The Pool is Open at My Farm
I hope you’re all enjoying this Memorial Day weekend, the unofficial kick-off to summer.
As many of you know, I now have a pool at my Bedford, New York farm. It is located in a large paddock not far from my Winter House. I wanted the pool to look as natural as possible, where I could enjoy the panoramic views of the landscape with my family and friends. We started this pool project in October of 2016. And just recently, we planted a hedge of more than 170 columnar beech trees, Fagus sylvatica 'Dawyck Purple’, along the inside of the pool fence. So many of you have asked about my pool, and now that it’s open for the season, and the pool furniture from Restoration Hardware and the umbrellas from TUUCI are all out, I thought it was a good time to share some of the photos.
Enjoy.
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- I chose to build the pool in the southeast paddock. It is bordered by the pin oaks on one side and my grand allee of boxwood on another.
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- The ground in this area is also nice and flat, which made it easy to maneuver the track hoe, or excavator, used to remove the dirt from the area.
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- It took several weeks and many truck loads of dirt to complete this phase. Bruce Corbett Excavating Inc. has a very talented team. I’ve used them for many projects here at the farm.
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- Once the site was dug out, the pool shape is created using stakes and wood forms. The forms show the outer edge of the pool shell.
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- Then, a waterproofing membrane is wrapped around the inside of the pool wall.
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- And PVC pipe is installed and extended to the mechanical equipment location on the other side of the paddock. These pipes accommodate the main drain and all the other mechanical lines for the pool.
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- Here is a drone photo taken by my property director, Fred Jacobsen. The forms line the exact elevation, location, size, shape, and position of the finished pool.
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- The next step is to install steel reinforcing bars inside the pool to strengthen the shell.
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- After the frame is complete, the concrete is poured for the base. The spout is first positioned in a corner of the pool and then guided lengthways to the opposite corner.
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- The pool is now coming to life – the stone pavers around the pool and patio area are installed. The stone is from Luppino Landscaping and Masonry. http://luppinolm.com/
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- The pool is also edged with stone coping.
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- The crew wears special shoes while smoothing out the colored top coating of the pool. This was an interesting process to watch – they go over every nook and cranny many times to make sure every area is smooth and even.
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- This is also when the stairs and other structural details are set.
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- The floor is smoothed over and over again by hand.
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- Once the shell is complete, it is left to cure for several days. We chose this color to create the natural color of the water.
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- Look how beautiful the water is once the pool is filled.
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- Next, my carpenter, John Kowalczyk, owner of JK Home Remodeling, started building a pergola at one end of the pool area. The pergola matches the existing long and winding clematis pergola nearby.
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- Fred took another drone shot to show the frame of the new pergola. It sits right behind the spa.
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- The wooden overhead slats are so beautiful, and all of it is painted my signature color, Bedford gray, to match all the outbuildings on the farm.
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- Here is the finished pergola and our new chaises longues and side tables from Restoration Hardware. goo.gl/B1f4AY
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- Here’s a closer look at the pool all finished. I wanted this view to be unobstructed, so we could see the beautiful boxwood allee and the stunning landscape beyond.
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- The shade umbrellas are from TUUCI. These handsome and durable umbrellas are made with stainless steel, resin, anodized aluminum and corrosion proof components. https://www.tuuci.com/
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- I chose the square design with reinforced shade skins in a tan-gray color.
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- The fence surrounding the pool is modern and sleek.
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- On the inside of the fence, we planted a beautiful hedge of beech trees – these will look so gorgeous when mature. See our planting process in a previous blog. http://www.themarthablog.com/2018/04/planting-a-new-hedge-at-the-farm.html
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- I am looking forward to many wonderful memories here with my daughter and grandchildren.
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