Heather Fritz

AquaTerra was hired to transform this dated pool and landscaping to a new outdoor environment more suited to the current home owners. We demolished everything down to the pool shell and started over. Working with an existing shell forced us to be creative with what was existing; we added the tanning ledge and the raised water feature wall all on the existing structure. Features of this renovation that add aesthetic appeal include: New tanning ledge with bubblers, new raised water feature wall, all new pool tile, coping, plaster and led lights, new pool equipment, new travertine decks, new fire pit, new artificial turf putting green and all new landscaping. The finished project gave the clients more than could have imagined! Photography:Daniel Driensky

Ideal for parties or simply relaxing with the family, this backyard transformation brings style and functionality to a home. Total Project features pool, patio, spa, two-story outdoor fireplace, outdoor kitchen, deck, and landscaping. Photo courtesy of Micah Rogers.

Standing in the garden bed we look back at the back entrance framed by two beautiful mature Ginko trees. Natural stone steps take you to the upper patio and sideyard walkway. Family dinners are common out here with a convenient barbecuing spot.

In our busy lives, creating a peaceful and rejuvenating home environment is essential to a healthy lifestyle. Built less than five years ago, this Stinson Beach Modern home is your own private oasis. Surrounded by a butterfly preserve and unparalleled ocean views, the home will lead you to a sense of connection with nature. As you enter an open living room space that encompasses a kitchen, dining area, and living room, the inspiring contemporary interior invokes a sense of relaxation, that stimulates the senses. The open floor plan and modern finishes create a soothing, tranquil, and uplifting atmosphere. The house is approximately 2900 square feet, has three (to possibly five) bedrooms, four bathrooms, an outdoor shower and spa, a full office, and a media room. Its two levels blend into the hillside, creating privacy and quiet spaces within an open floor plan and feature spectacular views from every room. The expansive home, decks and patios presents the most beautiful sunsets as well as the most private and panoramic setting in all of Stinson Beach. One of the home's noteworthy design features is a peaked roof that uses Kalwall's translucent day-lighting system, the most highly insulating, diffuse light-transmitting, structural panel technology. This protected area on the hill provides a dramatic roar from the ocean waves but without any of the threats of oceanfront living. Built on one of the last remaining one-acre coastline lots on the west side of the hill at Stinson Beach, the design of the residence is site friendly, using materials and finishes that meld into the hillside. The landscaping features low-maintenance succulents and butterfly friendly plantings appropriate for the adjacent Monarch Butterfly Preserve. Recalibrate your dreams in this natural environment, and make the choice to live in complete privacy on this one acre retreat. This home includes Miele appliances, Thermadore refrigerator and freezer, an entire home water filtration system, kitchen and bathroom cabinetry by SieMatic, Ceasarstone kitchen counter tops, hardwood and Italian ceramic radiant tile floors using Warmboard technology, Electric blinds, Dornbracht faucets, Kalwall skylights throughout livingroom and garage, Jeldwen windows and sliding doors. Located 5-8 minute walk to the ocean, downtown Stinson and the community center. It is less than a five minute walk away from the trail heads such as Steep Ravine and Willow Camp.

This lap pool maximizes the space in a Bethesda backyard with fieldstone retaining walls that offer privacy and structure. Three sheer descent waterfalls add sound and movement to the swimming pool.

Back yard with swimming pool, spa, raised concrete deck seating area with lawn. Photo by Clark Dugger

Home builders in Tampa, Alvarez Homes designed The Amber model home. At Alvarez Homes, we have been catering to our clients' every design need since 1983. Every custom home that we build is a one-of-a-kind artful original. Give us a call at (813) 969-3033 to find out more. Photography by Jorge Alvarez.

