Natural Pool Designs & Planning
Custom natural swimming pool design rooted in ecology, performance, and build-ready clarity
Aesthetic-First Natural Water Design
At Aqua Vitae, natural pool design begins with aesthetics — not as decoration, but as structure.
We design water as part of the landscape, shaping it to feel timeless, grounded, and inseparable from its surroundings. Every pool is composed in relation to terrain, stone, planting, light and movement, resulting in water that feels discovered rather than installed.
This aesthetic-first approach guides every decision that follows — from form and proportion to circulation and material choice. The result is a natural swimming pool that functions as a living system while remaining visually calm, immersive, and enduring.
Our design services are best suited to clients seeking a thoughtful, site-specific approach rather than a predefined or templated solution. We do our strongest work when there is room for exploration, collaboration, and creative authorship — allowing each project to respond uniquely to its site, context, and the people who will live with it.
Our design work follows a structured, multi-phase process — from site analysis and concept development through detailed design and technical documentation — ensuring each project is both deeply considered and fully buildable.
Our design work is informed by a proprietary construction methodology developed to ensure long-term performance, comfort, and durability. Every design decision is made with a clear understanding of how the pool will be built, how it will function, and how it will age over time.
Design Styles & Models
At Aqua Vitae, design is not a standalone exercise. Every spatial decision—depth, edge condition, planting strategy, circulation, and scale—directly informs how a pool is engineered and built.
Some designs lend themselves to refined liner-based construction. Others, due to size, site conditions, or long-term goals, call for more robust structural systems. Our design process accounts for these realities early, ensuring that form, function, and longevity remain aligned from the very beginning.
For clients interested in understanding how design translates into different construction approaches—from streamlined builds to our most advanced structural systems—we explore this in detail in our construction philosophy.
Design Informs Construction
While every Aqua Vitae project is site-specific, our work generally falls into several design expressions, each rooted in natural water principles:
These styles are not templates. They are starting points for collaboration, allowing each project to develop its own character in response to the site and client vision.
Hybrid Style
Natural Pools
A deliberate mix of modern structure and naturalistic features — for example geometric swim zones combined with planted wetland shelves, or minimalist architecture surrounding an eco-pond. This style bridges formal and informal, delivering both precision and natural expression.
Why Professional Natural Pool Design Matters
Natural swimming pools are complex systems where aesthetic, biological and technical decisions are deeply interconnected.
A structured design phase provides a shared blueprint — resolving critical decisions on paper before construction begins. This approach reduces uncertainty, shortens build timelines and prevents costly revisions during execution.
While professional design represents an upfront investment, it consistently saves time and cost over the life of the project by ensuring that artistic intent, system performance and build logistics are aligned from the outset. This eliminates guesswork and aligns all parties around a clear, build-ready plan.
Naturalistic Style
Natural Pools
Free-form shapes, organic stonework, lush marginal planting and soft transitions between water and land. Perfect for properties that prioritise immersion in nature and a landscape-first ambiance.
Modern Style
Natural Pools
Clean geometry, defined edges, refined stone or concrete finishes and minimal aquatic planting. Ideal for contemporary homes, luxury villas and designs where architecture leads the composition.
Lake-Scale
Water Features
Large-format natural pools or small lakes designed for swimming, recreation or ecological regeneration. Custom depth profiles, circulation modelling, integrated wetlands and expansive visual presence mark this category.
From Concept to Build-Ready Clarity
At the higher design tiers, our work goes beyond drawings and visual concepts and begins resolving the project the way a builder does. This includes translating design intent into material quantities, system layouts, and construction logic—reducing unknowns before work begins on site.
This level of detail is not required for every project, but for complex natural pools, remote builds, or clients seeking maximum clarity and cost control, it can significantly reduce delays, revisions, and unintended compromises during construction.
Our Tiered Natural Pool Design Approach
Every Aqua Vitae project begins with design.
What varies is the depth of design development and level of ongoing involvement required to protect the final outcome.
To provide clarity and flexibility, we offer three structured design tiers, each aligned with a different level of project complexity, ambition and responsibility.
The difference between tiers is not simply the number of drawings produced — it is how much responsibility Aqua Vitae assumes for the final result.
Tier 1 establishes the essential framework of the project. It defines pool placement, proportions, depths, circulation intent, and core system logic, supported by scaled CAD documentation suitable for construction planning.
This tier is best suited for projects with moderate complexity where the primary goal is to eliminate uncertainty, reduce risk, and ensure the pool can be built efficiently and correctly.
Tier 1 provides clarity, structure, and reliability. It is the minimum level of planning Aqua Vitae considers appropriate for any serious natural pool project.
