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Book to Know: 'Barclay Butera: Living on the Coast'
Even if your style is modern or elegant, this book can help you bring relaxing elements of the beach to your home's look
Houzz Contributor. Hi There! I currently live in a 1920s cottage in Atlanta that I'll describe as "collected."
I got into design via Landscape Architecture, which I studied at the University of Virginia. I've been writing about design online for quite a few years over at Hatch: The Design Public Blog.
Houzz Contributor. Hi There! I currently live in a 1920s cottage in Atlanta... More »
‘The aesthetic of seaside homes reflect a magical alchemy between the native and the exotic, the traditional and the whimsical, the mysterious and the familiar." — Barclay Butera
Butera captures this magical alchemy in his new book, Living on the Coast (Gibbs Smith, 2012) and shows how to create it. He divides seaside style into five categories in the book: Cottage Beach, Classic Beach, Serene Beach, Modern Beach and Elegant Beach. For each style, beachy textures and color palettes bring a coastal feel to every type of room. Here's a peek at 10 rooms from the book.
Butera captures this magical alchemy in his new book, Living on the Coast (Gibbs Smith, 2012) and shows how to create it. He divides seaside style into five categories in the book: Cottage Beach, Classic Beach, Serene Beach, Modern Beach and Elegant Beach. For each style, beachy textures and color palettes bring a coastal feel to every type of room. Here's a peek at 10 rooms from the book.
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| While many of Butera's rooms are calm and light, he's not averse to having kitschy fun, whether with a nautical theme or over-the-top Americana motifs. "A pair of captain's wheels keeps the nautical ball bouncing in this room," writes Butera. As for textures, he advocates using the practical fabrics and textures that go with sand and sunscreen: painted pine, jute, sisal, canvas and linens. |
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| A typical Butera color palette is taken straight from the water, sand, sky and sea glass. He also loves unique mixes, like woven chairs with quatrefoil-patterned upholstery. The result is a serene and welcoming room. |
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Butera avows that when it comes to design, there are no rules, so I asked which widely accepted rule he loves to break the most.
"This one’s easy: mixing prints!" he exclaims. "Textiles are the life and blood of any room design, and you will find that even in my books for Kravet fabrics I mix far more than I match. Often I’ll use a carefully selected group of fabrics for pillows and upholstery, then throw in a killer leopard print to add interest. And is there a reason tangerine does not play well with turquoise? Clients love it! And whatever you do, please don’t use matchy-match coffee and end tables — nothing screams bad design louder than that."
"This one’s easy: mixing prints!" he exclaims. "Textiles are the life and blood of any room design, and you will find that even in my books for Kravet fabrics I mix far more than I match. Often I’ll use a carefully selected group of fabrics for pillows and upholstery, then throw in a killer leopard print to add interest. And is there a reason tangerine does not play well with turquoise? Clients love it! And whatever you do, please don’t use matchy-match coffee and end tables — nothing screams bad design louder than that."
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| I asked Butera the three easiest things we can do to get an instant coastal feel at home, even if we live in the middle of a field in Iowa. "I love doing coastal for clients who crave the look but live in urban or rural areas," says Butera. "The translation does not have to be 'hit you over the head,' but by using soft, washy, beachy colors of paint like Ralph Lauren’s Shoreline Blue, Faded Seafoam and Whisper (with all high-gloss white painted trims) you get a real, clean beach-glass feel. Add in textured sea grass wallpapers and accessorize with mother-of-pearl and shell accents and you have the look. Lots of oversized silver hurricanes are great as accents as well." |
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| Butera's penchant for British colonial style shows through in this room, which brings some Indian Ocean influence and the texture of an exotic Indonesian cane bed to its elegant surroundings. Glass table lamps with linen shades are a coastal classic no matter which ocean you're gazing upon. |
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Butera loves to incorporate heirlooms and beloved pieces his clients already own, which can present challenges as well as opportunities. "I had a client once that had a chandelier that was beyond description," says Butera. "While I love a cool one-of-a-kind antique piece, this could be classified as more of a relic! We cleaned it up, refinished the iron and added countless seashells, which brought it to life. It ended up being the most spectacular piece in the room."
As for one of his favorite own heirlooms/relics, "I have a vintage Louis Vuitton trunk that I found at a Paris flea market that serves as a coffee table for my Park City home. It’s the bomb," he says.
As for one of his favorite own heirlooms/relics, "I have a vintage Louis Vuitton trunk that I found at a Paris flea market that serves as a coffee table for my Park City home. It’s the bomb," he says.
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| This bedroom is a sanctuary done in Serene Beach style, full of relaxing prints, colors and textiles, and having coastal pines and sea breezes just through balcony doors. |
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Sometimes you need to get creative with storage and furniture layout in tight beach house rooms. Built-ins take the place of nightstands in this bedroom, and centering a bed beneath a window is the best use of the space.
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Ivory hues and marble bring a resort spa feel to this serene bath.
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Barclay Butera: Living on the Coast is now available in bookstores and online. It's one of my favorites in my collection already, and it makes a wonderful hostess gift if you're lucky enough to have an invitation to a beach house this summer.
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Barclay Butera designs fabrics, furniture, carpets, lighting, art, bedding and more (many of which are seen in the photographs above). He is working on his next book in the hopes of publishing it around fall 2013.
More:
So Your Style Is: Coastal
Houzz Tour: Coastal Chic Family Getaway
Houzz Tour: Eclectic Country Beach House
More:
So Your Style Is: Coastal
Houzz Tour: Coastal Chic Family Getaway
Houzz Tour: Eclectic Country Beach House
Ideabook updated on June 18, 2012.
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