Image: Nomad developments

Your interior spaces should be designed with as much consideration for the gardens they overlook as the gardens themselves receive in their design.

The traditional approach to garden design often considers the view from the garden looking back at the house. However, we spend significant time indoors looking out, particularly in the British climate. This perspective shift suggests that interior spaces should be designed to frame and complement our gardens, creating a seamless dialogue between inside and out.

The sitting room provides an excellent starting point for this conversation between interior and exterior spaces. Thoughtful furniture placement can create viewing spots that capitalise on garden vistas. Rather than pushing all seating against walls, consider floating furniture arrangements that allow you to pause and appreciate the changing seasons.

Window treatments play a crucial role in this indoor-outdoor relationship. Heavy curtains that block light and views might be replaced with simple roman blinds or elegant curtains that frame rather than obscure the garden. The trend toward minimalist window dressing acknowledges that our gardens can provide all the decoration needed, particularly when borders are in full bloom.

Every room overlooking the garden deserves careful consideration in its layout and design, creating unique viewing experiences throughout the home.

Kitchen design offers perhaps the most compelling opportunity to connect with the garden. The sink, often relegated to an interior wall, might instead face a window overlooking a herb garden or bird feeder. A kitchen island can be positioned to allow those preparing food to enjoy the garden view, whilst a breakfast area might be arranged to capture the morning light.

Colour schemes in rooms overlooking the garden deserve special consideration. Rather than competing with the vibrant hues outside, interior colours might be chosen to complement them. Soft, neutral walls can create an elegant frame for the garden view, whilst deeper tones can blur the boundary between inside and out during evening hours.

The transition spaces between home and garden warrant particular attention. Conservatories, garden rooms, and orangeries serve as intermediate zones that can be styled to embrace both interior comfort and garden views. These spaces might feature indoor plants that echo the garden's planting scheme, creating visual continuity.

Lighting design plays a crucial role in maintaining the garden connection after sunset. Thoughtfully positioned garden lighting extends the view beyond glass walls after dark, preventing windows from becoming black mirrors. Interior lighting schemes should be carefully planned to reduce glare and reflection on windows, maintaining the visual link with illuminated garden features.

The relationship between our interior spaces and gardens represents one of the most profound opportunities in home design. When we acknowledge that our gardens are not merely outdoor spaces to be visited, but living landscapes to be experienced from within, we transform our daily experience of home.

This integrated approach - designing interiors with the garden view in mind and gardens with interior viewing points considered - creates a continuous flow between environments. The result is not just aesthetically pleasing but deeply satisfying on a psychological level, connecting us to natural rhythms and seasonal changes even when indoors.

By thoughtfully considering furniture placement, window treatments, color schemes, and lighting, we create a home that breathes with its surroundings. These seemingly small decisions - placing a desk to capture a garden vista, selecting window coverings that frame rather than hide the landscape, choosing colours that complement rather than compete with outdoor hues - collectively create a living experience that honours the relationship between built and natural environments.

The most successful homes don't merely contain gardens; they converse with them, creating a seamless dialogue that enriches our daily experience of both spaces. When we design with this perspective, our homes become not just shelters, but frames through which we experience the changing beauty of the natural world.