The Block 2020 recap: Front gardens | Photos

What is going on with the judging on The Block? The scores were completely backwards this week, according to one designer.

I’m about ready to make like a Karen and ask to speak to the manager after seeing this week’s Block front yard reveals. The scores were as backwards as Celine Dion’s suit at the 1999 Oscar awards and I need someone to explain where it all went wrong.

JIMMY AND TAM TIED FOR FIRST PLACE

Dry, desolate, bleak, depressing; these are all words I’d use to describe Jimmy and Tam’s winning front yard. The judges may have been transported to Palm Springs, but I’m being taken to the back of a rundown apartment building where the bins are kept. Why would a luxury buyer in Brighton want their front yard to resemble a desert?

The grass is always greener … Picture: Channel 9

Enjoy playing with the cactuses, children. Picture: Channel 9

Too bad if you like to garden; all you’ll be doing is raking gravel and watering rocks. How are young kids meant to enjoy this space? Climb the cactuses? I can’t find one redeeming feature here. The Junction has malfunctioned.

The entrance to Jimmy and Tam’s 1950s style house, Picture: Channel 9

SARAH AND GEORGE ALSO TIED FOR FIRST

I’m also a bit baffled by this win. The heavy brickwork surrounding the entry to the home is the main concern. It’s more aggressive than the soldiers on SAS Australia. It’s a focal point all right, but not a very good one. It feels too dominant and at odds with the rest of the facade. And what’s worse, it doesn’t reflect the design you’ll find inside the home (which is actually pretty awesome).

The heavy brickwork is all wrong. Picture: Channel 9

How did this end up in first place?

Sarah and George’s front garden and entrance on The Block.

On the plus side, the plants are all nice, if not a bit sparse. This facade needs softening, that’s the problem. Like Roxy Jacenko on SAS Australia, I’m ready to bail on this experience as soon as possible because it all feels too hard.

DANIEL AND JADE TIED FOR SECOND

In a shock twist, I declare Daniel and Jade’s front yard the best of the week. Why they didn’t win is beyond me. Sure, the steps could have been better, but overall it’s first-place material.

This is the one that should have won.

Daniel and Jade's front garden on The Block.

The steps could have been better.

It’s the only property where the garden’s brick walls work with and enhance the look of the house, and when you enter the yard things just get better. The luscious grass, gorgeous mature plants, a catwalk to the front door; it delivers more than Dougie the Pizza Boy. There’s also a great coming together of modern and heritage design in this zone. I haven’t seen old and young come together this successfully since George Clooney married Amal.

LUKE AND JASMIN TIED FOR SECOND

The other team that deserves first place is, again, Luke and Jasmin. The gorgeous federation facade on this home meets the brief perfectly, but it still reads as utterly delicious in a modern Melbourne setting. The outdoor furniture is a nice touch and connects the front veranda to the scheme inside. And I love that they made the pit a feature, giving it curves that mirror the ones you’ll find in the bathroom and kitchen inside.

This is what a front garden should look like.

Luke and Jasmin's front garden on The Block.

Despite loving a ginger, I do wish the external brick wall was a different colour, and I have to agree with Neale about the water feature. Like Trump in the white house, I want it removed.

That water feature needs to be voted out. Picture: Channel 9

HARRY AND TASH CAME LAST

Harry and Tash landing in last place is like getting home from Maccas and discovering they left out the sauce; I feel robbed. That’s not to say their yard is without issue, but it’s definitely better than two other gardens this week.

Harry and Tash’s front garden.

Love the paving.

Seventy per cent of it is charming. Love the soft colour palette, the balustrades, the plants and the paving. But things take a turn when we hit the pebbled pet cemetery and that gaudy brick archway. I’m surprised they didn’t install a stone gargoyle. Although it’s busier than Kmart after the second lockdown was lifted, some editing is all that’s required to make it amazing.

But some things need to change.

Chris Carroll is the Melbourne-based designer behind TLC Interiors; an interior design studio and home style blog helping everyday Aussies transform their spaces without breaking the bank. www.tlcinteriors.com.au | Instagram

Originally published as The Block 2020 recap: Front gardens | Photos