A dazzling, entertainment-ready exterior provides the perfect complement to a new Saddle River home.
Text by Donna Rolando
Design by Andy Kosits of Thomas Flint Landscape Design & Development
Photography by Adam Pass Photography
When your backyard says “staycation,” you may never miss the beach at all. One Saddle River home has what it takes to be Entertainment Central, with a banquet-sized table and an infinity-edge pool and spa, but it also can serve as a private sanctuary when it’s family time. The entire design of this oasis complements the new modern home as if it were always meant to take center stage. And it was!
Homeowners Daniel and Lois Compain wouldn’t have had it any other way. In fact, because an Edenic landscape was key to their home design plans, they knew it had to be a priority during the construction of their new contemporary house. So there was a meeting of the minds: home architect Scott Lurie and designer Carolyn Taylor worked with Waldwick-based Thomas Flint Landscape Design & Development to create a modern setting inside and out.
One of the home’s outstanding features would be the abundance of windows ready to maximize the view at every angle. “From every room in the house you could see the pool and patio,” explains Lois, describing windows that start at the floor “so you feel like you’re outdoors.” The pressure was on as Flint landscape designer Andy Kosits set out to create a bit of paradise worthy of the spotlight.
“We tried to bring the inside out,” says Thomas Flint of the landscape firm. “Inside is very modern and very clean.” Thus it was only natural to continue the simplicity and clean-line aesthetic outdoors. The graphic pattern of stepping stones through the rectangular “lawn” panel (it’s easy-care artificial) is an example of how simple can be stunning. (The family likes the extra space to play ball too.)
A seamless transition also was achieved with the large-format flooring in both the great room with its gray porcelain and the patio with its concrete. Guests can dine at the banquet table or sip a cocktail by the firepit—the yard was designed for a family that loves to entertain.
As the center of attention, this backyard had to deliver, as Flint put it, “an awful lot of wow factor.” And what better star for this stage than a perimeter overflow pool with infinity edge? During their first summer with the new pool in 2018, the family made good use of it. “When you’re swimming toward the woods, because of the infinity edge, it’s an incredible feeling,” says Lois. That you can stand on the patio or lawn nearer to the house and be at water level is another dramatic feature, Flint adds.
The mirror effect is duplicated in the perimeter overflow spa. And did we mention that none of this is a bother to maintain? Both spa and salt-water pool can be controlled by cellphone right down to the therapeutic jets. “The system runs itself,” says Flint.
The Compains, who have three adult children and five grandchildren, also appreciate that Flint’s crew more than doubled the size of the yard. It took demolishing the former pool and the rest of the backyard to get this family off to a completely fresh start, but they already are reaping the rewards of design teamwork.