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By Dylan Roche
Drawing inspiration from a French chateau, this pool designed by Lewis Aquatech stretches between a steep gable-roofed pool house with a cream-colored stone façade on one side and an open-air pavilion with elegant columns on the other. The pool’s clean lines and geometric shape are highlighted by brilliant blue tilework that pops out from the neutral color of the surrounding deck.
Inside the pool house, a mix of playful color with natural wood provides an overall atmosphere that balances luxury with relaxation. Rattan furniture, a contemporary kitchen, and a striped sofa decorated with colorful throw pillows create a welcoming space to escape direct sun, while the pillared entry and wide windows still bring in plenty of natural light. On the other side of the pool, the pavilion is enclosed by a backing of colorful latticework for semi-privacy from the trees beyond.
This pool and adjoining outdoor living areas make relaxation look stylish and entertaining.
POOL & LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN: Jeffrey Plusen and Sarah Schevitz of Plusen Landscape Architects
INTERIOR DESIGN: Whitney Stewart Interior Design
POOL CONTRACTOR: Lewis Aquatech
ARCHITECTURE: Michael Callison Architect
Photography by Peak Visuals
Step out from this home’s great room, and there awaits a pool as the focal point of an expansive backyard set up for all kinds of entertaining and recreation. The pool stretches 22′ by 50′, with full-width stairs at its shallow end and, at the other end, two swim-out benches on either side of a 7′ by 7′ spa.
Anthony Cusat, director of design and senior landscape architect for McHale Landscape Design, explains that the pool shell was built of gunite—a type of concrete—with a Signature Matrix finish by Wet Edge. The coping—the protective cap around the edge of the pool—is 2″ travertine, while the tile around the waterline is 6″ frost-proof travertine.
Surrounding the pool is an expansive deck, as well as a pool house with oversized sliding glass doors. Flanking the pool house are two pavilion patio spaces: one with an outdoor fireplace lounging area, and the other with an outdoor kitchen and dining space. All of it overlooks vibrant landscaping, including a putting/chipping green only a short walk down from the deck, which further enhances the outdoor space’s opportunity for active recreation. “The gardens that adorn the property are made up of white flowering trees, shrubs, perennials, and groundcovers only,” Cusat says. “A true white garden.”
This pool and its many amenities (and views) lend themselves to a dream day outside.
POOL DESIGN & LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT: Anthony R. Cusat, PLA, McHale Landscape Design, Inc.
POOL CONTRACTOR: Town & Country Pools, Inc.
ARCHITECT: Mark Kaufman, GTM Architects
BUILDER: McHale Landscape Design, Inc.
Photography by Andrew LeDuc
With the traditional style of its adjacent house and the woodland surroundings, this pool looks more like something you’d find on a time-honored European estate than one tucked away in suburban D.C. Tiled in bright blue glass, the pool sits in a courtyard framed by a village of five connected pavilions, with the living room, kitchen, and primary bedroom all with a perfect view, as Bob Hruby, principal with Campion Hruby Landscape Architects, describes the house.
The pool deck, with its brickwork and tumbled limestone, extends the look and feel of the English Cotswold-style house. Because of the pool’s four-sided vanishing edge, it almost looks as if it could be a natural pond. The 16′ by 35′ perimeter of the pool rises about 20″ off the deck, where the water overflows into a narrow gutter and is then recirculated back into the pool.
Then there’s the nearby reflecting pool—a landscaping feature built not for swimming but for reflecting the sky and the towering trees. On one side stand three arches that the homeowners bought from a dismantled church back in England. Custom glass panels fitted to the arches create the illusion of modern stained-glass windows, especially when they are lit up at night.
In all, this pool and its surrounding design transport the homeowners to the pastoral charm they loved in England while offering a vibrant but comfortable space for lounging and socializing.
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT: Bob Hruby, Campion Hruby Landscape Architects
ARCHITECT: Scott Anderson, The Anderson Studio
POOL BUILDER: Lewis Aquatech
INTERIOR DESIGN: Susan Stine, Redteam Strategies
Take a close look at this design by Coastal Pools, and you might notice it’s not surrounded by a typical stone or concrete pool deck. Instead, it’s surrounded by a more traditional deck: specifically, Ipe decking, a type of Brazilian hardwood. Brad Hull, vice president of sales and business development for Coastal Pools, explains that this was to reduce the impervious surface on the property, which sits in a critical area and must conform to specific permits—permits that Coastal Pools is accustomed to accommodating and with which they have some expertise. Strictly speaking, the pool is part of a deck that’s considered an addition to the house.
The pool itself has a polished aggregate finish with a border of Pennsylvania bluestone around the perimeter. A tanning ledge complete with bubblers along the shallow end adds an element of charm and keeps the water moving. Perhaps the most notable visual element is the colorful LED lights that illuminate the pool with a vibrant glow after the sun goes down. Nighttime can also be an ideal time to sit by the tabletop fire pit or even step inside the pool house to hang out in the rec room.
Whether on a hot afternoon or a lively night, the pool offers a colorful and fun-filled escape from the everyday.
POOL DESIGN & CONTRACTOR: Coastal Pools
Photography by Stephen Cherry
© Annapolis Home Magazine
Vol. 16, No. 3 2025