Unusual Outdoor Swimming Pool Designs

As the weather starts to improve through springtime, so the call of the outdoor swimming pool becomes more and more alluring. Both indoor and outdoor pools have, for many years, been little more than rectangular dug outs with some ceramic tiling around the outside. If you are thinking about an external swimming pool to make the perfect addition to your garden, or upgrading the one you already have, then don’t feel restricted by a conventional design.

Beach House Pool

Unusual styling, that reflects something of the rest of the architecture of your home, will be much better than a conventionally designed pool since these often feel like they have been stuck in place, rather like an afterthought. Indeed, the more individual the choice of design, the more it can look like it has been designed to work with the home in the first place.

Pools With Edge.

Beach House Pool

Swimming pools, just because they are outside, do not need to be dug into the ground, involving unsightly earth works. Why not place your pool on the edge of the building itself? So long as the structure is sound enough to take the weight of the water, a raised pool can make for a truly magnificent addition to a home.

Beach House Pool
Beach House Pool

Imagine swimming in a pool that affords you views over the rest of the grounds. If you like the idea of raised pool, go for an infinity edge, so that the water runs over the top, at least on one side. This creates the illusion that the pool’s surface itself is structural and creates a stunning look, particularly when the water is calm.

Terrace Pools.

Beach House Pool

Connect your swimming pool to the home with a terrace. Having a seating area next to the pool is hardly unusual, however a terrace that creates a visual connection between pool and home is an underused design technique.

Beach House Pool

Why not use sun loungers as an integral part of the pool’s design, even defining one side of the pool with them? If you have young children, which would make installing a pool adjacent to the living spaces of your home impractical, then break the zones up in the least visually impactful way you can. Glazed balustrades are a great way of splitting the pool from the home to keep little ones safe, but achieving the connected terrace-look.

Luxury Lap Pools.

Beach House Pool

Lap pools are increasingly popular both inside and outside. They are not just for fitness fanatics, however. Lap pools can be as much fun as regular pools, if you like to take a dip in the early evening to cool down. Just because one dimension of the pool has been reduced, to make it a more practical proposition in terms of maintenance and heating, there is no need to skimp on the visual look.

Beach House Pool

Lap pools still provide a calming, oasis like feel and they allow the light to bounce around just like their larger cousins. Install a lap pool in a thin, walled garden which would be hard to make work as a planted garden. If earthworks are impractical, the reduced water weight involved in a lap pool makes them ideal as raised lagoon. And if you have a regular pool already, why not install a pool-canal to connect it to a lap pool, elsewhere in the garden?

Kidney Shaped Pools And The Beach Look.

Beach House Pool
Beach House Pool

Everyone smiles when they encounter a pool that does away with right angles. Round pools, and ones with curved edges, seem to look more settled in their surroundings somehow. Kidney shaped pools are trendy at the moment. Curved edges are the way to go if you want a naturalistic feel to the pool, with sloped edges rather than steps that emulate a beach.

Integral Lighting.

Beach House Pool
Beach House Pool

Once you have chosen the location, size and shape of your pool that will best suit your home’s exterior, think about lighting it. Overheard lighting is all well and good, but under water light fittings can create more unusual and dramatic looks. Consult a lighting designer who can help integrate the choice of fittings with the rest of the home’s exterior lighting.

Picture sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11.