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The small-garden transformation that has our whole team fighting over paint chips
Home & Garden

The small-garden transformation that has our whole team fighting over paint chips

Four square metres, one long weekend, and a total reinvention.

By Rowan Faulkner · Published 13 July 2026 · 4 min read

It was, on paper, an unpromising space. A concrete slab off a rental kitchen, north-facing, with a rusting Hills hoist bolted to one wall. Total footprint: four square metres.

Three days later it had been reborn as a lush, layered courtyard that looks straight out of a Mediterranean design annual.

The trick

Verticality. A carefully layered green wall, two tall olive-toned pots, and a single statement climber transformed the eye level of the space. The concrete floor received nothing more expensive than a coat of limewash.

Total spend: under $600.