Dancing waters
A curved waterwall is the focal point of this Old World-style courtyard, designed for privacy and period charm. Water cascades from a custom-fabricated waterfall unit, splashes down the rustic Saddle Ridge stacked-stone surface, and rests in a catch basin lined in dark mosaic tiles.
Getting the water to flow uniformly over the stone face presented a challenge — one that was overcome using painstaking craftsmanship. “The stacked stone came in 18- to 24-inch lengths, and was roughly about ½ inch thick by about ¾- to 1-inch wide,” says Thom Blumenkamp, senior designer with Texas Pools in The Woodlands, Texas. “The mason had to take each piece and cut it so that it fit a smooth radius.”
Each stone was set individually. “Many hours were spent fine-tuning the rock face by hand, grinding and then rechecking the water flow.”
