Design Drool: A New Kind of Beach House

Filed under: Your Home, Design, etc, House Tours, Architecture

Designer Thomas Jayne proves that decorating a beach house doesn't require whitewashed walls and seashell accents.

Interior designer Thomas Jayne didn't fall for the usual temptation of white, white and more white when he was commissioned to decorate this 1895 beach house in the Point O'Woods community of Fire Island, New York. Instead, Jayne listened to the house and stayed true to its roots, using a quiet but sharp eye to bring its interiors up-to-date.

Staying true to the home's past was less of a choice here than it might be in other projects. The community in which the house lies is only accessible by ferry and there are no cars on this part of the island. On top of that, when homes are sold, the new owners get all the furnishings that are inside. Jayne not only started with a fully furnished house, but bringing in new materials and furniture would be a challenge.

Luckily, Jayne and his team were able to reuse much of what was in the house already, while exercising what Jayne calls "an editorial eye." In fact, Jayne says the red wicker chair that sits on the wrap-around porch and the small salmon-colored table upstairs were both part of his inspiration for the design. Remarks Jayne, "The house gave us a lot to work with."

The wood finish of the walls was left as-is, with a few touch-ups to even the color. Jayne says that he prefers the wood to a whitewashed scheme because the natural hue of the timber frames the house's view. The wide-plank floors were polished in some rooms while others were painted in blue and green deck paint. Window frames were painted a bright blue, for a fresh pop of color.

Next, Jayne made sure that every piece of furniture was functioning; then he looked at the pieces with sculptural lines. Clutter was banished and the home's surfaces were left clean. Furnishings and floor coverings were selected with the beach in mind. Throughout the house, different patterned fabrics are mixed and matched effortlessly, while hooked rugs add texture to the spaces.

While there are decorative touches that allude to the home's seaside locale, like the graphic beach ball painting in the dining room and coral-based lamps in the living room, you won't find a single nautical tchochke on the premises. "The worst thing about summer houses are the presents," jokes Jayne of house gifts like shell-encrusted mirrors, "It's just a plague."

The results are a home that feels like it has evolved gracefully over time, not a cookie cutter beach house that came straight off the shelves of the Pottery Barn. Pleased with the home's subtle transformation, Jayne says, "When it was finished, the neighbors all saw that it had been improved, but it wasn't a radical change."

 

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