BUILDER/ Solda Pools Ltd. DESIGNER Brampton, Ont. www.soldapools.com Tel: 905-796-6500 ARCHITECTURAL A fully equipped pool in sync with its surroundings M Harmony Mature trees and a dense wooded property line of this newer home in an established Mississauga, Ont., neighbourhood provided a beautiful pocket to nestle a fun-filled, fully-landscaped backyard equipped with all the bells and whistles. The homeowner’s wish list included a water feature, separate spa for yearround use, kid-friendly area for children to enjoy, as well as adult areas for entertaining and relaxing. Most importantly, however, the owner wanted the design to offer awe-inspiring views of the pool and surrounding landscape from the home’s main entertaining areas. To achieve this, the owner enlisted Solda Pools Ltd., in Brampton, Ont., to ensure the pool and landscape looked like they were designed as part of the home and not as an afterthought. Using the home’s architectural features as inspiration, Solda started by installing an upper flagstone deck along the back of the house. It includes an outdoor kitchen, tables for dining, areas for relaxation and a natural-gas fire pit, which provides enough warmth for entertaining late into the evening, as well as extending the outdoor season. The location of the 6- x 10.6-m (19.5- x 35-ft) pool was centred on the main viewing areas of the house and upper back patio. It is decked out with three water sheers in a multi-tiered wall with diving platform and a 360-degree waterslide to provide hours of fun for the kids. Ornamental pillars were used in key areas around the pool’s perimeter to provide places for additional plant material, which serve to soften the landscape and give the area added dimension. The 2.1-m2 (7-sf ) concrete spa was also lined in flagstone to blend the feature into the landscape. To allow year-round use, the spa was installed adjacent to the pool, but not too far away from the upper deck, as to allow for easy access in the winter. The use of light- and dark-shaded flagstone throughout the landscape complement the home’s fieldstone finish and cedar-shake style roof, while the vertical water feature and pillars also help seamlessly connect the outdoor space with the home. Strategically placed garden pockets soften the hardscaped areas and blend with the mature trees surrounding the property, while punches of red were used to stand out against the landscape’s natural colour tones. www.poolsspaspatios.com Pools, Spas & Patios ■ 21 PSP_Annual_2011(1).indd 21 3/16/11 12:09:15 PM 2/15/11 2:33:16