Gardens here
Coastal village with sea views, mix of older bungalows and newer rebuilds replacing them. Salt-air exposure is significant — anything iron-bearing rusts, anything porous absorbs, anything south-facing weathers fast.
Plot sizes vary; the older Hill Head bungalows often sit on generous plots that have been worked over decades. Newer rebuilds typically have smaller, more architectural gardens.
Working the area
Fifteen to twenty minutes from the studio. We're familiar with the coastal conditions — Warsash itself runs onto the Solent, so the same specification considerations apply at home.
Material decisions
Vitrified porcelain rather than softer sandstone on south-facing aspects. Marine-grade stainless fixings throughout, no plain-steel hardware. Salt-tolerant planting palettes — Eryngium, Crambe, Stipa, Echium, Crocosmia, lavender, rosemary. Hardwoods (oak, iroko) over softwoods on directly-exposed aspects. More on the reasoning in building for the salt cycle.
In practice
The studio archive doesn't yet feature a Hill Head project. Garden composition, Warsash 2025 — also coastal-adjacent, also using porcelain where the conditions called for it — is the closest reference build.
Discuss a Hill Head briefFrequently asked
Do you work in Hill Head?
Yes — fifteen to twenty minutes from the studio, with regular work in the village.
Why does material choice differ here from further inland?
Salt-air exposure. Anything iron-bearing rusts, anything porous absorbs, anything south-facing weathers fast — it's why we specify vitrified porcelain and marine-grade stainless here rather than softer stone and plain steel. Full reasoning in building for the salt cycle.
Have you completed a project in Hill Head?
Not yet. Garden composition, Warsash 2025 — also coastal-adjacent, also specified in porcelain for the conditions — is the closest reference build.