Mid-sized minimalist backyard rectangular hot tub photo in Dallas

The planning phase of this modern retreat was an intense collaboration that took place over the course of more than two years. While the initial design concept exceeded the clients' expectations, it also exceeded their budget beyond the point of comfort. The next several months were spent modifying the design, in attempts to lower the budget. Ultimately, the decision was made that they would hold off on the project until they could budget for the original design, rather than compromising the vision. About a year later, we repeated that same process, which resulted in the same outcome. After another year-long hiatus, we met once again. We revisited design thoughts, each of us bringing to the table new ideas and options. Each thought simply solidified the fact that the initial vision was absolutely what we all wanted to see come to fruition, and the decision was finally made to move forward. The main challenge of the site was elevation. The Southeast corner of the lot stands 5'6" above the threshold of the rear door, while the Northeast corner dropped a full 2' below the threshold of the door. The backyard was also long and narrow, sloping side-to-side and toward the house. The key to the design concept was to deftly place the project into the slope and utilize the elevation changes, without allowing them to dominate the yard, or overwhelm the senses. The unseen challenge on this project came in the form of hitting every underground issue possible. We had to relocate the sewer main, the gas line, and the electrical service; and since rock was sitting about 6" below the surface, all of these had to be chiseled through many feet of dense rock, adding to our projected timeline and budget. As you enter the space, your first stop is an outdoor living area. Smooth finished concrete, colored to match the 'Leuder' limestone coping, has a subtle saw-cut pattern aligned with the edges of the recessed fire pit. In small spaces, it is important to consider a multi-purpose approach. So, the recessed fire pit has been fitted with an aluminum cover that allows our client to set up tables and chairs for entertaining, right over the top of the fire pit. From here, it;s two steps up to the pool elevation, and the floating 'Leuder' limestone stepper pads that lead across the pool and hide the dam wall of the flush spa. The main retaining wall to the Southeast is a poured concrete wall with an integrated sheer descent waterfall into the spa. To bring in some depth and texture, a 'Brownstone' ledgestone was used to face both the dropped beam on the pool, and the raised beam of the water feature wall. The main water feature is comprised of five custom made stainless steel scuppers, supplied by a dedicated booster pump. Colored concrete stepper pads lead to the 'Ipe' wood deck at the far end of the pool. The placement of this wood deck allowed us to minimize our use of retaining walls on the Northeast end of the yard, since it drops off over three feet below the elevation of the pool beam. One of the most unique features on this project has to be the structure over the dining area. With a unique combination of steel and wood, the clean modern aesthetic of this structure creates a visual stamp in the space that standard structure could not accomplish. 4" steel posts, painted charcoal grey, are set on an angle, 4' into the bedrock, to anchor the structure. Steel I-beams painted in green-yellow color--aptly called "frolic"--act as the base to the hefty cedar rafters of the roof structure, which has a slight pitch toward the rear. A hidden gutter on the back of the roof sends water down a copper rain chain, and into the drainage system. The backdrop for both this dining area , as well as the living area, is the horizontal screen panel, created with alternating sizes of cedar planks, stained to a calm hue of dove grey.

Material expression and exterior finishes were carefully selected to reduce the apparent size of the house, last through many years, and add warmth and human scale to the home. The unique siding system is made up of different widths and depths of western red cedar, complementing the vision of the structure's wings which are balanced, not symmetrical. The exterior materials include a burn brick base, powder-coated steel, cedar, acid-washed concrete and Corten steel planters.

