Photo: Pieter Estersohn

Warm Welcome
The key idea was to make this house feel like both a real home and a true getaway. I worked with a basic formula of equal parts comfort and fantasy. And because the clients are also avid art collectors who love to spend time with family I wanted to give them plenty of wall and floor space for both.

It started with a striking palette of cloud-white and sand punctuated with pools of marine blue. This created a basic, unifying visual drama.

white kitchens

Photo: Pieter Estersohn

Classic Charm
I am a huge fan of simplifying and streamlining, but I didn’t want to strip away all of the existing architectural details because they seemed so right—they’re part of the house’s magic. In fact, I actually added paneling in certain places to reinforce the interplay.

Everything about the house is soft: the colors, the backgrounds, the floors. The billowy fabrics ripple in the wind, mimicking the waves beyond.

I call this a happy house. A wonderful place to unwind. This is a home built for generations. Like so many of my projects, it is a gathering place for families, and each space, both inside and out, provides a purposeful backdrop for laughter and love.

decorating white kitchen

Photo: Pieter Estersohn

Bright and Airy
The house was built from scratch. Its casual approach to summer living echoes our personal lifestyle. There is nothing precious about the interiors. In fact, it’s all very simple, defined by a remarkable light and intense ocean breezes. We call the house Fly Away, because at times it seems it might do just that.

white modern kitchen

Photo: Lisa Romerin

Urban Elegance
Bright hues flirt here and there with a range of caramel, sand, and ivory tones that provide an unspoken sense of richness and comfort. Festive blues dominate the living room, pale caramels rule the library and den, and a bright, high-gloss white gives a sense of urban indulgence in the kitchen.

modern kitchen

Photo: William Waldron

Sleek Simplicity
The main goal was to make the house’s capacious rooms feel more human in scale and flow as naturally through the house as the breezes. Another goal was to better capitalize on the closeness and synergy of the water, the views, and the light.


Excerpted from Dream Spaces by Victoria Hagan and David Colman. Copyright © 2017 Victoria Hagan. Reprinted with permission by Rizzoli International Publications, Inc.