In some homes, summer living revolves around the swimming pool. The kids dive in after school or sports, parents take a dip after work, family and friends drop by to swim on weekends. Pretty soon, it hardly seems worthwhile to trek back into the house - dripping water and strewing wet towels - just to get a snack or freshen up. The solution? A pool house. This can be a modest cabana that offers seating out of the sun and a place to get a cold drink. But where space and resources permit, it can turn into a scaled-down version of the main house, with most of the same amenities. Sometimes the pool house grows so lavish that the pool can fit inside it, as in the case of one North Jersey structure with modest beginnings. “Originally, I was going to build a shed for my tractor,” recalled the homeowner, Jim. “Then I got the idea to add a porch for my grill. My wife suggested a hot tub around a fire pit. Then I thought why not an exercise pool…?” He installed the hot tub and the 8-by-16-foot “river pool” - a kind of watery treadmill that allows you to swim laps while staying in one place - beneath a trellis of rustic logs. It links to a solid, seamed roof with 16-foot, wood-beamed ceilings that shelters a fire pit, a fireplace, a bar and a snack counter with a stone pizza oven. All of this connects with a fully enclosed den, a small but complete kitchen and a full bath. Jim, in the commercial real estate field, designed the project with input from both his wife, Lisa, and his landscaper, Jan Borzecki of Classico Landscape Construction, Rockaway. “Without a doubt, this project would not have succeeded without Jan’s artistic vision,” he said. “Classico did all the stone and masonry work, pavers and landscaping. He put his heart and soul into this project.” The homeowner wanted the building to blend with its wooded surrounding. Landscaped with a pondless waterfall in front, it is constructed of real, chiseled stones and enormous logs - dead timber from Yellowstone Park. A few naturally shaped “character logs” form a dramatic, pediment effect over the main entrance. “The Original Lincoln Logs Ltd. (www.lincolnlogs.com) provided the entryway character logs, as well as the beautiful white pine logs and trusses used for the roof system,” Jim said. For appropriately rustic furniture and accessories, he called upon Karen Arakelian, owner of Uptown Country, Wayne, and White House Furniture, Fairfield. “Jim walked in and said he was furnishing a pool house,” she remembered. “I don’t have outdoor furniture in my stores, but when I saw his design, I knew this wasn’t your average pool house!” To carry through the natural theme, she brought in a dining set with a hand-hewn cherry table and hickory wood chairs with woven cane backs and leather seats. Near the fireplaces, she added a hickory Morris chair with a woven leather seat and back. The den, with walls painted terracotta, features an entertainment console, sideboard and etagere in distressed, Mexican wood. Arakelian added a roll-arm leather sofa with a plaid seat in earthy tones. The rugs and thrown pillows repeat leafy patterns, and aged-looking Vietri urns and vases hold plants and flower arrangements. An amateur metalworker and carpenter, Jim made the den’s rustic pine coffee table that rises, by hydraulics, to double as a poker table. He also designed most of the chandeliers and lighting systems from such materials as plumbing pipe and rebar. Their industrial look coexists well with the rugged, outdoor ambience. So far, Jim has found the pool house “pretty functional for entertaining.” In fact, he voiced his only regret: “I still need a shed for my tractor!” Written by Eileen Watkins, from The Record, June 3, 2007 Issue