Tier 2 expands beyond foundational planning into deeper design exploration and system integration. It includes advanced CAD development, multiple sections and profiles, refined hydraulic strategies, and a clear visual representation of design intent.
This tier is suited to custom natural swimming pools with regeneration zones, complex stonework, varied depths, or experiential features where design decisions significantly influence both aesthetics and long-term performance.
Tier 2 is where Aqua Vitae’s design language becomes most visible — integrating form, function, and experience into a cohesive whole.
Design Development & System Resolution
At this level, the design begins resolving how the project functions in real-world terms. In addition to the conceptual and schematic drawings, Tier 2 may include filtration concepts, equipment layouts, and outline material quantities such as surface areas, linear measurements, and primary construction extents.
These quantities are provided as design-level allowances to support planning, coordination, and budgeting, while maintaining flexibility for site-specific conditions and final construction decisions.
Tier 3 is intended for landmark projects where the design itself is a core asset — and where protecting that design through construction is essential.
In addition to advanced technical design, Tier 3 includes formal design stewardship during execution. This role is not about supervising workmanship or quality, which are inherent in Aqua Vitae’s build work. It exists to ensure that design decisions remain intentional as real-world conditions arise.
Even on well-run projects, construction inevitably introduces pressures around sequencing, coordination, substitutions, timing, and availability. Without a defined steward for design intent, many of these decisions are resolved reactively in the field. Tier 3 formalizes responsibility for those decisions, ensuring they are evaluated against the original design logic rather than convenience or momentum.
At this level, the design is developed explicitly with execution in mind. In addition to full design documentation, Tier 3 may include builder-grade material quantities, equipment sizing, and construction logic intended to reduce uncertainty and support informed decision-making during construction.
Design stewardship at this tier focuses on protecting proportions, spatial relationships, and system performance as adjustments become necessary. Rather than assuming design intent will naturally carry through execution, Tier 3 ensures the project remains coherent, aligned, and faithfully realized from initial planning through completion.
Tier 1
Design Foundation
Tier 2
Signature Natural Pool Design
Tier 3
Masterwork Design & Stewardship
What’s Included in Our Design Services
Every Aqua Vitae design engagement is structured to provide clarity at both the conceptual and technical levels. Depending on the project scope and selected design tier, our services may include the following components, developed as a coordinated and cohesive design set.
Concept & Visual Design
Concept master plan (artistic, color)
Spatial layout and experiential flow
Conceptual render views and perspectives
Site & Spatial Coordination
Existing site and context plan
Topographic Site Plan (optional — drone-based elevation contours, terrain analysis, and A1/A2 plan output)
Technical site and pool layout
Technical Design & Sections
Sections and construction profiles
Hydraulic and filtration schematics
Electrical and lighting coordination (as applicable)
Landscape & Systems
Planting and landscape design
Irrigation and water management concepts
Design Development & Quantities (tier-dependent)
Outline material quantities and surface areas (Tier 2 & Tier 3)
Equipment recommendations and system sizing concepts (Tier 2 & Tier 3)
Builder-grade quantities, coordination, and execution logic (Tier 3)
The level of detail and resolution varies by design tier. Some components are developed conceptually at early stages and resolved more fully in advanced tiers. Optional services, such as site surveys or drone-based topographic mapping, may be included where appropriate or provided separately depending on project conditions.
Design-Only, Design–Build, and Self-Managed Projects
Aqua Vitae provides professional natural pool design for a range of project pathways:
Design–Build projects, where Aqua Vitae designs and constructs the pool
Design-only projects, where clients work with their own contractor
Remote or international projects, where design is developed off-site
Self-managed builds, where clients take responsibility for execution
The design process remains the same regardless of who builds the pool. The difference lies in how much ongoing involvement is required to protect the design intent during construction.
Design Tools & Early Exploration
For clients in the early stages of planning, Aqua Vitae also offers educational design and planning tools intended to support conceptual exploration and system understanding.
These tools are designed for learning, visualization, and preliminary planning. They do not replace professional design services and do not include construction documentation, execution oversight, or design responsibility.
Many clients use these tools as a way to better understand natural pool systems before engaging in professional design.
Begin With a Design Consultation
Every project begins with a professional design consultation. This initial step allows us to understand your site, goals, constraints, and level of complexity before recommending the appropriate design pathway.
The consultation establishes alignment early, clarifies expectations, and ensures that the design process is scaled appropriately to the ambition of the project.
A clear design foundation at the start leads to smoother construction, fewer surprises, and a final pool that performs as beautifully as it looks.
Experience the future of swimming with natural pools.
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