Malvern · Inner-east Melbourne

Malvern Balinese oasis

A Balinese-inspired pool with viridian tile surrounds and a cascading water feature, set into an inner-east Melbourne garden.

THE STORY

A Balinese-inspired pool with a cascading water feature.

Malvern is established Melbourne — large blocks, mature gardens, homes that have settled into their landscape over decades. The owners here came to us with a distinct brief: they'd been to Bali, they wanted that feeling at home, and they wanted the pool to do most of the work of getting them there.

We worked the pool's geometry to suit the garden rather than impose on it. A cascading water feature falls into the pool from a coping wall — the sound carries across the deck and gives the space its mood. The pool reads as the destination at the end of a path rather than a recreational feature parked next to the home.

Inside, the pool is finished in viridian tile that picks up the colour of the surrounding plantings. The colour was chosen with the garden — deep greens, warm stones, glints of water. The surround uses pavers warm-toned enough to match the home's existing materials.

The shell is concrete, engineered for the established Malvern ground conditions. The water feature is plumbed as part of the design at engineering stage so it reads as one piece with the pool. Equipment is hidden behind landscaping so the garden carries the visual weight, not the equipment.

Completed August 2022.

IN PICTURES