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Franklin Group
Dec 2, 20205 min read

EVERYTHING you need to know about House 2 from The Block 2020!


The Block always holds a special place in our hearts, so we were thrilled to be back for another year in 2020. Joining Sarah and George at House 2, we worked to design and transform two important areas that set the tone of any house; the front yard terrace and backyard. After adding some classic Dave Franklin magic to each space, we were able to secure 1st place in both challenges for Sarah and George. The best part of it all was sharing the unique experiences The Block has to offer with our amazing team, as well as everyone at home!


Our first challenge was designing a landscape to highlight the 1940s heritage of the home while incorporating a consistent black and white theme from inside to out, using an array of features to bring each space to life.


Front Garden and Facade Week.


Front garden and facade week was our first project and came with its own set of challenges. The goal for this space was to create a true feeling of 'home' when entering the front yard. To achieve this feeling we incorporated a minimalist but elegant design as well as a garden. The design overall allows for a family life with plenty of space for children to play, while allowing the house to be the true hero of the front garden.


Custom Hand Selected Bricks.

To really bring the 1940s aesthetic into the design, we created a custom 'Franklin Blend' from hand selected scattered bricks with help from the team at PGH Bricks. The bricks used in our 'Franklin Blend' included Chelsea, East Hampton, Tribeca, Brooklyn, Nobel and Sea Salt.


Coastal Plant Collection.

With Brighton located so close to the beach we chose a variety of specialist plants that would not only thrive in the coastal environment, but are low maintenance and perfect for families with young children.


One of our favourite plants was the beautiful grass tree, Lola.This spectacular 200 year old tree was definitely a challenge, weighing so much that the only option was to crane it into place! This, however, this became an issue with Foreman Dan bringing to our attention this wouldn't be possible. After some much needed bribery Dave got the job done and it paid off.

"They had us at the grass tree" - The Block Judges.

Paver Pads Leading to Travertine Stairs.

The pavers we used were a warm ash travertine from Beaumont Tiles. These pavers broke up the grassed area and created an aesthetically appealing walkway to the travertine stairs.


Wooden Arbour.

The wooden arbour is another beautiful feature that has been used in gardens for over 1,000 years, becoming popular within the 1940s. We brought it into the space to link it back to the house's heritage and paired it with wisteria, which when fully grown around the arbour will bloom a beautiful white flower canopy.


Courtyard, Backyard & Pool Week.

As one of our favourite weeks on The Block, we wanted to go all out and lucky for us Sarah and George had the budget to do so. The overarching plan for the outdoor space was to create three seperate areas that had the ability to entertain and act as a luxury escape from the busy city.


We continued the simplistic design from the front into these spaces to really allow each element to shine in their own way. Brighton is a beautiful location in Melbourne with a large community of young families, so we really wanted to appeal to them in all aspects of House 2's outdoor space. We included all of the necessary amenities for the perfect entertaining space, while celebrating the overall style of the home.


Japanese Maple Tree & Round Limestone Planter.

Not only does this beautiful tree transform the space but creates a luscious green and gold privacy screen against the next door neighbours, making the space feel like your own. The plan was to allow the beautiful maple tree and round limestone planter to be the hero of the space and emphasised this with magical fairy lights around the trunk of the tree. We also looked to create a contrast between the design elements of the charcoal timber fence, the green of the maple tree and the rounded limestone planter. This allows the courtyard to remain simplistic with an impact that adds value to the property.


Pizza Oven & Natural Gas BBQ.

One of our big goals for this challenge was to create a space that would allow for ultimate luxury, dining and entertainment for families to share - and the pizza oven from Polito Woodfire Ovens achieved that perfectly. To combine both the front and back landscapes we incorporated the custom scattered bricks as a splashback behind the pizza oven and natural gas BBQ to really finish off the space.


Custom Outdoor Table.

Incorporated perfectly into the entertaining area was also a custom 6 seater table design.The charcoal timber of the table was designed to match the beautiful fencing and created another contrasting element against the blueberry ash tree hedge (also known as elaeocarpus reticulatus).


Olive Tree.

Who can forget George and Dave's hilarious trip to pick out the amazing mature olive tree? Without doubt it paid off, the judges loved it and so did we! It fitted perfectly and turned an already amazing space into a picture perfect magazine cover.


Swimming Pool.

We wanted to create a hidden oasis, to escape the busy city life just for a moment and we couldn't believe the final result. Following our motto, go big or go home (maybe a little too literally), we selected a larger tile than typically seen with a unique pattern to give a stunning effect which was continued throughout the space. Sarah and George allocated extra space to this area, giving us the opportunity to design a fully functional and practical space for lounging and playing poolside. To incorporate a sense of familiarity and 'Brighton' vibe, we used a stunning photo of the Brighton Beach Boxes with a black and white finish as the wallpaper, which was created and installed by Grafico Group.

"What a hidden gem" - The Block Judges.

This project and stunning outdoor spaces couldn't have been achieved without our amazing team, contractors and suppliers.


Front Garden & Facade Contracting Team.


Fully designed and installed by Franklin Landscape & Design.


Materials by.


Plants:

Lawn:

Paving:

General Garden Supplies:

Bricks:

Timber Arbour:

Irrigation & Lighting:

Feature Pots:

Concrete:

Installation by:


Back Garden, Courtyard & Swimming Pool.


Designed and installed by Franklin Pools and Franklin Landscape & Design.


Materials by.


Plants:

Decking:

  • Outdure (Sea Salt decking product and system)

Stone Cladding:

Paving:

Steel Manufacturing:

Swimming Pool:

Poolside Feature Wall:

Concrete Steps & Benchtop:

Pizza Oven:

Charred Timber:

Irrigation & Lighting:

General Garden Supplies:

Bricks:

Cushions:


Installation by.



Don’t forget to check out some of our other projects by following us on facebook and instagram @franklin_ld & @franklin_fpa & @davefranklin_ld.

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