I really like how this pool has two water features giving you that natural water splashing feeling. You get a cool spa area and a nice compact pool design to entertain yourself.

Randy Angell, Designer The beautiful pool, spa and outdoor fireplace create a peaceful retreat.

Rosedale ‘PARK’ is a detached garage and fence structure designed for a residential property in an old Toronto community rich in trees and preserved parkland. Located on a busy corner lot, the owner’s requirements for the project were two fold: 1) They wanted to manage views from passers-by into their private pool and entertainment areas while maintaining a connection to the ‘park-like’ public realm; and 2) They wanted to include a place to park their car that wouldn’t jeopardize the natural character of the property or spoil one’s experience of the place. The idea was to use the new garage, fence, hard and soft landscaping together with the existing house, pool and two large and ‘protected’ trees to create a setting and a particular sense of place for each of the anticipated activities including lounging by the pool, cooking, dining alfresco and entertaining large groups of friends. Using wood as the primary building material, the solution was to create a light, airy and luminous envelope around each component of the program that would provide separation without containment. The garage volume and fence structure, framed in structural sawn lumber and a variety of engineered wood products, are wrapped in a dark stained cedar skin that is at once solid and opaque and light and transparent. The fence, constructed of staggered horizontal wood slats was designed for privacy but also lets light and air pass through. At night, the fence becomes a large light fixture providing an ambient glow for both the private garden as well as the public sidewalk. Thin striations of light wrap around the interior and exterior of the property. The wall of the garage separating the pool area and the parked car is an assembly of wood framed windows clad in the same fence material. When illuminated, this poolside screen transforms from an edge into a nearly transparent lantern, casting a warm glow by the pool. The large overhang gives the area by the by the pool containment and sense of place. It edits out the view of adjacent properties and together with the pool in the immediate foreground frames a view back toward the home’s family room. Using the pool as a source of light and the soffit of the overhang a reflector, the bright and luminous water shimmers and reflects light off the warm cedar plane overhead. All of the peripheral storage within the garage is cantilevered off of the main structure and hovers over native grade to significantly reduce the footprint of the building and minimize the impact on existing tree roots. The natural character of the neighborhood inspired the extensive use of wood as the projects primary building material. The availability, ease of construction and cost of wood products made it possible to carefully craft this project. In the end, aside from its quiet, modern expression, it is well-detailed, allowing it to be a pragmatic storage box, an elevated roof 'garden', a lantern at night, a threshold and place of occupation poolside for the owners. Photo: Bryan Groulx

Designed for a family with four younger children, it was important that the house feel comfortable, open, and that family activities be encouraged. The study is directly accessible and visible to the family room in order that these would not be isolated from one another. Primary living areas and decks are oriented to the south, opening the spacious interior to views of the yard and wooded flood plain beyond. Southern exposure provides ample internal light, shaded by trees and deep overhangs; electronically controlled shades block low afternoon sun. Clerestory glazing offers light above the second floor hall serving the bedrooms and upper foyer. Stone and various woods are utilized throughout the exterior and interior providing continuity and a unified natural setting. A swimming pool, second garage and courtyard are located to the east and out of the primary view, but with convenient access to the screened porch and kitchen.

This modern/transitional design included a 50' infinity pool and spa, a pavilion with a large outdoor kitchen, bathroom, and fireplace, and other great features like terraced travertine patios, a 10' fire pit behind the infinity edge, cable handrails, LED lighting, landscaping, a paver driveway extension, and an in-ground trampoline!

The clients contacted Pro-Land shortly after purchasing the home, providing us with a bare landscape ready for construction. In the front yard the clients wanted a simple and elegant flagstone walkway, with some planting for pleasing street presence. To differentiate from other homes in the subdivision, custom aluminum planters were placed on either side of the porch steps, adding a contemporary flare. This client was realistic about their smaller backyard and what they would be able to fit within it. They brought to us the idea of a swim spa, rather than a pool, to allow space to accommodate the other items on their wish list. However, large grade changes between the back door and the ground required a special casing to be built around the spa, allowing it to be flush with the turf. A raised flagstone patio overlooking the spa was built due to the grades as well. It is complimented by a raised ipe deck and privacy screen off the back door of the house, which brings some warmth to the yard.

Dallas small yard - beautiful modern pool project with outdoor living and a putting green designed by Mike Farley. Pool is surrounded by a safety fence. FarleyPoolDesigns.com

For more photos of this project see: LEBLANC

This is a wonderful lap pool that has a taste of modern with the clean lines and cement cabana that also has a flair of the rustic with wood beams and a hill country stone bench. It also has a simple grass lawn that has very large planters as signature statements to once again give it a modern feel. Photography by Vernon Wentz of Ad Imagery

Peter T. Michaelis

Luxury bay front waterfront property with a geometric contemporary pool, vanishing edge, lower basin, vanishing edge hot tub, custom tile, large format natural stone decking, artificial turf banding and a coastal landscape. A custom koi pond in the front entry creates an elegant entrance to thehome.

This custom pool and spa have everything a backyard needs. The custom pergola over the spa rains water to keep you warm. There is also a raised wall with 2 bubblers and a fire feature.

Dallas small yard - beautiful modern pool project with outdoor living and a putting green designed by Mike Farley. Pool is surrounded by a safety fence. FarleyPoolDesigns.com