Private garden Loenen aan de Vecht

In the province of Utrecht lies the beautiful, picturesque village of Loenen aan de Vecht. On the southwest side of that village, we realized a garden with a personality all its own. A shipping container is normally used for shipping or storing large quantities of goods. For this garden, this shipping container was transformed into a sturdy and robust porch!

The garden at issue in this case, like the house, occupies an elongated plot. In the back, the garden borders a lower ditch. The house is street-facing and situated in the middle of the plot. This leaves space to the right and left that is used for car parking spaces, among other things.

What became a technical challenge for us was dealing with the height differences in this garden. Because of level differences in the house, the door sills are reached 50 cm above ground level. We implemented the level of the house in the garden and therefore required a lot of soil to bring the garden to the desired height, we realized several living spaces. Separated, yet connected to each other.
Along the house, we laid long paths of baked clinkers that accentuate the length of the house and a plot with adjacent borders full of beautiful and partially evergreen plantings. Sturdy sleek posts stand as transparent walls in the borders to visually separate one space from another while still maintaining transparency. These posts give depth to the garden, and body. Ceramic tile terraces invite relaxation and dining. These tiles are rock hard, they retain their color and have a beautiful texture. The joints between the tiles are water-permeable and weed-resistant at the same time.

The garden offers many opportunities for play. A large (artificial) lawn for playing great soccer, running and fooling around, a trampoline to jump a hole in the air, surrounded by strong ornamental grasses that can withstand a little play violence. Much use has been made of evergreen hedges, such as the Portuguese laurel and fencing overgrown with ivy. With beech hedges on trunks, together they form the green (yard) partitions. All the plants in the garden were carefully chosen to have the right colors and differences in heights and flowering times to fill out the space correctly and give atmosphere. Fruit is provided for eating in the form of characteristic old fruit trees. The sturdy pergolas at the home feature removable awnings that provide sun protection and when removed there is no need for awnings.

In the back of the garden, we built another place to relax and chill beach style. Therefore, the terraces here are done in ceramic tiles with sand color. A hammock to snuggle up in, a Jacuzzi to bubble comfortably in, a fire pit to sit cozily around and warm up and: the shipping container. The shipping container mentioned in the introduction is here. The container was transformed into a beautiful porch with bar and lounge area. The entire side has been converted into a large “garage door” that can be opened and closed hydraulically by hand. When open, the door serves as a canopy, providing shelter from wind and rain. Placing the container took a lot of effort; because the neighborhood was already densely built up, a crane had to be used to lift the container over the roof of the neighbor’s garage into place.

All in all, a complicated project, but also one that residents can now enjoy to the fullest.

For more information, visit dekunstvanhetscheppen.nl or check out the other projects and company page at HOOG.design