Side view showing the wall extension leading to the tree

View from house looking out

3/4 view

View from behind. What to do?

Part of the creation looks good and part of it looks like left over rubble dumped from a construction job. The good part is where you've used larger stones and fit their shapes tightly together. The small rocks that are not carefully fit look like gravel. The concrete block showing doesn't fit at all with the "look" you're trying to create. It probably won't work out to have running water trickle down the larger stones because for this to happen, the stonework must be built so that it is leak proof. Otherwise, the ground will become a soggy mess and there will be a huge water loss.

I think you could pull this together from where you are in the project by getting rid of all the small rock and blocks. (Let the good portion remain.) Then, using the largest, flattest stones, build an apron that is like stepping stone paving in front of the pond in order to give it a nice border. Make this as flush with the surrounding grade as possible (which means that you'll need to feather/blend the grade to meet the surface of the stones. And make sure that the plastic edge of the pond is covered/hidden completely with rock. Work out the exact layout before you begin and try to fit the stones together as tightly and carefully as possible so that it looks good. Avoid using any small rock except where they are necessary to make the larger rock fit well. Use a couple of mounding plants to hide the back side of the works and provide a backdrop to the water.

Hi Yardvaark,

Thanks so much for the drawing. Looks awesome! A few clarifications: The cinder block is for filler, just to raise the elevation. I had planned on putting a liner up top to form the stream and waterfall, using some of the smaller rocks to form the stream. Although at your suggestion, Ill try to find some larger ones for the top.

Ive attached a quick photoshop edit on that image to show what my original intention was for the water. Maybe this will help.

I was planning on having pockets of plantings, but the bigger ones look good in your image, the only thing is that the maroon one covers up the stream i had planned.

Unless the rock work already has a liner that will catch all the water, I think you're going to have a very hard time waterproofing the upper pool and the small streams. The liner must extend well beyond the stream rocks; its edges must turn upward (to form the basin that prevents water leaking out) and then its edges must be covered with finish rocks. I don't see how that's going to happen unless the entire rock structure grows in size substantially.

I think you should learn all about water plants before you continue with re-design. They need to grow at certain depths. I can't tell how deep your reservoir goes.

Ben,
The last pic you posted, you show where the liner would be.
Go buy it.
Put it where you have it in the pic, and see how it goes.
You will need more rocks also, but i think you already know that.
What do you want to use to run the water?
I have a simple washing machine hose coming out of my filter that I covered with a few simple flat stones.
I am still unhappy with that, but for now, it doesn't look too bad at all.
I saw a picture of a nice "pitcher" with the water running out of it on the net. It was quite big, and the pitcher itself was used as a sort of a fountain. It was beautiful.
They have nice ones at HD for about 50.00, but they are really big, but just something for you to think of, you could put it on the stones and let the water run into your pond out of it.
It's really not a real pitcher, a pot for plants, that looks like one. You will just have to cut a hole in the bottom for the hose for the water.
Plants that you can plant that would love it on the rocks, especially if you have alot of shade there, hosta, creeping jenny, daylilly, hydrangea, elephant ears, spearmint, (believe it or not, it spreads and looks awesome and smells really good LOL), mabey a nice tropical looking tree, even a citrus tree in a pot for behind the rocks, then you can put away for winter.
Just some suggestions, hope they help.