Turning an Awkward Backyard Outhouse Into a Modern Garden Feature

The Scenario

A homeowner recently asked:

"Help me hide this outhouse"

The GardenOwl Diagnosis

The Assessment

You’ve got a solid little brick outhouse plonked dead‑center in an otherwise clean, modern yard. Fresh turf, dark metal fencing, a tidy seating area… and then this squat brown box with a hose wrapped around it like a garden snake. You need the toilet, but you hate the view. Knocking it down would be expensive and you’d lose a very practical feature. Addressing issues like this is key to maximizing your backyard's curb appeal and avoiding the Infrastructure Displacement Syndrome, where utilitarian features are treated as static obstacles rather than integrated service layers, creating a visual 'dead zone' that disrupts the landscape's continuity.

So the real brief isn’t “remove the outhouse” — it’s:

How do we stop this thing looking like a random brick bunker in the middle of the lawn?

The Trap: Why It Looks So Awkward Right Now

Right now the outhouse is making three classic backyard mistakes:

1. It’s a lonely box in a sea of lawn. No visual transition, no planting, no structure tying it to anything. Your eye goes straight to the box because it’s the only vertical object in the lawn.

2. It reads as utility, not as a garden feature. Bare brick, exposed hose, tiny mean window. Everything about it screams "service building" instead of "pavilion".

3. The proportions fight your modern setup. You’ve got a sleek, dark fence and a white outdoor lounge zone. The outhouse is a dated color, wrong scale, and totally unconnected.

When you try to hide a thing like this by doing nothing, it looks worse. The trick is counter‑intuitive:

Stop pretending it’s not there. Treat it like a tiny pavilion.

The second you design around it, it stops being weird.

The Solution (Deep Dive)

Here’s how I’d tackle this like a real project.

Step 1 – Decide Its New Identity

You get to pick a story:

• “Modern garden pavilion with hidden loo inside” – clean lines, slat screens, grasses.
• “Green garden room wrapped in plants” – hedge, climber, soft shapes.

Both start with the same move:

Turn the brick box into the core of a larger, better‑proportioned structure.

We’ll do that with slat screens, planting, and maybe a light pergola.

Step 2 – Build a Timber Slat Screen (The Big Visual Fix)

Right now you see raw brick from the lawn and from the seating area. We’ll skin those views.

What to build:

• A simple timber slat screen on the two lawn‑facing sides.
• Match or complement the color of your fence or outdoor furniture – that’s how you make it feel intentional.

Dimensions & layout:

• Pull the screen out 300–450 mm (12–18") from the brick.
  • Enough space for plants and airflow.
  • Close enough that it still reads as one object.
• Height: either
  • Just above roof height for a strong block form, or
  • Line up with the top of the fence for a clean horizontal datum.

Construction basics:

• Posts: 90×90 mm treated pine or steel posts set into concrete footings just outside the existing slab line.
• Rails: 70×35 mm treated pine or similar, fixed to posts.
• Slats: 70–90 mm boards, with 10–20 mm gaps for light and air.

Why slats work so well here:

• They soften the brick without creating a big dead wall.
• Gaps throw shadows and texture, so the eye reads pattern instead of mass.
• You can run plants through and in front of them.
• They give you a modern, pavilion feel that matches your furniture.

Do not over‑complicate this with fancy profiles. Straight boards, straight lines. Let plants do the decorating.

Step 3 – Plant a Slim Green Buffer Around It

That 300–450 mm gap between brick and screen is your planting strip.

You don’t have room for big shrubs, and you don’t want a hedge that eats half the lawn. You want tall, upright plants that stay slim.

Think in two layers:

1. The tall, upright layer (the “veil”)

Pick a single species, run it the full length. No polka dots.

Options that work well in a modern yard like yours (check your climate, but generally good in many regions):

• Ornamental grasses – e.g. Miscanthus, Calamagrostis ‘Karl Foerster’, Pennisetum ‘Nafray’ or similar natives.
  • Narrow clumps, 1.0–1.5 m high.
  • They move in the wind and soften the rectilinear mass.
• Narrow native shrubs (if you prefer woody plants):
  • Look for words like "columnar", "slim", "upright" on the label.

