A French villa-style home in Bend, Ore., became the ideal setting for a stunning outdoor pool and spa, complete with a custom honey bee mosaic. For the pool and spa tile installation, the homeowners chose NTCA member Joppe Aguirre of Cascadia Tile Company LLC, in Redmond, Ore., who came highly recommended by their home designer.
The French villa owners decided to add a custom mosaic to enhance their luxury pool. Mosaic installation would be a new experience for Aguirre, but after seeking expert help from awardwinning mosaic artist Angie Halford Ré, he had the confidence he needed to complete the task.
The French villa homeowners chose a honey bee for their mosaic, inspired by its symbolic significance in France for many centuries. A graphic designer created the bee mosaic design for Aguirre to use. He carefully cut and placed mosaic black, white and gold glass tiles, according to the bee design, on the contact paper. Once the layout was perfected, Aguirre applied mosaic tape on top of the tiles to secure them. He then cut the bee mosaic — now sandwiched between contact paper and tape — into five pieces for transport to the villa’s pool.
For the installation of the bee mosaic on the pool floor, Aguirre removed the contact paper from the five mosaic pieces and aligned each section of the bee mural onto the troweled adhesive. He set the blue glass waterline tiles in the pool and spa, culminating in a stunning infinityedge water feature. The tiled areas were finished with epoxy grout, as recommended for pools and spas. The pool’s tank was completed with blue plaster interspersed with iridescent beads, applied flush to the waterline tiles and mosaic’s borders.
When asked about completing his first mosaic art installation, Aguirre was extremely pleased. “This project went really well,” he says. “Angie’s training made the mosaic work go smoothly, and the bee looks fantastic.”
Aguirre plans to continue developing his mosaic skills and incorporating mosaics into Cascadia’s tile offerings. As with most of his projects, Aguirre completed the French villa’s pool and spa on time — but this particular finish carried special meaning. The newly completed water features were ready just in time to serve as the stunning backdrop for the homeowners’ son’s wedding celebration.
This article first appeared in the May 2025 issue of AQUA Magazine — the top resource for retailers, builders and service pros in the pool and spa industry. Subscriptions to the print magazine are free to all industry professionals. Click here to subscribe.
