🏠Take in-person tours of homes featured in Dwell. Sign up for Open House!🏠
  • Home Tours
    • Dwell Exclusives
    • Before & After
    • Budget Breakdown
    • Renovations
    • Prefab
    • Video Tours
    • Travel
    • Real Estate
    • Vacation Rentals
  • Photos
    • Editor’s Picks
    • Bathrooms
    • Kitchens
    • Staircases
    • Outdoor
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • All Issues
  • Shop
    • Shopping Guides
    • Furniture
    • Lighting & Fans
    • Decor & More
    • Kitchen & Dining
    • Bath & Bed
  • Projects
    • Editor’s Picks
    • Modern
    • Midcentury
    • Industrial
    • Farmhouses
    • Scandinavian
    • Find a Pro
    • Sourcebook
  • Collections
    • Editor’s Picks
    • Shopping
    • Recently Saved
    • Planning
  • Find a Pro
SubscribeSign In
  • FILTER

    • All Photos
    • Editor’s Picks
    • outdoor
  • Locations

    • Back Yard(12)
    • Front Yard(2)
    • Rooftop
    • Side Yard(64)
    • Garden(11)
    • Slope(1)
    • Field
    • Woodland(4)
    • Desert(3)
  • Landscapes

    • Trees(40)
    • Shrubs(29)
    • Grass(18)
    • Hardscapes(13)
    • Gardens(10)
    • Flowers(4)
    • Vegetables
    • Boulders(3)
    • Raised Planters(7)
    • Walkways(13)
  • Pools, Tubs, Showers

    • Large
    • Small(64)
    • Plunge(9)
    • Swimming(8)
    • Lap(10)
    • Infinity(1)
    • Salt Water
    • Concrete(2)
    • Prefab Container
    • Standard Construction(5)
    • Hot Tub(3)
    • Shower(3)
  • Patio, Porch, Deck

    • Large(19)
    • Small(20)
    • Wood(14)
    • Concrete(21)
    • Metal(3)
    • Stone(10)
    • Decomposed Granite(6)
    • Pavers(5)
    • Tile(3)
    • Decking(8)
    • Planters
  • Fences, Walls

    • Horizontal(9)
    • Vertical(4)
    • Wood(4)
    • Metal(4)
    • Wire(1)
    • Concrete(4)
    • Stone(8)
    • Retaining(4)
  • Lighting

    • Hanging(4)
    • Landscape(12)
    • Post(1)
All Photos/outdoor/locations : side yard/pools, tubs, showers : small

Outdoor Side Yard Small Pools, Tubs, Showers Design Photos and Ideas

Once the sun sets, the private side deck with soaking tub offers an idyllic setting for stargazing.
6. "Am I the 'fixer-upper' type?" 

"The truth is that an additional $100,000 on your purchase price is only about $300 more in payments,” she says. “If you work long hours and don't have a handy bone in your body, you might be better off buying a more fixed-up home.”

7. "Who are all of the decision makers, and can they actually see the home?" 

