Backyard Biography: The McDermotts

Welcome to the story of how the McDermott family found backyard bliss! They worked together with our expert team to co-create a perfect backyard sanctuary to unwind in. Their goal was to create a space that made them feel like they were on vacation. Working stressful jobs, they sought a home refuge that would give them a luxurious place to enjoy, without leaving town!

“What we were looking for was to have our own vacation refuge oasis out here. We both work pretty hard at our jobs. Mine is pretty stressful, his is pretty stressful. So when we decompress, we want it to be like we are on vacation, so that was our motivating factor when we went to meet with Aaron.”

Aaron, their designer, saw their vision and helped bring it to life.

“He did an amazing job. We just told him verbally what we were looking for and when he showed us the plan on the computer we were blown away. We said, “This is exactly what we wanted! How did you know? We were really happy with it and happy with his ability to see our vision.”

The best part of this backyard fairytale is the McDermott’s appreciation of their custom-built space. “Everybody was just in awe. When I posted pictures on Facebook they said, “Oh, is that the clubhouse?” and we were like ‘No, that’s our yard! – It’s the McDermott Clubhouse!’ People were quite impressed with it, as are we. It looks like something you would see in a magazine, but it’s ours! When we had friends over they were blown away – they were kind of like we were when we saw it, in awe. We said ‘I know! Can you believe we live here?!’ We don’t believe it either!’ We have to pinch ourselves.”

For Aaron, working with the McDermott’s was a total pleasure. The family had a vision for what they wanted and added their creative input on beautiful finishing touches. He complimented their contribution to the design of the finishing tile. “As far as the tile goes we spent some time really designing that in and getting the spacing just right. While they were doing it in construction I said ‘Don’t deviate from this!’– We spent the time, you measure it, and it’s going to be exactly what we want!” Indeed, the blue of the tile pops out to compliment the blue in the rest of the yard and offers a lovely contrast with the blue, green, and stone.

Says Aaron: “I think this was a group effort – we had the vision together and laid it out.”

The McDermott’s knew that they wanted to focus on the view coming into the house from the main door. Once the foundations were in place, they added furniture elements that added comfort and style, making it feel like home. “You see photographs without furniture in it, but when you see photographs with furniture, it’s like its home. It really makes a difference,” said Aaron.

Karen and Jim tell us they have already found their favorite spots to relax – in the plush loungers poolside. They enjoy the stunning view in complete comfort. “We’ll come out here and read, listen to music, and take a nap when it’s nice.”

Sounds pretty good! Can we get an invite?

Another eye-catching feature is the four-poster day bed. Adding to the resort-chic aesthetic, it is made for a perfect day relaxing poolside.

The sound design was another aspect that our designer Aaron honed in on. The water feature and the spa both work to create relaxing energy. “I really like how the sound just permeates through this whole area. You’ve got the water features that give us one sound but the spa itself actually gives us some undulation – it is consistent, you hear a bit of a different splash effect coming off of it,” says Aaron.

The McDermott backyard also features an elegant shade structure that was designed to seamlessly compliment the home. Aaron comments on the materials they chose: “I really like the way the metal transforms into the tongue-and-groove ceiling. The combination of the metal and the dark wood are very complimentary to the home. The columns really bring out the tone of the color.”

Attention to Detail and Finishing Touches

Our design team used stone in the landscaping to meld nature into the yard and making the surrounding landscape part of the McDermott’s backyard experience.

And they tell us they aren’t finished adding just-so details to make their outdoor space a natural extension of their home. “We want to put some televisions out here for football season. We really love it out here!” says Karen. At CP&L, we are all for more time outdoors in an ultimate backyard that meets your every need!

The McDermotts have clearly been taking full advantage of their space, maximizing their relaxation time and enjoying the good life: “He’s been grilling up a storm and we really like that. We watch a lot of house hunters and HDTV and used to laugh because [people would always say] ‘Oh, now we can have coffee on the patio!’ That was the first thing we did when it was finished, have coffee on the patio! And it was pretty awesome. We’re not laughing anymore about that!”

“That’s the best part. I love coming out here and just sitting, even when I’m not in the pool or the spa – just sitting out here enjoying the weather. It’s beautiful out here!”A refined final flourish was the creation of a botanical retreat centered around a massive saguaro cactus. It is a hidden gem found down a path alongside the ramada; with a separate seating area, it gives the yard another meditative retreat area.

Every Detail Counts

The McDermotts appreciated California Pools’ attention to detail and precision. Our commitment to getting it right has been part of our legacy and has given us our sterling reputation. “I’m very impressed with the quality control. There were a few things that I saw and I thought, ‘well that’s not quite right, but it’s ok’…and the next day they were scheduling someone to come fix it, without me even mentioning it. The managers were right on top of what the people were doing. You guys did a great job and we are very, very happy!”

At California Pools & Landscape, our mission is to give our clients the backyards of their dreams, and make the process fun. This is what we love doing!

“We were over the moon. When we were finally done and came out here, we were like “Wow, we live here! This is our yard!” says Karen.

Congratulations Karen and Jim, we loved helping create your backyard oasis.

Feeling inspired? Get in touch and start your backyard story today!

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