Cedarcrest Park Bloomington, MN
Last week we discussed the Research and Development that went into the Cedarcrest Park splash pad this past summer. Life Floor makes splash pads safer, with non-abrasive slip resistance and impact cushioning, but when it comes to splash pad design, we've also found that something doesn’t have to spray water in order to be a feature.
That’s why we thought outside the square and created this gradient pattern, which transitions from Ocean to Bluebird, Kingfisher, Iceberg and finally Porcelain in our most slip-resisting texture, enhanced Ripple. The impact is so dynamic that it stands out against the surroundings, making an attractive feature for everyone in the community. For this blog, we interviewed Kelsi Goss, an architectural and surface designer who works with our studio division to provide unique and beautiful designs for aquatic areas.
Let’s take a look at the Cedarcrest Park splash pad design:
Using Shape To Add Interest
Life Floor is unique to splash pad design in that our modular square tiles are easily transformed into dynamic, geometric patterns. According to Goss: “There are different levels of complexity in designing with squares: at the very basic level, a design can be entirely squares. At the next level of design, you might add triangles, curves, and then to add complexity, die cut shapes. This project is a great example of how using basic squares and triangles can be very effective and interesting.”
Design Process and Color Gradients
Gradient patterns are a great way to utilize space. Adding a graphic pattern can create depth to smaller spaces without crowding-out or overtaking the area. With larger areas such as pool decks, zero depth entries or kiddie pools, bigger gradient patterns can create visual interest without fatiguing the eyes.
The shift from color to color can also be used to make different play zones for multi-age splash features. For instance, the high volume dump bucket area might have a deeper color than the area with nozzles and squirt guns, just like water getting darker as it gets deeper. Multiple colors also hide dirt, leaves, and debris better than a monochrome floor. Put it all together, and a beautifully designed surface creates a visual environment that invites children to run, jump, and splash on.
“[Life Floor] originally concepted a design with only squares in a blue gradient for Cedarcrest. We decided to stay with a standard grid, but after looking at photos of the space to understand the context and size of the splash pad, we added triangles for visual interest in such a large area,” said Goss about her design process with Life Floor.
The Life Floor Color Palette
The Life Floor color catalog (31 colors and growing) was designed to provide:
A modern, trendy range of colors to match the theming of any facility
Colors in the same family to create subtle, gradient or mottled patterns
Safer aquatic environments
With our range of colors, we can create bright dynamic designs to create attractive centerpieces that kids love and parents trust.
Or, by using shades in the same color “family”, we can give customers the ability to choose mosaic, gradient, and other geometric patterns that complement any highly themed, colorful facility.
With the Life Floor, you’ll never sacrifice safety for design, because we believe the best-designed park is ultimately the safest park. Life Floor can make stairs safer by giving the tread a hopping Lilypad green against a riser in bright Sunshine. There's also no need to resort any longer to slippery tiles or paint that fades because Life Floor can make die-cut designs for walkways to direct guests, in-floor signs to remind them not to run, and depth markers around pools in the same material as our tiles.
See our color palette here and discover how Life Floor’s award-winning safety adds to the joy and wonder of playing on something beautiful.