Pools to Dive For

Elle Decor 

What's better than relaxing by the pool on a beautiful summer day?  I love the idea of doing that...although honestly I can't remember the last time I did.  Oh well, one can dream!   Each one is prettier than the last.  Which would you choose?

 Elle Decor 

Looks like a great place to entertain.

 John Stedila Elle Decor

 Love the pool anchoring one side of the pool.

 Unknown

Clean, simple, modern.   

Elle Decor

 I love the simple bluestone coping.  This look has become very popular. It is a beautiful look, but  I wonder how practical it is.

Architectural Digest

Ok, this one is my favorite...it's so romantic..with the stone coping, stone urns, and a castle in the background.  Love it!!

 Ryan Seacrest, Architectural Digest.

Great look....great view.

Ralph Lauren

Such a classic with the pretty pool house in the background.

 Aerin Lauder Elle Decor

This is styled so beautifully with hydrangeas and palms in large pots.

 Unknown

 Charming and unpretentious

 Ellen Pompeo Elle Decor

Love the Cyprus trees forming a wall in the background.

 Unknown

Classic

 Elle Decor

Perfect country house feel.

 Douglas Friedman

 Unknown

 Love the room created by the hedge.  The black color of the pool makes it feel like an ancient decorative pool rather than a swimming pool.  What a great idea.

Alexander Gorlin

 Great pool sited next to an architectural "ruin"

 Leonardo Ferragamo Elle Decor

 Festive!

 Nantucket Architectural Digest

 Amazing view!! Beautiful wild Nantucket.

Phoebe Howard Atlanta Homes and Lifestyle 

 Such a charming pool house and a diminutive pool.  So pretty.

Summertime and the Living is Easy

Ralph Lauren

Having a wonderful place to entertain outdoors is a critical component of most homes we design. These fabulous outdoor living spaces are all from the Architectural Digest archives. The designs range from the very formal to the very rustic, from the urban to the country. I think I like this one above the best.  Which one do you like?

Kemp-Biggs

Mark Boone

Richard Shapiro

Kengo Kuma

Ike Kligerman Barkley

Richard Mishaan

Mario Nievera

Grant White

Alfredo Paredes

Home of James Belushi

Ellen Denisevich

Ken Tate

Pretty Pool House

This pretty pool house in neutrals was published in Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles Magazine back in 2009.  But I still find it fresh and relevant today.  It was designed by the architect Yong Pak and the interior designer Gretchen Edwards. I love the pergola above and the soft palette of the interiors. The exterior of the pool house below doesn't quite live up to the rest of the project.  Too bad.

 

I love the subtle stripe in the drapes in the limestone mantel.

 Pretty tile in the bathroom.  Looks like onyx to me.

London Calling

We stopped in London briefly a few weeks ago.  Everywhere there were signs of preparations for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and the Olympics. It wasn't sunny while we were there, but at least it wasn't raining either.

The Royal Horseguards.  Beautiful horses and beautiful buildings.  What's not to love?

Westminster Abbey

 

Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament. It's such a glassy building.  I was trying to imagine what the MP's offices looked like.  I imagine they are quite wonderful.

View of Parliament from the medieval building across the street.

 The big Ferris Wheel across the Thames.

The John Soane House and Museum.  Unfortunately closed the day we were there.

A random beautiful window box.

The National Gallery.  We found in the UK that the museums were free and the churches charged for entry.  Go figure.

 The Temple church.  Had to see because of the Di Vinci Code

 Entry of the Temple Church

 St. Paul's

St. Paul's from Paternoster Square.