, it frames it.

Stone paving with straight joint lines

The paving is laid in dark, rectangular slabs with straight joint lines that keep the surface controlled and legible. Its grey-black tone pulls the eye downward, especially beside the brighter lawn. In the photographs, the paving acts as a quiet counterweight to the softer materials. It is practical without looking plain, and it gives the garden a clear walking route toward the more secluded corner where the seating area is set apart from the main open space.

Material choice does most of the work here. Corten steel appears in the palette, along with keien, graniet, leisteen and steenkorven, and each one is used to mark a different zone or edge. Granite and slate bring a harder, flatter read; the stone-filled baskets introduce a rougher texture; the rust-toned steel adds a darker line. Together they support the overall landscape design with stone and planting without turning the space into a display of materials for their own sake.

Gravel beds and stone accents

Gravel breaks up the garden into smaller pockets and makes room for the stone feature to stand out. In one of the detail views, the stone figure rises from a bed of small stones and larger pebbles, with tall greenery behind it. The placement is simple, but it changes how the corner is experienced. Instead of a dead end, the gravel bed becomes a pause point, a place where texture replaces ornament. That is also where the phrase gravel bed with stone feature becomes literal rather than decorative.

Another image shows a wire-mesh retaining element filled with pale stones. The grid of the metal gives the wall a measured rhythm, while the fill keeps it visually open. It is a practical structure, yet it also repeats the project’s language of stone, line and restraint. Seen next to the paving and the gravel, it helps define the edges of the garden without closing them off. The materials stay legible, which is one of the strengths of this private city garden.

A seat with a view, not a centrepiece

The project brief mentions a place to sit and enjoy a glass of wine on a thinking stone, and that mood is carried through in the photos. The seating moment is not staged as a terrace in the usual sense. Instead, it sits within the stone and gravel composition, with the lawn nearby and the planting drawing a soft border around it. The effect is quiet and deliberate. The seat belongs to the garden, but it does not dominate it, which suits the restrained scale of the setting.

What stands out most is how the garden avoids competing gestures. There is no excess planting, no overloaded pattern, no attempt to fill every gap. The surfaces are allowed to breathe. Grass, paving, gravel and stone each keep their own register, and the transitions between them are narrow and clear. That approach gives the garden a measured pace. You see the structure first, then the details: the sharp joint lines in the paving, the rounded stones, the upright screen, the single sculptural accent in the gravel.

Privacy through planting and height

Height comes from the greenery rather than from built mass. Tall planting rises behind the stone feature and along the edge of the garden, softening the outline of the dark screen. It is enough to screen the view without turning the space inward. This is where the privacy garden quality becomes visible: the garden feels enclosed, but not heavy. Light still reaches the gravel, the paving and the lawn, so the materials remain easy to read through the day.

The finish of the project lies in those small differences in texture. A smooth slab beside rough pebble fill. A clipped lawn against loose planting. A dark screen behind pale stones. None of these elements shouts, but together they create a garden that can absorb several wishes at once and still look composed. For a custom urban garden, that is the real achievement: not to add more, but to decide what should remain in view.

Photographs: Gert Deketelaere