Butter Wakefield's clever design ideas for a small city garden

Garden designer Butter Wakefield was asked to remodel the garden and roof terrace of this Chelsea townhouse to provide year-round structure and interest. She explains to Clare Foster how she has created natural spaces that complement and flow seamlessly out from a new extension

By Clare Foster

11 April 2023

Jason Ingram1/13When Miranda Perrett commissioned Butter Wakefield to redesign her Chelsea townhouse garden, her brief was for a natural look, with plenty of greenery to soften any hard landscaping: ‘We look out at the garden constantly, so I wanted something that looked good all year and was gentle on the eye, very natural and not too shaped.’ Butter designed a simple, symmetrical layout. ‘Symmetry doesn’t always work, but it creates a calmness and balance, especially in a small space,’ she says. Limestone paving from Stone Age mirrors the limestone in the ground floor extension, spilling out to create a small terrace and topping the brick steps to the upper level of the garden. Rather than spanning the entire width, the steps run up the middle, with raised beds on either side. ‘We wanted to bring the greenery down and across this space so it was easier on the eye.’
Jason Ingram2/13To contrast with the limestone, narrow Belgian bricks were used for the upper terrace and retaining walls, arranged in herringbone patterns like parquet flooring. Wedged ingeniously in place, the bricks are unpointed, making the whole surface look more natural, and also allowing self-seeded plants to creep into the cracks. ‘We laid the bricks on a free-draining aggregate so the garden is as sustainable as possible,’ explains Butter.
Jason Ingram3/13Mirrors are an age-old trick for a small garden, but they work well to give the illusion of a larger space. Here, Butter has used them on the lower terrace behind trellis from The Garden Trellis Co, painted in Farrow & Ball’s ‘Downpipe’, for a subtle effect. This is echoed by a panel at the far end of the garden above a simple water feature with a bespoke lead cistern from Redfields. The table and chairs on the terrace, and two benches flanking the upper garden are by James Fuller of Home & Garden Ironwork. ‘These galvanised-iron pieces are fairly light and see-through,’ says Butter. ‘It’s a mistake, in a small space, to use chunky pieces.’
Jason Ingram4/13The lighting is also understated, with Davey & Company wall lanterns providing a warm glow. John Cullen Lighting devised the scheme for the rest of the garden, with small antique brass uplighters set into the steps and uplighters under the multi-stemmed shrubs, which cast intriguing shadows. ‘All the trees needed was a little tickle,’ says Butter. ‘It is so easy to overdo lighting ina small garden.’

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Design notes: Rachel Chudley

Jason Ingram5/13The planting is primarily evergreen, with a shrubby framework of four multi-stemmed Pittosporum tobira underplanted with Pittosporum tenuifolium ‘Golf Ball’, Skimmia japonica ‘Finchy’ and compact Hydrangea paniculata ‘Little Lime’ in the raised beds either side of the steps. Perennials, in a refined palette, flower year round, including Geranium nodosum ‘Silverwood’, Tellima grandiflora and various hellebores, with alchemilla and erigeron spilling onto the paving. ‘I try to always have something in bloom, however subtle,’ says Butter. ‘Scent is also incredibly important, so I chose jasmine and climbing roses to clamber up the walls.’
Jason Ingram6/13The roof area is anchored by three multi-stemmed Amelanchier lamarckii, tough enough to withstand the exposed conditions. In big containers, Pittosporum tobira ‘Nanum’ forms cushions of glossy green, peppered with pink-flowered scabious and Geranium nodosum, while erigeron tumbles over the planters to soften their hard edges. ‘We wanted to wrap it all up in green,’ says Butter.
Jason Ingram7/13The focus of this simple, welcoming space is a seating area with Royal Botania’s ‘Zenhit’ teak-framed furniture. Light galvanised steel containers by Outdoor Design are arranged around the edges, with abundant planting spilling out. Above these, a transparent toughened glass surround creates a wind barrier, without blocking any of the light.
Jason Ingram8/13

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