Project: Pool and spa, pergola and pavers, landscaping
Why: They love water and wanted to create a natural oasis for their home.
Extreme Exteriors services used: Design and construction, maintenance
What do you do when you can’t get away to enjoy nature? You bring nature close to home! Especially if you love everything about water as much as the Guillens do, from the sound of it cascading over rocks to soaking in the spa or jumping into the deep end. Phillip and Alexa love living in West Texas, but they miss the trees and water that were so abundant where they grew up in Seattle and Northern California. They were inspired by their love of the outdoors and were both involved in helping design their dream backyard.
Alexa in particular was a strong voice for keeping the trees close to the pool, even if it meant a little more cleanup during fall. They both wanted a lot of natural stone and worked closely with their project manager, Scott Littlejohn, as the design progressed from paper to production. Phillip said, “I think we were very blessed to have Scott as one of the leaders here. He has this artistic eye and even if he couldn’t explain it to you he could visualize it and say, this boulder needs to go here, this boulder needs to go there. I’ll be honest, while it was being constructed, every week we were mixing and matching different items and ideas. A lot of that I have to attribute to Scott’s vision.”
Backing up a little, Phillip and Alexa reviewed how they chose to work with the Extreme Exteriors team. First of all, they were impressed by what they saw and heard. They had a recommendation from a close friend and then they visited the showroom. Phillip saw a grotto in one of the photos on the wall and decided that was something he would like also. After meeting with their designer, both Phillip and Alexa were confident that the Extreme Exteriors team could deliver a total backyard transformation. For example, they wouldn’t have to find a pool builder and then a landscape architect. They both liked that they would have the full design in their hands from day one and know how things would look upon completion.
Probably one of the most noteworthy compliments that Phillip gave the Extreme Exteriors team was that the backyard actually feels bigger than it did before the pool, hot tub, and landscaping were added. It’s almost antithetical to consider that going from a bare backyard to a space with a pool and spa, pavers and pergola would actually look bigger, but it really does.
Is it okay to be proud of your work? We hope so. We as a team are proud of how the Guillen’s backyard turned out. It really looks amazing and it wouldn’t have been as successful without the vision and diligent effort that Phillip and Alexa put into the project themselves. Their project is an outstanding example of how homeowners, designers, and project managers can work collaboratively to take a backyard from ordinary to extraordinary.
