Judith I think I have a pretty good idea of what you have on your mind now. From what you've said the shower will be going against the brick wall. That will leave the other side "open". What I'd suggest to consiser is make use of that side too so you'll have double the use of that area. If I was in your shoes, on the other side of the area, near the current metal fence, I'd have a sitting area. In Key West they'd probably have one or two andorondike chairs. This way, after you put all that work into your tropical get-away you'll be able to enjoy it even more, with a cool spot for reading or relaxing. You could literally spend the day in their if you where so inclined. But now back to your dream picture. It really is a nice area. What really gives that area the tropical look are the plants and just as importantly, the wood work. What I would recomend for your project is to first "pencil out" a design, then install the shower and floor/ground cover and add plants last. Once the shower is in and maybe a chair or two, you'll know exactly what you have to work with. The shower is the most important thing, especailly the functionality. WHen you put that in, I'd assume it'll drain into the yard, you have to make sure the area has the proper grade, so water moves away from the area. So get the shower in and work around that. Next you can look at the sides. I think the brick wall is nice. On the side with the metal fence, what would be best for the long run is to build the same wood fence you have now. Add another twelve feet or so. Or like you said, you could go with a roll of bamboo fence. Or even cheaper I think, is a roll of reed fense that's available at Home Depot or Lowes. Last would be to get the ground done, which is really part of doing the shower and should probably be done first. Now's the time to refer to your plan and start building that in. In your picture, what really sets things off is that nice "teak?" floor. If you have it in your budget to do that, great. But if you look at your picture between the two deck areas, you'll see a gravel path. That's what I would go with to keep thing cheap. Under the shower I would put 4 large, square terra cotta pavers for the floor. In the areas that won't have plants I'd put white pebble gravel. The white rock really "pops" in a shaded area. Prior to laying the gravel down make sure you give it a douple or tripple layer of gardeners cloth, or what you find best, so that once the gravel is down, you won't have to worry about weeds. And for a pathway through the area, I'd use the pavers you have, but I would double them up into squares, and stagger them to recreate the nice curved path you have now. This again is all Key West style. I'd assume they use this because it is the cheapest way of doing things and it comes out great. Once all that was done and working nicely, I'd add the plants. If you really want a secluded area with lots of privacy, on the backyard side entrance, I'd have the two big banana marking the backyard entrance, either near the fence and the wall, or closer to the center. Looks like you have may enough room for a banana in each corner. Once all that's done, you can fill in the interior as you see fit with plants, pots, stones, pagoda's or whatever catches your fancy. Plenty of ways to do it cheaply. You won't have the huge teak deck that the picture has, but one thing you will have, hopefully, is some contrasting red, burgandy, in form of caladium "small elephant ear", canna or Thai plant. And that is actually the one thing that would make your picture perfect. Anyways, that's just some ideas for doing it on your own. All the supplies can be hauled in from Home Depot, aquired fairly cheaply, or for free. Good Luck!

The entire project is permitted. So far anyway. If it is only possible to get the simple shower that I want without a permit, then that is the route we'll go....unless it results in some shadow cast upon the house itself. We have an irrigation water meter, which does NOT drain water to the sewer, so it could be hooked to that with a small electric water tank spliced into the line, and a switch to turn it on only when we wish to use the shower. Maybe I'm being unrealistic, but then I've never remodeled a house before. We are doing everything we can to bring the 1950s stick built house UP TO CURRENT CODE, which is fairly stringent since we are located south of I-10 in Alabama, which is hurricane code zone. Insurance is not cheap here. The plumbing work is not yet underway..and the permit yet to be pulled....however, I called the plumber a short while ago, and he is checking on two issues with the city inspector. First issue, there is a mixer valve required for regular showers by code. He is asking if this outdoor shower will be exempt from the mixer or not. Second issue is the drain and exposure to rainwater entering the sewer system. So that's where we stand now. Since the deck is lower than 32 inches above ground, a railing is not required.. To me the deck and back of the house looks like a river dock, so I wish to use the sailboat lifelines even though nothing is required. Each post will have a copper cap on it. But, that part of the work is not plumbing, so I did not mention it here. Both of us are gardeners, and our two dogs are digging dachshunds. And a large parrot loves his showers regularly. The old shower I had connected by splitters off the washing machine water supply spigots, was a godsend for us. If we have to do something complicated to meet code, and the result would cramp the open access to the deck, we might resort to another option....whatever that might be.

Whatever you use for siding could extended to be shower walls. Would a curved wall of stone block you views too much? The shower floor could be flagstones set in gravel for drainage then a curved stone wall could have a flatrock jut out for a shelf for shampoo or soap.

Just my opinion based on having worked with both an architect and interior designer on projects...it is a great investment to pay for four or five hours of their time to get it right rather than do it myself and get it "okay." They will have experience in knowing what can be done most efficiently and cost effectively and in the long run, you will save money. With the goals you have set out and the constraints, seems to me you can't afford not to have a designer.