This West Palm Beach Home Features a Shell-Encrusted Powder Room

You can read the original article here

There are certain design liberties afforded to a beach home that other projects just can’t carry as naturally. A coral bedroom? Obviously. A dining room that doubles as a tropical garden? Of course. A sailfish cresting over a velvet sectional? Practically a requirement. When a family of Texas transplants enlisted Mimi Maddock McMakin and Peyton Urbanek of Kemble Interiors to transform their West Palm Beach home, they came with a Florida-approved appetite for color, a collection of beloved possessions, and very little interest in playing it safe.

For the Maddock McMakin and Urbanek, the brief turned out to be an exercise in creative restraint, though you wouldn’t know it from the results. Having downsized from a significantly larger home, the homeowners needed every inch of their new residence to earn its keep. “We wanted the spaces to feel comfortable, charming, and thoughtfully layered, so every inch had to work without feeling crowded,” says Urbanek. Rather than gutting the property, the team worked with Rothrock Construction to rethink its proportions, repurposing overlooked corners and unused nooks, and coaxing new character from existing details.

Some of the cleverest interventions made were also the smallest. A former closet beneath the stairs became a powder room, enveloped in pink grasscloth and finished with a Sailor’s Valentine shell display by Kellie Leighton. In the kitchen, the existing cabinetry was lacquered in Farrow & Ball’s Green Blue, while cane and bamboo trim gave the original coffered ceiling new charm. Elsewhere, pecky cypress ceilings, intricate latticework, and exuberant wallcoverings provide the type of Old Florida charm that has become so beloved in the area.

We wanted the spaces to feel comfortable, charming, and thoughtfully layered, so every inch had to work without feeling crowded.

Delightful decorative elements aside, the home’s smartest play may be its pacing. In the entry, the designers narrowed a long hallway and introduced archways to create a more deliberate progression between rooms. “We believe a home should offer a sense of the unexpected as you enter, revealing itself room by room rather than showing you everything at once,” Urbanek explains. And it does just that, with each room offering a new reason to linger, a fresh color combination to admire, and proof that a change of address can be an excellent excuse to have a little fun.

FAST FACTS

Designer: Kemble Interiors
Builder: Rothrock Construction
Location: West Palm Beach, Florida
The Space: A three-bedroom, three-and-a-half-bathroom home across 4,000 square feet.

SUNROOM

Lattice-clad ceilings add texture and dimension.

Paint: In Your Eyes (wall) and Folk Art (trellis), Benjamin Moore. Chairs: Kenian, in Raoul fabric. Ottoman: Charles Stewart, in Jim Thompson fabric. Roman shades: custom, in Pindler fabric with Thibaut tape trim.

Swing: custom, Patterson’s Custom Cabinetry, with a cushion in Jim Thompson fabric. Ottomans: custom, in Pierre Frey fabric.

Designed to feel like “a garden perched at the water’s edge,” the sunroom is wrapped in lattice on the walls and ceiling, creating an enveloping backdrop. A bench swing and rattan swivel chairs invite you to settle in, turn toward the water, and linger over morning coffee or cocktails as the light changes.

DINING ROOM

A Murano chandelier matches the trimwork perfectly.

Ceiling wallpaper: Phillip Jeffries. Table: Port Eliot. Chairs: Serena & Lily.

Reminiscent of a tropical garden, the dining room is framed in rich turquoise trim and outfitted with a lively mural from Clake & Clark. Instead of traditional window treatments, the team opted for custom micro-lattice shutters that filter the sunlight and cast dappled light throughout the space.

Reminiscent of a tropical garden, the dining room is framed in rich turquoise trim and outfitted with a lively mural from Clake & Clark. Instead of traditional window treatments, the team opted for custom micro-lattice shutters that filter the sunlight and cast dappled light throughout the space.

KITCHEN

Original cabinetry got a facelift—and a slew of decorative finishes surrounding it.

Cabinet hardware: Art and Forge. Stools: Made Goods, with cushions in Namay Samay fabric. Wallcovering: Phillip Jeffries.

“The kitchen shows how much character can come from reimagining what is already there,” says Urbanek. Farrow & Ball’s Green Blue brought new life to the existing kitchen cabinetry, while cane and bamboo trim on the coffered ceilings nods to classic Floridian style. “We wanted the kitchen to feel as layered and personal as the rest of the house, with materials that grow more charming over time.”

