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Complete Backyard

Terraced Poolside Retreat

Pasadena Modern Designed by Julian Montford

A terraced Pasadena backyard gained a tanning-ledge pool and raised spa, a lawn fire-pit lounge, a built-in outdoor kitchen and multi-level composite decking linked by paver steps, finished with drought-tolerant planting along the retaining walls.

Aerial night view of a lit rectangular pool and spa, lounge seating and umbrella tables, string lights along the fence

How this project came together

The challenge

The backyard was mostly open lawn, dirt and concrete around a small existing deck off the back door, with a plain concrete driveway run down the side of the house. At just over 10,000 square feet the lot had room to work with, but nothing built into it yet to actually live in.

The design decision

The plan set a pool and raised spa into a new Trex composite deck reached by paver steps with a cable-rail gate, added a built-in prefab barbecue island, and used the existing rear hedge as the privacy screen rather than replacing it, backed by a new horizontal-slat redwood fence topper only where it needed height by the neighboring garage. A decomposed-granite gathering loop with a prefab fire pit gives the far end of the yard its own destination, framed by raised stucco planter walls and layered succulent and grass planting.

The build

Herringbone Angelus pavers in dark gray-copper-charcoal set the hardscape's color story, worked out in the designer's own hand markup alongside French Grey grout and 'Biscayne' decking, then carried through in Bellecrete coping, bluestone flagstone and Zia tile. Kangaroo paw, blue fescue, hot lips sage, spring bouquet laurustinus and blue flame agave fill the planting beds, on bronze path, flood and uplights specified down to the fixture.

The Design Process

From survey to buildable plan

Every project is measured, drawn, and approved before a shovel goes in the ground. These are the actual drawings for this property.

  1. Existing site plan for the Pasadena backyard, recording the lawn, concrete, pavers, deck and driveway before construction
    100%

    Base Plan

    The survey recorded a 10,205-square-foot lot carrying 5,027 square feet of lawn, 583 of concrete and 692 of existing pavers around a small 37-square-foot deck off the back door, with a concrete driveway running the full depth of the property along its east side.

    Spot elevations, the existing wrought-iron and wood fencing, the rear hedge line and the water heater, gas and electrical locations were all recorded here before anything was designed, so the new pool, deck and planting that followed were sited against exactly what was already on the ground.

  2. The designer's hand-marked-up print of the base plan, working out the pool, deck, pavers and fire-pit layout
    100%

    Design Proposal

    With the survey in hand, the designer marked up a print of the base plan by hand: the new pool and spa, the composite deck and its steps, the paver layout, and a fire pit and gathering loop at the back of the yard, working out materials and colors, Biscayne decking, dark gray-copper-charcoal pavers, French Grey grout, before any of it went to a formal rendering.

    That same markup called for keeping the existing rear hedge as the property's privacy screen and adding a redwood slat wall topper only where the neighboring garage needed blocking, rather than fencing the whole yard from scratch.

  3. Conceptual landscape plan with the pool, spa, deck, fire pit and planting legend for the Pasadena backyard
    100%

    Conceptual Plan

    The finished plan specified an 8-by-8.5-foot raised spa with a sheer descent spillway and Ethereal Zia tile, a Trex Transcend composite deck in Biscayne with a black metal cable-rail gate, Angelus 4x12 pavers in a herringbone pattern, a prefabricated Mont Alpi barbecue island, and a decomposed-granite fire pit loop with a 48-inch prefab pit.

    Planting ran to kangaroo paw, hot lips sage, spring bouquet laurustinus, blue fescue and blue flame agave, lit by bronze path, flood and uplights, with the existing rear hedge kept in place as the yard's privacy screen.

Before & After

The property as we found it

Drag the handle to see the same view before construction began.

Composite deck with pool, spa and dining table, cypress trees silhouetted at dusk
Before After
  • The side yard before construction: a bare dirt strip along the low wall and iron fence
  • The side driveway and carport before construction, with the hedge already established along the fence line
  • The existing covered patio and side yard before construction, hedge and lawn beyond
  • A simple existing pergola and brick patio in the backyard before construction, cypress trees along the fence
  • The backyard before construction, with a plain patio table, grill and storage shed on the dry lawn
  • The rear of the yard before construction, with the utility shed and carport structure
  • The backyard before construction, seen from the rear deck: dry lawn, the utility shed and the cypress hedge along the property line
Finished Project

18 photographs of the completed project.

Planning something like this?

We build Pools & Spas, Fire Features and Outdoor Kitchens across Southern California

Design, permits, materials, and construction are handled by one in-house team. A designer will walk your property, talk through what's realistic on your lot, and show you what the space can become.

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All 39 projects

Terraced Poolside Retreat is project 5 of 39 in the portfolio.