A Family Home In Long Island Leans Classic + Cozy

When a Manhattan-based couple decided to leave their apartment for Long Island’s greener pastures, it was because they were looking for more space to accommodate their growing family. In search of a tight-knit community with good schools, they purchased a property in the village of Roslyn with plans to build their forever home from scratch.

“Our wish was for the house to look timeless,” shares the client of her aesthetic directive. “You can always change out accessories, but the foundation—the flooring, the kitchen, the tiles— needed to be classic and cozy.” The couple’s other leading design directive: durability. “I wanted the look of a hotel but also for my three kids and their friends to be able to sit down anywhere in wet bathing suits,” she adds.

For designer Emily Del Bello, who has three young boys herself, making a house kid-friendly never means sacrificing style. “No matter how beautiful a home is, if there are children, you’re going to have messes,” she says. “Our job is to help homeowners feel excited about having their friends over and not nervous about the wear and tear.” Her fail-safe approach entails focusing on tough materials in high-touch areas. For this project, Del Bello utilized outdoor-grade fabrics, quartzite countertops and durable wool rugs, weaving together a transitional look that would stand up to daily use from active kids—and seamlessly evolve as they grow.

Crafting a chic yet indestructible residence was a collaborative effort with the project team of architect Christopher Stoddard, general contractor Jon Bijari and lighting designer Staci Ruiz. “The clients requested a traditional shingle-style house but didn’t require that it be symmetrical, which allowed me to be a bit creative with the rooflines,” shares Stoddard. The resulting structure bridges classic with contemporary, balancing soaring ceilings with intimacy, courtesy of a cleverly laid-out procession of rooms in lieu of an open floor plan. “The space is really well thought out,” adds Bijari. “We approached this home with the philosophy of a yacht builder and tried to take advantage of every inch.”

Warm wood details—namely, a base of white oak millwork with a rich honey stain—further amp up the cozy quotient, which Del Bello played to with a cosseting palette of creams, tans and grays layered with mellow textures, subtle patterns and timeless natural materials. Take the family room, where coffered wood ceilings are balanced with a sleek limestone fireplace surround, walls clad in a striated paper and an oatmeal-hued sectional with room for the whole family to stretch out.

In a handful of instances (see: the entryway’s dramatic fluted walls and the primary bathroom’s chevron-laid Calacatta Gold marble tile), the client admits that she wasn’t sure about the options Del Bello presented—at first. “Again and again, she told me to trust the process,” the homeowner recalls, noting that the guiding mantra for the project was trust, believe and you shall receive. “Emily exceeded my expectations so many times,” she adds.

Nowhere is this truer than the top floor, where the designer tailored each child’s room to their distinct little personalities. Awash in muted colors and ageless patterns, “They’re sophisticated, classy spaces that can grow with them,” the client says. And for the primary suite, the project mantra was put to use as Del Bello was given carte blanche to create a Hamptons-inspired hideaway with an upholstered bed in a textural bouclé, sisal wallpaper and sweeping linen curtains. The intent, of course, was to shape a retreat for the grownups— but the room’s wall-to-wall carpeting had other plans. “The kids run into our room every night and sleep on the floor,” says the owner with a laugh. “But at the end of the day, it feels like we’re on vacation in our own house.”