Cool Pool
Architect: Randall Mars Architects, McLean, randallmarsarchitects.com
Contractor: Gruver Cooley, Purcellville, gruvercooley.com
How to fit both a pool and a pool house onto a 75-by-100-foot patch of ground without overwhelming it? Randall Mars Architects’ solution was to nest all of the pieces together in a space-saving design that maximizes the land and its legacy trees for the owner’s enjoyment and privacy. This McLean pool house sidles right up to the water’s edge with a 14-foot-wide retractable “garage” door made of glass and steel. Additional glass on the exterior walls and under the roof gable give the small structure an open, airy sensibility. When raised, a wood shutter covering a side window becomes an awning over a pass-through bar. There’s plenty more packed into the efficient little building, including a loft that sleeps two, a changing area, a marble shower, casual seating and a kitchen. It even has a projection screen that lowers from the rafter ties so folks in the pool can watch a film. Outside amenities include a fire pit, hot tub and another shower. Water splashes into the pool from a stainless-steel trough, which clears debris from the water’s surface while helping to mask the exuberant sounds of social gatherings. The granite-walled pool house doubles as an all-season guesthouse, Mars says. In fact, “the owner lived there while his home was being renovated.”