Sauce? Chop a big ole onion pretty small Put into a le C dutch oven with about1 1/2 T EVOO....sautee slowly, when soft, add 3 big cloves of garlic crushed... Then add "some" Hinze tomato sauce.....about 1/4 of a food service can Add "some" Cookies BBQ sauce.....about 1/4 of a 2 qt container Add 1 10 oz can chicken broth Add "some" cider vinegar.....about 3/4 cup Add "some" dark brown sugar....1/2 to 2/3 cup Add about1 tsp liquid smoke Simmer.....stir.....simmer.....slosh over meat. SO I went out tonight to a hospital fundraising dinner.....guess what was the main course??? Pork loin!! Over cooked, dry and tough...what a validation!!

Of course it can be rust and rebar related. Rust spots will brush off and then come back in a few days. It is quite a normal process. The fact that it is there is not normal. It is most likely a tie wire on the rebar that did not get cut. Almost impossible to see unless to have a good QC guy prior to plaster. Many pools are plastered with exposed rebar. They simply paint it and plaster over it. The result is a piece of steel only an inch or two below the surface and if there is an imperfection in the surface, which pebble tec can easily have, you can get a spot. Yes, nails are all over the pool in construction. Concrete nails are used to secure bender board for tile and coping installation. Could be that too. If it's a tie wire, and you catch it early, it will not hit your rebar, but once it does, it will start corrosion there and it can get ugly. Have the plaster company check it out. They can usually chip it out and patch.

I am not a pool expert but can you have a custom concrete edge made? I am in the decorative concrete business (metallic epoxies) and have been in awe of a concrete artisan out of LA - maybe he can connect you- this guys work blows me away https://concreterevolutionllc.com/ "Stamps have long been a popular method for giving concrete an authentic wood-grained look. But a newer method, developed by Concrete Revolution LLC, New Iberia, La., adds even more realism to the process by allowing the installer to be in complete control of the wood-grain design and texture "

True ... it can be tricky working with rounded patterns such as the corners of your existing patio. But the answer is not to ignore them and go radically different because of fear and a present dislike. It is to be more careful in coordinating the new with the old. But the only way this is possible is by working in plan view, which would give an ACCURATE picture of what exists. Presently, we have no idea. I would add that it's high risk to incorporate a radically different style immediately next to an existing style. It's not impossible as Pei's pyramid in front of the Louvre demonstrates. But are we looking for something that different and willing to take the chance? For every attempt at doing that, I'm sure there are many failures or less than stellar results. It would be more reasonable to presume that we're not all world class architects and shoot for something compatible and in the same family. And then, in regards to your statement, "Maybe it's [the patio appearance] partially because the yard has no landscaping yet." Let me add some punctuation ... !!!!! Absolutely! It's impossible to be thrilled with a patio that is surrounded on all sides by veritable barren wasteland.