Project Reveal: A Picture-Perfect Beach House

I am so excited to show you this project today- it’s a personal favorite not only because I think it came out beautifully, but also because we worked on this with my dad and his architecture firm, New England Design.  He’d been working with these clients for a while and when they decided to rework the layout of this house and redo the bathrooms, master suite and do a facelift on most of the main spaces in the house, he asked me if I was interested in helping- which was of course very flattering.  Also, we grew up spending summers in this beach-side town in Connecticut, so it was fun to go back and visit.

As you may be able to tell already, this client LOVES blue and white. And good thing- because we do too! She had these sofas that she wanted to re-use so we reupholstered them in this great durable fabric and piped them in ivory and that set the tone for the whole space. The big statement mirror was the perfect modern, beachy piece to complement the white woodwork and the amazing unobstructed views of the ocean. The room-length window seat offers tons of extra seating for entertaining.

Looking through the living area into the dining area.  This is a busy summer getaway for extended family so the open concept is great, but it also still has defined spaces, which breaks it up and gives everyone dedicated space.

These chairs are possibly my favorite thing- done in Mark Sikes for Schumacher fabric.

The artwork is by Karin Olah from Gregg Irby Gallery and is SO perfect for this room. I just fell in love the minute I saw it.

The buffet in the dining area. The host chairs in the foreground were custom made with outdoor fabrics pieced together into a center stripe.

The views are hard to compete with, so instead we just complemented them with texture and ocean-inspired colors.

These woven chairs are incredible and the perfect beachy texture, while also being durable. Also, a side note: I drank this rosé after the shoot and it’s SO yummy and only $15.

The kitchen was left alone except we re-painted the cabinetry the same color as all the woodwork, walls and trim – Benjamin Moore Decorator’s White – changed the hardware and replaced the countertops and backsplash with this amazing quartzite. It is amazing the change that alone made to the space.

The kitchen before- perfectly fine, but needing a little refresh:

In the powder room we sourced this incredible blue coral mirror and picked a great striped fabric for romans to match. Note the inlay wood floors my Dad designed to look like a yacht’s deck. So beautiful!

This room makes me just SIGH. It is SO relaxing, ethereal and bright…. and the view right out to the dock is just beyond.

How about those drapes??? Possibly my most favorite drapes of ALL TIME. This picture makes my blood pressure lower significantly.

I actually found these chair pillows at Pottery Barn before the shoot and they are so perfect (and now on sale).

Did I mention all the window treatments are motorized a la The Holiday? Including blackout rollers underneath. This is what dream are made of.

The master bath might be one of my all-time favorites too. The cerused oak vanity came out just perfect thanks to my Dad’s team of amazing millworkers. The floor tile was the perfect pairing with it.

This is a small bathroom, but it really is quite luxurious.

You can see in the above picture to the left the wall of built ins we did in the bedroom, and here is a detail shot.

Then there is a walk-in closet, which we wallpapered in a light blue grasscloth.

We did a great blue marled runner that also is wall to wall upstairs.

There are two king guest rooms, both identical. The beds were existing but we dressed them up with new bedding, nightstands and lighting.

There are two other guest rooms, each with two twin trundle beds. These were originally red so we painted them navy and found some adorable accents to go with them.

There are two guest bathrooms – again, both the same- the owner wanted to keep the design very simple.  We had custom navy vanities made and kept the accents nautical but not kitschy.

The showers have these great rolling glass doors my Dad found through Kohler.

While I know some of you will want sources for items shown here, I hope you understand my need to maintain the value of my services and that I can’t give away the information for free since clients pay us to source and coordinate these items for them.  Instead, here are some links to give you the look of this home through retail sources! And if you have a home you might want help with, email us at [email protected]. We are currently booking for fall!

GET THE LOOK:

Photography by Sarah Winchester