Why not big, round shrubs? Because:

• They’ll quickly eat into the lawn and path.
• You’ll be trimming forever to keep access to the door.
• The whole point is to elongate the structure, not make a fat lump.

Plant spacing: about 400–600 mm apart depending on species.

2. The low front edge (optional but nice)

Closer to the lawn edge (in front of the tall plants), you can:

• Run a row of low groundcovers or strappy plants (like lomandra, dianella, or similar locals).
• Or just use mulch right to the edge for a crisp, low‑maintenance strip.

Edging: Use a steel or rubber lawn edging between grass and planting. Don’t trust lawn alone; it’ll creep and ruin the neat line.

Step 4 – Clean Up the Utility Stuff (Hose, Base, Window)

The details are small, but they shout.

Move the hose

Lose the green hose hanging off the side of the outhouse. It screams "utility shed".

• Install a hose reel on the fence or a neat freestanding hose pot near the tap.
• If you need a tap on the outhouse, keep only the brass and short connector visible. Hide the coil.

Deal with the ugly base

If the concrete/brick base is rough and crumbly:

• Square it off with bagged concrete or a small render so it looks intentional.
• Or bury it visually by raising the garden bed level slightly against it and mulching to the edge.

Upgrade the tiny window

That small window currently looks like something from a storage bunker.

Options:

• Paint the frame to match your fence or screen color.
• Add a simple timber trim or fake shutter box around it on the slatted face you’ll see from the seating area.

Goal: make it read as a cute window on a little garden shed, not a prison vent.

Step 5 – Optional: Add a Light Pergola / Arbor

If you want to really commit and turn this into a feature instead of something you’re apologizing for:

Run a light pergola or arbor from the outhouse over to the concrete path.

Layout idea:

• Fix a beam to the top of the outhouse on the path side.
• Run 2–3 rafters or battens across to posts set in the lawn or on the path edge.
• Keep it visually light – 90×45 rafters at 600–900 mm spacing, not a chunky carport.

Add a climber:

Pick one well‑behaved climber that fits your sun/water situation. Avoid rampant invasives and anything that wants to pull the roof off.

Why the pergola helps:

• It extends the structure so it feels like a pavilion, not a stubby block.
• It gives you shade on the path and a clear "garden room" feeling.
• The climber breaks up all the brick and metal fence with soft green overhead.

Step 6 – Repaint the Brick to Tie Everything Together

Bare brown brick right next to a dark metal fence and modern white furniture is just the wrong era.

Painting brick is totally fine if you prep properly.

Color strategy:

• Deep charcoal / soft black to match the fence for a "disappear into the background" look.
• Or a soft warm neutral that ties to your outdoor furniture cushions and any paving tones.

Once the brick and fence are in the same color family, the slat screen and plants become the stars. The box itself stops shouting.

Prep basics:

• Clean with a mild detergent and stiff brush; rinse and let dry.
• Repair any cracks or chunky mortar.
• Use a masonry primer then a good exterior paint.

Don’t go bright white – it’ll glare in the sun and every cobweb will show.

Visualizing the Result Before You Pick Up a Saw

Here’s where most DIYers waste money:

• They buy random screens and plants on sale,
• Slap them up around the outhouse,
• Then realize the height is wrong, the color is off, and the plants fight the furniture style.

You’ve got a structure sitting right in the middle of the yard. Proportion is everything. You don’t want to find out after you’ve drilled posts into concrete that the screen looks too tall or the color fights the fence.

This is exactly where our Exterior Design App acts as your safety net.

How to use it like a pro:

1. Take a straight‑on photo of the outhouse from your main viewing angle (probably the seating area).
2. Upload it into GardenDream.
3. Draw in the slat screens at different heights – line them up with the fence, then try slightly higher. You’ll instantly see which one feels balanced.
4. Test paint colors on the brick in the tool – charcoal vs warm taupe vs something closer to your furniture.
5. Drop in different plant silhouettes – tall grasses vs slim shrubs vs a fully green hedge look.

In 20–30 minutes you’ll know:

• How tall the screens should be.
• Whether you like a fully green box or a partly open, modern slatted pavilion.
• Whether a pergola makes the space feel cozy or cramped.

That blueprint saves you from buying the wrong timber, wrong stain, or a carload of plants that won’t give you the right look.