New-build garden ideas to fill your new outdoor space

Have you recently moved into a new-build and not sure how to fill outdoor space? In this guide, we’ve put together our top new-build garden ideas to fill your new outdoor space.

Perhaps you’re not used to having a garden or are looking for patio garden ideas to make the most out of the space you have on offer.

Read on to discover everything from patio design ideas to different ways you can decorate your garden to make it look pretty and inviting.

Garden decorating ideas

When it comes to creating beautiful outdoor spaces, here are some garden decorating ideas to inspire you…

1. Create a pathway

If your new-build garden feels a bit uninspiring and is a solid block of grass, consider breaking this up by creating a garden path.

Use stepping stones, patio slabs or railway sleepers to create a straight or winding path. Avoid having the path leading to nowhere and instead start it from the front of your garden and let it naturally lead to either a patio area or perhaps a shed.

2. Decorate with lights

Bring light and personality to your new-build garden by incorporating solar or fairy lights.

Choose a string of multicoloured fairy lights and drape them from one tree to another. Alternatively, use fairy lights to zone off a specific area such as a patio.

3. Outdoor bar or office

Utilise your garden space and build an outdoor bar or office if this is something you could make use of.

If you’re not a keen gardener and don’t require lots of outdoor space for planting flowers or vegetables then it makes sense to use it for something more practical.

Learn how to plan for your garden office project, here.

4. Raised garden or vegetable beds

A great trick for adding variety to your garden is to play with height and proportion. Rather than just carving out flower beds around the perimeter of your garden try installing raised beds instead.

Take inspiration from the ones pictured above and choose designs that are way up off the ground so they are easy to water. Ones with trellis’ attached to the back are wonderful for trailing plants.

5. Feature trees

The straightforward way of decorating a garden is to focus on the edges, however adding features to the middle of your garden can bring it to life and add visual interest.

Carve out small areas to plant trees so you add height and texture to the midsections of your garden. You can also do this with flower beds and potted plants – don’t be scared to divert from the edges!

6. Garden pond

Add a show stopping feature to your garden and build an outdoor pond. Unless you are a seasoned gardener you may want to enlist the help of a landscaper to assist you with this.

There are lots of different pond designs you can go for, we’ve shortlisted some here.

7. Add curvature

The easy thing to do is to follow straight lines in a garden, especially for a new-build. However, this can look quite clean and harsh and if you’d prefer something softer we’d recommend adding curvature to your outdoor space.

Do this by carving out curved flower beds and installing a windy garden path.

8. Zoned off areas

Break up your garden by installing railway sleepers to act as a halfway border. You can add in a step or incorporate flower beds to add colour and texture.

Creating visual barriers in your garden is a great way of zoning off different areas. For example, separating a patio dining area from an area of your garden that you want to keep solely for plants.

Ideas for patio spaces and patio designs

Here are some of our favourite ideas for patio and outdoor garden spaces, including some of our top patio design ideas…

1. Patio with flower bed borders around outdoor seating areas

Looking for small garden patio ideas? Then you’ve come to the right place. If your new-build garden is super compact and you want it to be low maintenance then it’s a good idea to patio the entire garden space and leave the borders as flower beds.

This way you won’t have any grass to cut and it’ll be practical for what you want to use it for, whether it be sitting and relaxing or dining alfresco.

2. Irregular patterned patio garden ideas

There are lots of different patio designs you can go for but one of the classic ones that we love is using irregular stone patio slabs to create a mismatch jigsaw effect.

It’s more visually interesting than simple square slabs and it adds more personality to a patio area.

Make sure to choose patio slabs in a colour and finish that you like and that will be durable.

3. Circular patio for outdoor seating areas

Go for something avant-garde and opt for a circular shaped patio area. This is a great way of adding curvature to a boring square garden and breaking up the space a little bit.

Use small hedges to define the borders of your patio and to make it feel more luxurious.

4. Outdoor rug

Outdoor seating areas can be a little plain and underwhelming. Don’t let this be the case in your new-build garden and introduce an outdoor rug for colour, texture and pattern.

This is a great way of separating an outdoor dining area with the rest of the garden as it creates a helpful visual barrier. There are lots of different designs on the market but we recommend opting for a rug that suits the rest of your homes interior style to make it feel cohesive.

5. Split level ideas for backyard spaces

Before laying a patio you’ve got to make sure that the ground is level. Create a split level garden and have your patio area on one level and your grassed garden on another.

This adds variation to your outdoor space and makes it feel less uniformed and gives it more personality.

6. Perfect place to dine

Create a cosy dining area on your garden patio by investing in an outdoor dining set. You can either opt for a rattan or wooden set depending on what kind of style you prefer.

A stylish rattan set would suit a new-build property as it feels modern and contemporary. However, if you prefer something a little more vintage looking then a wooden teak dining set may be the best option for you.

7. Outdoor kitchen

Extend your interior into your exterior by building a fashionable and functional outdoor kitchen area. Rather than just having a dining table on your patio, elevate this space by building an area for a BBQ and a fire pit.

Make sure this is sheltered from the rain with either a solid structure or an awning.

8. Decorate outdoor seating areas with potted plants

Patios can sometimes look quite quite dull and flat. Avoid this from happening by decorating yours with an array of potted plants.

Use different sized and coloured pots to house your plants for variety and make sure to keep on top of the watering so they don’t die.