Shane Leblanc

A couple by the name of Claire and Dan Boyles commissioned Exterior Worlds to develop their back yard along the lines of a French Country garden design. They had recently designed and built a French Colonial style house. Claire had been very involved in the architectural design, and she communicated extensively her expectations for the landscape. The aesthetic we ultimately created for them was not a traditional French country garden per se, but instead was a variation on the symmetry, color, and sense of formality associated with this design. The most notable feature that we added to the estate was a custom swimming pool installed just to the rear of the home. It emphasized linearity, complimentary right angles, and it featured a luxury spa and pool fountain. We built the coping around the pool out of limestone, and we used concrete pavers to build the custom pool patio. We then added French pottery in various locations around the patio to balance the stonework against the look and structure of the home. We added a formal garden parallel to the pool to reflect its linear movement. Like most French country gardens, this design is bordered by sheered bushes and emphasizes straight lines, angles, and symmetry. One very interesting thing about this garden is that it is consist entirely of various shades of green, which lends itself well to the sense of a French estate. The garden is bordered by a taupe colored cedar fence that compliments the color of the stonework. Just around the corner from the back entrance to the house, there lies a double-door entrance to the master bedroom. This was an ideal place to build a small patio for the Boyles to use as a private seating area in the early mornings and evenings. We deviated slightly from strict linearity and symmetry by adding pavers that ran out like steps from the patio into the grass. We then planted boxwood hedges around the patio, which are common in French country garden design and combine an Old World sensibility with a morning garden setting. We then completed this portion of the project by adding rosemary and mondo grass as ground cover to the space between the patio, the corner of the house, and the back wall that frames the yard. This design is derivative of those found in morning gardens, and it provides the Boyles with a place where they can step directly from their bedroom into a private outdoor space and enjoy the early mornings and evenings. We further develop the sense of a morning garden seating area; we deviated slightly from the strict linear forms of the rest of the landscape by adding pavers that ran like steps from the patio and out into the grass. We also planted rosemary and mondo grass as ground cover to the space between the patio, the corner of the house, and the back wall that borders this portion of the yard. We then landscaped the front of the home with a continuing symmetry reminiscent of French country garden design. We wanted to establish a sense of grand entrance to the home, so we built a stone walkway that ran all the way from the sidewalk and then fanned out parallel to the covered porch that centers on the front door and large front windows of the house. To further develop the sense of a French country estate, we planted a small parterre garden that can be seen and enjoyed from the left side of the porch. On the other side of house, we built the Boyles a circular motorcourt around a large oak tree surrounded by lush San Augustine grass. We had to employ special tree preservation techniques to build above the root zone of the tree. The motorcourt was then treated with a concrete-acid finish that compliments the brick in the home. For the parking area, we used limestone gravel chips. French country garden design is traditionally viewed as a very formal style intended to fill a significant portion of a yard or landscape. The genius of the Boyles project lay not in strict adherence to tradition, but rather in adapting its basic principles to the architecture of the home and the geometry of the surrounding landscape. For more the 20 years Exterior Worlds has specialized in servicing many of Houston's fine neighborhoods.

Our client constructed their new home on five wooded acres in Northern Virginia, and they requested our firm to help them design the ultimate backyard retreat complete with custom natural look pool as the main focal point. The pool was designed into an existing hillside, adding natural boulders and multiple waterfalls, raised spa. Next to the spa is a raised natural wood burning fire pit for those cool evenings or just a fun place for the kids to roast marshmallows. The extensive Techo-bloc Inca paver pool deck, a large custom pool house complete with bar, kitchen/grill area, lounge area with 60" flat screen TV, full audio throughout the pool house & pool area with a full bath to complete the pool area. For the back of the house, we included a custom composite waterproof deck with lounge area below, recessed lighting, ceiling fans & small outdoor grille area make this space a great place to hangout. For the man of the house, an avid golfer, a large Southwest synthetic putting green (2000 s.f.) with bunker and tee boxes keeps him on top of his game. A kids playhouse, connecting flagstone walks throughout, extensive non-deer appealing landscaping, outdoor lighting, and full irrigation fulfilled all of the client's design parameters.

Landscape Architect: Howard Cohen Photography by: Brandon Rossen Pool finish is PebbleSheen Ocean Blue.

The warmth of dark composite decking, coupled with lush greenery and minimalist pool give this outdoor area a tropical jungle vibe.

David Noel