Reid Schindler, Designer
Charlie Claffey, President
Jose Serato, Construction Drafter
Claffey Pools
Southlake, Texas
Not enough people appreciate simple design. Here’s the thing many don’t realize: Simple isn’t necessarily easy.
Take this hillside project in central Texas. With about 100 feet worth of elevation change, it originally seemed to designer Reid Schindler that the natural solution would involve a three-tier waterscape — a tanning ledge up top, a play pool at mid level, and a diving pool below. While this would have been the simplest to engineer, as it would follow the topography, it was visually too complicated for the accompanying contemporary home and the clients’ tastes.
“The home is very contemporary, but the setting is not,” says Schindler, who has since established Schindler Design Co. in Edmond, Okla. “It’s a very lush natural setting. Every time we did [a three-tier design], it didn’t fit the landscape. It was too harsh — there was too much up and down; it was just too jagged.”
Instead, he decided to provide all the functionality of the three vessels in one generously sized pool. This came by merging two pools into one. Joined on their longer sides, the rectangles — a shallow play pool and a deeper diving pool — formed a near-square shape.
“It’s not perfectly square but it’s close, like a floating vessel just up above the clouds,” Schindler says. “There was a lot of benefit to it that I didn’t even think about, like the reflections and the sunset, and feeling like you’re floating above the trees.”
Though the square form looked simpler, it would be more difficult to support, requiring a sizable cantilevered foundation, with piers that stood 25 feet above grade in some cases. The spa would have to be hidden in the main footprint. Managing the sheer gallonage called for a more complex circulation system. And the 160 linear feet of vanishing edge, to be built at tolerances of 1/16-inch or less.
To maintain this visual incisiveness while inspiring awe, the team worked with Bobe Water & Fire to develop a system for cantilevering a fire bar over the vanishing edge.
A porcelain tile made to look like marble veneers the raised vanishing-edge wall. A mix of 1-by-2-inch glass mosaic tile lines the spa interior. Floating step pads lead from the home, across the lawn and to the spa.
The final result shows the potential impact of simplicity on a space. Which, again, isn’t necessarily easy.
“I try to tell clients that all the time,” Schindler says. “It’s kind of like songwriting — you can say a ton and make a point, but the ones that stick are who can say more with less. I believe that’s true in any design.”Not enough people appreciate simple design. Here’s the thing many don’t realize: Simple isn’t necessarily easy.
Take this hillside project in central Texas. With about 100 feet worth of elevation change, it originally seemed to designer Reid Schindler that the natural solution would involve a three-tier waterscape — a tanning ledge up top, a play pool at mid level, and a diving pool below. While this would have been the simplest to engineer, as it would follow the topography, it was visually too complicated for the accompanying contemporary home and the clients’ tastes.
“The home is very contemporary, but the setting is not,” says Schindler, who has since established Schindler Design Co. in Edmond, Okla. “It’s a very lush natural setting. Every time we did [a three-tier design], it didn’t fit the landscape. It was too harsh — there was too much up and down; it was just too jagged.”
Instead, he decided to provide all the functionality of the three vessels in one generously sized pool. This came by merging two pools into one. Joined on their longer sides, the rectangles — a shallow play pool and a deeper diving pool — formed a near-square shape.
“It’s not perfectly square but it’s close, like a floating vessel just up above the clouds,” Schindler says. “There was a lot of benefit to it that I didn’t even think about, like the reflections and the sunset, and feeling like you’re floating above the trees.”
Though the square form looked simpler, it would be more difficult to support, requiring a sizable cantilevered foundation, with piers that stood 25 feet above grade in some cases. The spa would have to be hidden in the main footprint. Managing the sheer gallonage called for a more complex circulation system. And the 160 linear feet of vanishing edge, to be built at tolerances of 1/16-inch or less.
To maintain this visual incisiveness while inspiring awe, the team worked with Bobe Water & Fire to develop a system for cantilevering a fire bar over the vanishing edge.
A porcelain tile made to look like marble veneers the raised vanishing-edge wall. A mix of 1-by-2-inch glass mosaic tile lines the spa interior. Floating step pads lead from the home, across the lawn and to the spa.
The final result shows the potential impact of simplicity on a space. Which, again, isn’t necessarily easy.
“I try to tell clients that all the time,” Schindler says. “It’s kind of like songwriting — you can say a ton and make a point, but the ones that stick are who can say more with less. I believe that’s true in any design.”