"There are times when parents may be helping out children with their down payment," she says. “It's always better to have the parents in on the process as early as possible."
The sophisticated landscape of greenery and water elements add to the escapist nature of the home.
The outdoor shower is in constant use and was a request from the clients. It’s accessed through the indoor shower.
The central north-facing courtyard allows natural light and sun to penetrate the home’s core. As the site is relatively small, the more expansive outdoor space is found on the roof terrace.
Likened to a "colonnaded Roman bath," the backyard pool is housed a room-like space.
The clients had a very clear brief for the outdoor areas. The courtyard was to have at least one large palm tree, which would be clearly visible from the living space, and it was important that the space could be viewed from above and also below from the street entry.
The outdoor spaces—including a courtyard with a small pool—were formed by simply removing the original roof toward the end of the construction, allowing dry working conditions for the majority of the construction period.
designed by Estúdio Minke
A monolithic opening in the facade provides an entrance from the exterior into the courtyard. The property's extensive landscaping was completed by George Girvin, with outdoor lighting by designer Pamela Burton.
Situated amid the forest in Rhinebeck, New York, the geometric, eco-friendly Ex of In House by architect Steven Holl stars a large window capable of heating the living space with sunlight during the winter months. In the summer, a shade ensures it keeps cool. In accordance with the home’s sustainable mission, the interiors are finished with natural oiled wood and plywood, and all light fixtures were 3D-printed in PLA cornstarch-based plastic.
The U-shaped home wraps around a central garden space with an adjacent pool; floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors create a seamless transition from indoors to out.
Garden Patio with Cedar Hot Tub
The lounge deck at the rear yard of Sunset Hills Residence features a swimming pool surrounded by lush gardens. Architect Hsu McCullough's design beautifully merges minimalism with an abundance of nature.
Conveniently located in the heart of Vista Las Palmas, the home sits on an expansive 13,504-square-foot corner lot, offering an abundance of outdoor space for entertaining.
Located in Queensland, Australia, the residence was created by Sarah Waller Design, an architectural studio that’s based in the Queensland suburb of Doonan. The glass pavilion–style home was designed for Sarah Waller and her family and sits on top of a polished concrete slab. Inspired by the midcentury era, it looks out to the Noosa Valley golf course.
A sunken conversation pit surrounding a fire pit sits adjacent to the pool in this semi-outdoor space at a home in Atlantic Beach, Florida.
Outside, a triangular saltwater pool overlooks breathtaking views.
Water features pepper the gardens throughout.
The design is perfect for indoor/outdoor living.
A sunny, California aesthetic shines brightly in the outdoor patio.
240 signature spots cover each of the columns that frame the jacuzzi.
Rainwater trickles into the pool below. The project “breathes the same clarifying calm as Sen-no-Rikyu’s contemplative 16th-century teahouses in Kyoto,” according to the listing.
Wingårdh built a small outdoor pool that's perfect for a post-sauna dip.
The house is carefully inserted into its hilly site, allowing for pavilions and covered spaces of different types, as well as the vanishing-edge swimming pool.
A view of the pool and a rooftop deck which overlooks the outdoor space.
The home is elegantly set into its surroundings and overlooks a serene garden patio with a koi pond.
The Ex of In House exterior
Adjacent to the cabin is a spacious deck that is raised above the ground on wooden stilts.
An outdoor bathroom for lazy summer soaks.
The architects suggested fitting in a new pool in the yard, much to the delight of the owners' children.
Bluestone slabs lead across a pair of reflecting ponds to the sapele mahogany front door.
The geometric volumes reference local building traditions.
A quiet reflecting pond lies directly outside the master suite. The exterior siding passes onto the interior, creating a seamless connection between the two spaces.
In this view, one can see how the curved addition makes space for an outdoor seating area with a fire pit, and eventually meets the clapboard form of the original house.
The home is organized around a series of four outdoor courtyards.
Amenities include a pool with a waterfall and a sunken tennis court.
This transverse volume projects in an east-west direction out toward the sea. It includes a 23-foot cantilever that contains a gorgeous outdoor pool overlooking the ocean.
The staircase and ramp serve as vertical circulation, connecting the base and access levels.
A heated pool is on the second lot and is surrounded by lush tropical greenery.
The courtyard pool.
The home wraps around a protected courtyard
The patio and pool area are perfect for full integration of indoor/outdoor living.
The courtyard in the center of the compound opens with a lovely lap pool.
An overview of the courtyard.
The pool area.
A view of the pool from the terrace.
Swimming pool at rear yard
An outdoor shower is concealed in the side yard and features a weathered 
cedar slat enclosure.
Edgewood House
Mill Valley, CA
the architectural language of the building is articulated within the relationship among the small open courtyards
Clean lines and mass groupings of plants help create a sense of openness and space within a small garden.
The spa is positioned to maximize the ocean view, and is sheltered on three sides by bamboo, privacy wall and house.
12Next

About

  • About
  • Contact Us
  • FAQ
  • Editorial Standards
  • Careers
  • Advertise
  • Media Kit

Subscriptions

  • Subscribe to Dwell
  • Gift Dwell Magazine
  • Dwell+ Subscription Help
  • Magazine Subscription Help

Professionals

  • Sell Your Products
  • Contribute to Dwell
  • Promote Your Work

Follow

  • @dwellmagazine on Instagram
  • @dwellmagazine on Pinterest
  • @dwell on Facebook
  • @dwell on Twitter
  • @dwell on Flipboard
  • Dwell RSS

© 2026 Dwell, a Ziff Davis company. All rights reserved.

  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • DMCA
  • Sitemap
  • Withdraw Consent / Manage Privacy Preferences