Atherton has many large substantial homes - our clients purchased an existing home on a one acre flag-shaped lot and asked us to design a new dream home for them. The result is a new 7,000 square foot four-building complex consisting of the main house, six-car garage with two car lifts, pool house with a full one bedroom residence inside, and a separate home office /work out gym studio building. A fifty-foot swimming pool was also created with fully landscaped yards. Given the rectangular shape of the lot, it was decided to angle the house to incoming visitors slightly so as to more dramatically present itself. The house became a classic u-shaped home but Feng Shui design principals were employed directing the placement of the pool house to better contain the energy flow on the site. The main house entry door is then aligned with a special Japanese red maple at the end of a long visual axis at the rear of the site. These angles and alignments set up everything else about the house design and layout, and views from various rooms allow you to see into virtually every space tracking movements of others in the home. The residence is simply divided into two wings of public use, kitchen and family room, and the other wing of bedrooms, connected by the living and dining great room. Function drove the exterior form of windows and solid walls with a line of clerestory windows which bring light into the middle of the large home. Extensive sun shadow studies with 3D tree modeling led to the unorthodox placement of the pool to the north of the home, but tree shadow tracking showed this to be the sunniest area during the entire year. Sustainable measures included a full 7.1kW solar photovoltaic array technically making the house off the grid, and arranged so that no panels are visible from the property. A large 16,000 gallon rainwater catchment system consisting of tanks buried below grade was installed. The home is California GreenPoint rated and also features sealed roof soffits and a sealed crawlspace without the usual venting. A whole house computer automation system with server room was installed as well. Heating and cooling utilize hot water radiant heated concrete and wood floors supplemented by heat pump generated heating and cooling. A compound of buildings created to form balanced relationships between each other, this home is about circulation, light and a balance of form and function. Photo by John Sutton Photography.

Bathroom remodel with espresso stained cabinetry, granite and slate tile, quartz counter tops. Cameron Sadeghpour Photography
Bathroom - mid-sized transitional master gray tile and stone tile bathroom idea in Other with an undermount sink, dark wood cabinets, quartz countertops, a one-piece toilet, gray walls and flat-panel cabinets

Connected Spa with overfill into Pool Newport Coast Absolute Pool Care OC
Pool - pool idea in Orange County

This beautiful Craftsman style Passive House has a carbon footprint 20% that of a typically built home in Oregon. Its 12-in. thick walls with cork insulation, ultra-high efficiency windows and doors, solar panels, heat pump hot water, Energy Star appliances, fresh air intake unit, and natural daylighting keep its utility bills exceptionally low. Jen G. Pywell

Backlit Slab Pink Onyx (slabs from Tutto Marmo), Slab Pink Onyx on Shower walls/bench/ponywall, recessed and surface mounted Robern medicine cabinets (lighted and powered), Dura Supreme cabinetry with custom pulls, freestanding BainUltra Ora tub with remote Geysair subfloor pump (cleverly located under a base cabinet with in floor access), floor mounted tub filler with wand, Vessel sinks with AquaBrass faucets, Zero Threshold shower with CalFaucets 6" tiled drain, smooth wall conversion with wallpaper, powered skylight, frameless shower with 1/2" low iron glass, privacy toilet door with 1/2" low iron acid etch finish, custom designed Italian glass tile, chandeliers and pendants and Toto's "do everything under the sun" electronic toilet with remote. Photos by: Kerry W. Taylor

Backlit Slab Pink Onyx (slabs from Tutto Marmo), Slab Pink Onyx on Shower walls/bench/ponywall, recessed and surface mounted Robern medicine cabinets (lighted and powered), Dura Supreme cabinetry with custom pulls, freestanding BainUltra Ora tub with remote Geysair subfloor pump (cleverly located under a base cabinet with in floor access), floor mounted tub filler with wand, Vessel sinks with AquaBrass faucets, Zero Threshold shower with CalFaucets 6" tiled drain, smooth wall conversion with wallpaper, powered skylight, frameless shower with 1/2" low iron glass, privacy toilet door with 1/2" low iron acid etch finish, custom designed Italian glass tile, chandeliers and pendants and Toto's "do everything under the sun" electronic toilet with remote. Photos by: Kerry W. Taylor

Connected Spa and Pool, Tustin, CA Absolute Pool Care OC
Example of a pool design in Orange County

