“There are lots of nice beaches in the world and in the South,” concedes Elliot Maisel, but after decades spent vacationing on the Gulf, he says he’s partial to the Perdido Key area in Florida. “It’s a pretty special place.” So when a lot became available there, he and his wife, Nell, leaped at the chance to build a home where they could host their three grown children and their families. Also a no-brainer: Tapping their designer daughter-in-law, Hattie Sparks Collins, to infuse the cookie-cutter construction with an abundance of sunny soul.
Credit: Alison Gootee
Although she’d worked with her in-laws on a number of projects over the years, this go-round, Hattie looked to her own childhood happy place for inspiration. “What always stood out to me were those special details—a wallpaper or bedspread or piece of art,” she says of the Texas farmhouse where she grew up spending weekends with cousins. “That’s really what I remember.”
Credit: Alison Gootee; Styling: Lucy Bamman; Design: Hattie Sparks Collins
Re-creating that sense of nostalgia at this new family spot became as integral to its design as comfort and longevity. Art was a character-building through line: Framed vintage swimsuits make a retro splash in the girls’ bath, a needlepoint sailor smokes a pipe in the boys’ bunks, and a chirpy maritime painting harbors cheer in the dining area. “I know we all want our kids to have wonderful memories of this place, so when choosing things, I had that in the back of my mind,” says the mom of young daughters. “How is this going to stick in our kids’ memories when they’re older and telling stories like, ‘Remember that cool painting we had in the pink bathroom at the beach house? I loved that!’ ”
Credit: Alison Gootee; Styling: Lucy Bamman; Design: Hattie Sparks Collins
Sentiment aside, a home by the sea calls for a uniquely spirited and durable tack. Hattie answered in kind, dousing each space in buoyant shades pulled from the Gulf shore (horizon blues across the open-concept main floor plus beach grass greens on an upstairs porch) and wrapping furniture in stain-treated fabrics that can withstand wet bums and sandy toes. She steered clear of overly precious pieces and called for battle-tested ones instead. “Everything has to be able to actually be used—sat on and lived in—and not look like it’s falling apart within a year,” she says.
Credit: Alison Gootee; Styling: Lucy Bamman; Design: Hattie Sparks Collins
The designer also applied this hardworking sensibility to the interiors’ functionality, designating a cozy den as a children’s area and approaching bedrooms with relaxed hospitality in mind. “That was really important to everybody as a family—having spaces that are the kids’ domain, where they can gather and play,” she says. As for the adults’ own retreats, she stuck to her typical formula and supplied them with creature comforts—extra throw blankets and plush robes. “I always like to put a chair in a guest room,” she says. “If you want to take a break, it’s nice to be able to go to your room and not have to sit on the bed, especially at the beach when you’re wet or sandy.”
Credit: Alison Gootee; Styling: Lucy Bamman; Design: Hattie Sparks Collins
Outside on the deck, Hattie aimed for easy togetherness, forging distinct destinations for lounging, dining, and enjoying the shade. “You can have different groups of people out there doing different things all at the same time,” says the designer, “with the kids eating dinner while you’re in the seating area reading a book and somebody else is on the lounger taking a snooze…. I feel like it serves us so much better this way.”
The house is at its best when it’s full—cousins clambering into bunks and three generations squeezing around the porch’s long dining table. “It’s comfort; it’s family; it’s a lot of fun,” says Elliot. “It’s exactly what we wanted.”
Read the original article on Southern Living