design

WaterShapers from Outer Space
An Interview by Lenny Giteck Since 1971 when they jointly founded The Dirsmith Group, an architecture, landscaping and engineering firm headquartered in Highland Park, Ill., Ron and Suzanne Dirsmith have established a distinguished track record of designing imaginative structures and environments that often pay homage to the beauty of nature — particularly the element of water. In the late 1950s, just four years after completing his architecture and engineering studies, Ron became a Fellow in Architecture of the American Academy in Rome, a highly prestigious research and study center for
Otterbine Barebo Offers the Super Nova Fountain Pattern
Otterbine Barebo (Emmaus, PA) includes the Super Nova pattern in its Giant Fountain line. Designed…
The Shopping List #2
Poolstones Introduces Marble Overflow System Poolstones by Sofikitis (Voula, Greece) offers a pool-overflow system made…
Straight and Narrow
It's been a while since I shared a video with you through WaterShapes.com, but it occurred to me (even after a good, long gap) that this one fit perfectly into the series we once offered on the subject of site access and the ways equipment and the products of demolition and construction can be moved from place to place under
Paying It Forward
While I was in Las Vegas at the International Pool|Spa|Patio Expo, a young gentleman I'd never met before approached the booth and asked, "So what's the difference between Essential and Platinum Reflections?" "That's simple," I replied, pointing out that Essentials in the twice-monthly WaterShapes EXTRA newsletter are articles I see as being must reading for anyone who
2013/9.2, September 25 — A Connecticut Gem, a Chicago Classic, Mulholland’s Legacy and more
September 25, 2013 www.watershapes.com ESSENTIAL Teaming Perfection Every great watershaping project involves a measure of…
2013/9.2, September 25 — A Connecticut Gem, a Chicago Classic, Mulholland’s Legacy and more
September 25, 2013 www.watershapes.com ESSENTIAL Teaming Perfection Every great watershaping project involves a measure of…
Pond Beginnings
Several months ago, a big idea crossed my mind and wouldn’t go away. For years now, I’ve been making videos about what I do as a pond designer and installer, and several of these recordings have appeared through WaterShapes EXTRA and WaterShapes.com in the past year or so.  What if (I thought to myself), instead of covering things randomly, I switched over to a systematic approach and took the whole
The Birth of a Dream
It’s speculated that the exterior spaces at Playboy Mansion West must be the most photographed in the world.   That’s hard to quantify, of course, but it’s certainly safe to say that since construction began in the 1970s, the home of publisher Hugh Hefner and its famous swimming pool and grotto have been used ceaselessly to promote