Urban Legend

Home Beautiful Magazine

Grateful to Home Beautiful Magazine for featuring this once-drab outdoor space in Sydney’s inner west, which is now an entertainer’s delight thanks to Adam Robinson, landscape designer, Sydney.

As courtyards increasingly take the place of traditional backyards in dense urban settings, we reimagined this compact outdoor space with a bold, contemporary approach. The result is a relaxed, yet refined courtyard designed for effortless dining, cooking, and lounging—a true extension of the home’s living space.

A striking combination of timber and tiled boundary walls creates a light, modern edge while maintaining a sense of openness. These materials blur the line between architecture and landscape, allowing the interior to flow seamlessly outdoors.

At the heart of the courtyard, a sculptural polished concrete benchtop anchors the space. Beneath, sliding-door storage offers practical elegance, while cross-shaped geometric tiles, artfully applied above and below, add texture and character that will only deepen over time with a natural patina.

A carefully positioned palm introduces scale and a canopy-like effect, softening the space with dappled light and creating an inviting sense of intimacy. Surrounding it, a curated mix of architectural and textural plantings including Phoenix roebelenii, Euphorbia tirucalli, Kalanchoe beharensis, Agave, Crassula ‘Blue Bird’ and more, add visual drama, housed in bold, sculptural pots that double as art pieces.

Every element, from the materials to the furnishings, has been chosen for its balance of style, function and personality. The result is a space that feels both playful and considered, modern yet grounded.

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