Uncategorized

A Gem in the Forest
Joan Roca has designed and built pools in some of the most beautiful locations in the Western Hemisphere, each conceived to harmonize and enhance their surroundings. For all of his years of watershaping mastery, there’s something about this subtle pool on a wooded hillside in Panama that stands out.   ...
WU Steps Forward in Dallas
Watershape University rolled into Dallas, Tex., for the 2021 International Pool|Spa|Patio and Deck Expo in Dallas, Tex., Nov. 13-18 at the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center with high expectations for a strong showing for the industry’s first return to major trade shows since the beginning of the pandemic. The event would prove an almost unqualified success. ...
The Beauty of Paseo Santa Lucia
Mexico’s equivalent of the San Antonio Riverwalk is known as Paseo Santa Lucia in the city of Monterrey, a place replete with fountains, public art, businesses, apartments and beautiful spaces that attract thousands. Watershaper JC Escudero reports it’s a place well worth visiting, and appreciating from both an aesthetic and technical perspective. ...
Remembering Grant Smith
Watershaper Grant Smith passed away in his sleep on November 15th, leaving behind a legacy of honor, artistry, and leadership. Through his company, Aqua Link Pools & Spas, Grant was a frequent collaborator among the WU community and the watershaping industry at large. ...
The Key to Collaboration
Designer Randy Angell believes in the power of working together, a value he learned as a kid singing in choirs. Today, he applies the idea of synergistic creativity to his design practice, bringing a team together to create unique environments based on a collection of talents working as one.    ...
The Challenge of Saying “No”
Watershape designer, landscape architect and educator, Jason Brownlee, is typically in the habit of embracing the opportunities that come his way. But as he explains here, sometimes saying no, or at least, not now, is the more beneficial response. That’s especially true in the current market where the demand is pushing watershapers in all categories to their practical limits. ...
The Uncommon Garden
For more than two decades, watershape designer and builder Ryan Oakes has leant his talents to the ongoing creation of a place known as “The Uncommon Garden” located in Chapel Hill, N.C. Here he takes us on walk through the history of a space so unique, whimsical and imaginative that it defies convenient description – and, yes, it does feature dragons.   ...
Seeds of Integrity
Effective branding and marketing start with who you are, says Kurt Kraisinger, and as he points out in this incisive diatribe on success, there are no short cuts to integrity.   ...
Garden Artisans Offers Giant Leaf Fountains
Garden Artisans (Annapolis, Md.) sells giant leaf fountains by Henri Studios. The fountain is crafted of cast stone (concrete) and offered in a range of both standard and custom finishes. The design features water cascading over four large leaves. It measures 35 inches high, 36 inches wide and 34 inches front to back. It weight 466 pounds. To learn more, go here.