Pool

"We made the pool an L-shape to mimic the form of the home,

Adjacent to the main living areas is an outdoor entertainment terrace, which overlooks the heated saltwater pool and mountains beyond.

Architect Benedetta Tagliabue was intrigued by the crumbling homes in her neighborhood in Barcelona and took to sprucing up an 18th-century flat. What makes her space unique are the countless period details that were not restored, but rather left to breathe as is and continue as is in their deteriorating state, adding character to the home. However, the walls were slowly peeled away, revealing a number of significant elements like a Gothic capital with an angel, and a frieze of vivid 18th-century decorative murals—with the original sketches for them on the wall of the adjacent room. Immersed in natural light, the rooms form a circular layout around a central patio. Diagonally placed rectangular patches of tined cement tile accentuate the effect, reflecting the sun’s rays. In the pool house, a shallow lap pool and wood burning fireplace present an urban oasis under ceramic, barrel-vaulted ceilings.

The long backyard sports a refreshing lap pool to take a dip during the hot and humid summer months.

Just inside the living room’s sliding glass door is a Parentesi lamp by Achille Castiglioni, an object Marc has admired since childhood. Below, the pool deck displays a pair of Eos side chairs, lounge chairs, and a square dining table by Matthew Hilton.

The original pool was refinished and grommets were installed for a custom safety cover. A new firepit by Lumacast and teak-and-rope lounge chairs from the Conran Shop create the perfect outdoor lounge area.

Looking upon Keith and Christine’s house from the north, a panoramic view shows a compound-like relationship between the main building, pool, and a studio dedicated to exercise, reading, and projects.

Every room of the home has a view of the sea, and the salty air patinas the bespoke cedar panels over time.

The pergola overlooks the pool with the Baltic Sea in the distance. The couple built the home so that there would be as much outdoor space as indoor space.

The backyard was brought to life with a 20-yard pool, low-maintenance plantings like potted olive trees, gravel, and grass.

“You really want to be outside as much as possible,” Robert says. To help enhance the indoor-outdoor aspect of the home, they added accordion doors along the back of the house, leading from the living and dining room out onto the grass-covered pool area.

“The pool house was something I always wanted to build,” Robert says. The bar is the main attraction. And next to it, a lime tree is within reach to make fresh gin and tonics.

“It's the first home that we've ever had where we wake up in the morning and we open our eyes and every aspect is a true extension of our ideas and our family,” says Amber. “It feels so good to resonate with our space on every level. Every day we walk downstairs and the light is streaming in and we've got that cute little fireplace nook. And we're in the Canyon with the little birds jumping around. We are so grateful to be living in a space that feels like us.”

Haus Wittmann, a lavish 1975 villa in Lower Austria designed by architect Johannes Spalt, was revived by new owners Werner and Catherine Weissmann. The indoor pool was in need of investment. The couple fixed it up while also adding a heating system beneath the limestone tiles and a metal fountain whose curvature echoes the clerestories. Club 54 chairs by Kare play to the 1970s ambience.

“Watching the sunrise and moonrise from the living room is gobsmacking,” says James.

The back patio features a pool, and continues on to a grassy area that meets the shore of the neighborhood lake.

Tiles surrounding the pool are from Eco Outdoor.