Absolute Pool Care 40,000 gallon residential pool and spa with two filters, 6 pumps, a 30 ft. water slide, 3 spitters, and two water features!
Example of a pool design in Orange County

Walls; Fireplace Surrounds, Partition and Structural Walls, Concrete Bottle Nook beneath kitchen countertop: We wanted to recreate a wall that had fissures, cracks and veins that would resemble the cliffs that the house was constructed on. It should be noted that we were not so concerned with exactly replicating the surrounds, but only to give the feel/impression of the surrounds. The technique used to pour the walls was to randomly pour the concrete in the formed walls and lightly vibrate them as we wanted to keep some random air pockets to produce a bug holed rock look (too much vibration would limit the fissure effect). Once we made a first pass with the concrete in the wall…sometimes pouring a third at a time (or even two-thirds at a time depending where we wanted the fissure/fissures) we would stop and move the concrete pump to a different location and then we placed stones, shells etc onto the top of the irregular tops of the wall. In 30-45 minutes, after the initially poured concrete in the wall took a slight set, we would pour concrete again over the first pour which we dropped/placed rocks and shells on the top of the partially set up wall.

Backlit Slab Pink Onyx (slabs from Tutto Marmo), Slab Pink Onyx on Shower walls/bench/ponywall, recessed and surface mounted Robern medicine cabinets (lighted and powered), Dura Supreme cabinetry with custom pulls, freestanding BainUltra Ora tub with remote Geysair subfloor pump (cleverly located under a base cabinet with in floor access), floor mounted tub filler with wand, Vessel sinks with AquaBrass faucets, Zero Threshold shower with CalFaucets 6" tiled drain, smooth wall conversion with wallpaper, powered skylight, frameless shower with 1/2" low iron glass, privacy toilet door with 1/2" low iron acid etch finish, custom designed Italian glass tile, chandeliers and pendants and Toto's "do everything under the sun" electronic toilet with remote. Photos by: Kerry W. Taylor

Backlit Slab Pink Onyx (slabs from Tutto Marmo), Slab Pink Onyx on Shower walls/bench/ponywall, recessed and surface mounted Robern medicine cabinets (lighted and powered), Dura Supreme cabinetry with custom pulls, freestanding BainUltra Ora tub with remote Geysair subfloor pump (cleverly located under a base cabinet with in floor access), floor mounted tub filler with wand, Vessel sinks with AquaBrass faucets, Zero Threshold shower with CalFaucets 6" tiled drain, smooth wall conversion with wallpaper, powered skylight, frameless shower with 1/2" low iron glass, privacy toilet door with 1/2" low iron acid etch finish, custom designed Italian glass tile, chandeliers and pendants and Toto's "do everything under the sun" electronic toilet with remote. Photos by: Kerry W. Taylor

Absolute Pool Care OC
Example of a pool design in Orange County

Separated Spa and Pool with view of Catalina Island, Newport Coast, Ca. Absolute Pool Care OC
Example of a pool design in Orange County

Backlit Slab Pink Onyx (slabs from Tutto Marmo), Slab Pink Onyx on Shower walls/bench/ponywall, recessed and surface mounted Robern medicine cabinets (lighted and powered), Dura Supreme cabinetry with custom pulls, freestanding BainUltra Ora tub with remote Geysair subfloor pump (cleverly located under a base cabinet with in floor access), floor mounted tub filler with wand, Vessel sinks with AquaBrass faucets, Zero Threshold shower with CalFaucets 6" tiled drain, smooth wall conversion with wallpaper, powered skylight, frameless shower with 1/2" low iron glass, privacy toilet door with 1/2" low iron acid etch finish, custom designed Italian glass tile, chandeliers and pendants and Toto's "do everything under the sun" electronic toilet with remote. Photos by: Kerry W. Taylor

Separated Spa with spill over into Pool with view of Catalina Island, Newport Coast, Ca. Absolute Pool Care OC
Pool photo in Orange County

Absolute Pool Care OC
Pool photo in Orange County