LIVING ROOM

Coral fans act as art on the walls.

Wall paint: custom, by Kellie Leighton. Armchairs: custom, in Schumacher fabric. Green couch: custom, in Brunschwig & Fils fabric. Coffee table: Porte Italia. Lamps: Pooky, with custom lampshades.

“The client wanted the living room to feel like a natural extension of the sunroom by day, then take on the mood of a cocktail lounge for evenings spent entertaining friends,” says Urbanek. To achieve that balance, the pair started with the P. Kaufmann print on the sofa, which the client fell in love with, and allowed that to guide every design decision that followed.

POWDER ROOM

A shell mural nods to antique Sailor’s Valentines.

Wallcovering: Phillip Jeffries. Shell art: Kellie Leighton. Sink: Palmer Marble.

Tucked beneath the stairs, this petite powder room makes the most of a small footprint. “Almost every element had to be customized to suit its proportions and meet code requirements, including a sink made entirely from pink stone,” says Urbanek.

FAMILY ROOM

Pecky cypress ceilings nod to the charm of a bygone era.

Wallpaper: Innovations. Roman shades, draperies: custom, in Cowtan & Tout. Couch: custom, in Cowtan & Tout. Coffee table: Etsy. Rug: Fibreworks.

Though the client’s sailfish draws the eyes in this cozy space, there are plenty of other elements to love. “The deep blue velvet sectional sets the scene for a family room with plenty of comfort,” says Urbanek. “Its dramatic silhouette plays off the sofa’s scalloped back, while a bone-inlay coffee table adds another layer of pattern and surprise.”

PRIMARY BEDROOM

The coral palette was a client request.

Wall paint: Coral Rock at 50 percent, Benjmain Moore. Ceiling paint: Monsoons, Sherwin-Williams. Bed: Palecek. Bed drapes: custom, in Kathryn Ireland fabric. Nightstand: Port Eliot. Pendant: Currey & Company. Bench: custom, in Kravet and Sanderson fabrics. Rug: Rosenfeld Carpet.

Unexpectedly bright for a bedroom, this coral-clad space boasted just the right amount of fun for the clients. “Deeper than a familiar Florida coral, the wall color brings warmth and richness that beautifully complement the verdigris on the ceiling,” says Urbanek. “In the center, a rope-wrapped canopy bed is dressed in sheer verdigris-striped curtains, creating a breezy enclosure with a little romance.”

PRIMARY BATHROOM

A funky wallpaper ties in the bedroom palette.

Floor tile: New Ravenna. Vanity/tub paint: Central Park at 50 percent, Benjamin Moore. Vanity hardware: Modern Matter.

Roman shade: custom, in Pindler fabric.

“We wanted the bathroom to have a personality of its own,” Urbanek says of the colorful space, which features a grass green vanity and wallpaper from House of Harris. “Each room tells a different story.”

Unexpectedly bright for a bedroom, this coral-clad space boasted just the right amount of fun for the clients. “Deeper than a familiar Florida coral, the wall color brings warmth and richness that beautifully complement the verdigris on the ceiling,” says Urbanek. “In the center, a rope-wrapped canopy bed is dressed in sheer verdigris-striped curtains, creating a breezy enclosure with a little romance.”

GUEST BEDROOM

A cut-out headboard brings playful personality.

Wallpaper: Harrison Howard. Roman shades/draperies: custom, in Brunshwig & Fils. Nightstands: Made Goods. Rug: Dash & Albert.

“The client fell in love with the patterned wallpaper, and we felt its exuberance deserved to extend beyond the walls,” Urbanek says of the room’s pink and green palette. “We wanted guests to feel immediately transported to Florida through the room’s freshness, color, and playful spirit, a sense of place that comes from its atmosphere rather than familiar coastal motifs.”

About the Designer

Kemble Interiors, Inc. was founded in 1982 by Palm Beach native Mimi Maddock McMakin. She has over 40 years of experience consulting and working under the direction of licensed architects and contractors to bring comfort and beauty to her clients’ homes across America. She now runs the firm alongside her daughter and partner, Celerie Kemble, in the New York office of Kemble Interiors, with designer Peyton Urbanek on the team.