Kelly Schmidt

Resort Pool Deck Design in Arizona: Furniture, Shade, and Surface Considerations A pool deck in Arizona spends most of the year under conditions that would ruin an ordinary patio. From May through September, an uncovered concrete surface can climb past 135 degrees, hot enough to hurt bare feet in the short walk between the water

Public and Commercial Outdoor Spaces: Durability, Scale, and Functionality A backyard patio might see a family of four a few evenings a week. A downtown plaza or hotel courtyard might see a few hundred people pass through before lunch, at every age, in every kind of footwear, at every hour the property is open. That

Spa and Wellness Outdoor Spaces: Calm, Privacy, and Material Selection A backyard patio is built for conversation and activity. A spa or wellness space is built for the opposite. The goal isn’t to fill the space with things to do, it’s to strip away everything that competes for attention until what’s left is quiet. That

Designing Outdoor Spaces for the Arizona Climate: Heat, Sun, and Shade Considerations In most of the country, shade is something you add to a patio after the important decisions are made. In Arizona, it is the first decision. When daytime highs sit above 110 degrees for weeks at a stretch, an unshaded patio is not

Hotel and Resort Outdoor Spaces: Design Principles for Hospitality Environments A backyard patio has to work for one household. A resort pool deck has to work for two hundred strangers at once, most of whom paid a premium rate and will judge the whole property by how comfortable that lounge chair felt at two in

Residential Garden and Patio Design: What to Consider Before You Start Before anything else gets decided, a residential garden or patio project needs one question answered: what is this space actually for? A patio built for hosting dinner for twelve looks different from one meant for two people and a book. Every post on The