A New Home On the Jersey Shore Embraces Character + Pattern

For a New York-based couple with longtime ties to Bay Head—one of the Garden State’s most idyllic beach communities—the time had come to rethink their vacation home.

For a New York-based couple with longtime ties to Bay Head—one of the Garden State’s most idyllic beach communities—the time had come to rethink their vacation home.

The modest ranch-style house had served as the backdrop to countless happy summers, but, as the family’s needs changed, it led them to think about ways they might make the property their future full-time residence. As architect Dustin Brown sketched plans, the wife phoned designer Joe Lucas, a New Jersey native and longtime friend. The result is a fittingly friendly, shingled charmer. "This is the 'Hi, how are you?' house," Lucas jokes. "Everyone passes by and shouts, 'Hello!"

"Having lived in Bay Head, it was important to the owners that the house reflect the style of the older homes in town—and it was such fun to do!" explains Brown. Because the area is prone to flooding, the architect, who worked alongside builder Nikki Garratano, elevated the house above garage level, giving it a grand but welcoming entrance on the front porch. "We wanted to design a home that would be comfortable for just the two of them, yet open and accommodating for a full house of guests," Brown adds, noting that the multiple levels and gabled roofline enabled some particularly cozy nooks. "After living in close quarters, we knew we needed multiple seating areas, and we wanted every bedroom to be an escape with its own television and bathroom," shares the wife. "I needed to make this house comfortable for our boys, so they’d want to come and stay with their friends!" she admits. (It worked. Sixteen of them recently descended for a bachelor party.)

During construction, the family decamped to a nearby 1890s cottage whose period details ended up inspiring many design choices. "We really wanted to make this house look like old Bay Head,” explains Lucas, noting paneling, rosettes and stair posts “borrowed” from the cottage. "It was all about getting that character and feeling," he adds. But, because the home was intentionally designed as an all-season retreat, Lucas chose a darker, more 19th century-style palette and added such cold-weather comforts as two wood-burning fireplaces. "I wanted a forever home and I knew Joe would make it beautiful," says the wife. Her only real requests were durable rugs and fabrics that would withstand their large dogs.

"She let me play with color and pattern,” continues Lucas, who immediately reached for decorative wallpapers. "In very old houses, all rooms were papered," he explains. "Wallpapered rooms always feel richer, so don’t be afraid of them!" In the dining room, he hung a scenic mural. It may be the Bosporus, but, here, it reads like the Atlantic. "It’s my favorite room," Lucas says. "You really feel like you’re on the water." And, in the library, he hung a wallpaper depicting wind-blown cypress trees in shades of sage and orange that play up the room's palette of blue, persimmon and arsenic green. "We wanted to keep the summer house feel but make it work year-round, so we needed to create these moodier spaces," he explains. The designer continued his masterful use of color in the family room, melding purples, greens and yellows through a mix of striped and textural fabrics.

"We wanted to keep the summer house feel but make it work year-round, so we needed to create these moodier spaces." —Joe Lucas

For the kitchen, Lucas turned to specialist Heidi Piron, who had previously worked with the homeowners. (“Everything she does is gorgeous!” the designer says.) A professional range gives the space a chef-like feel while a display of ceramic seashells adds whimsy. The latter are just one of the collections Lucas gathered for the home: 27 pond boats from London adorn a stair wall and a display of vintage tennis racquets hangs artfully in the media room. And, crucial to accommodating a steady stream of visitors, every bedroom offers a plush sanctuary.

Each continues the relaxed spirit of the main rooms, but with a slightly softer palette of lighter woods and shoulder-dropping colors that Lucas plucked directly from Bay Head’s many charms: sunshine yellows, leafy greens and the ocean’s prismatic blues and grays.Whether the family is gathering for high-summer frivolities or cozy winter holidays, the house delivers on elegance and ease. “Joe paid attention to what mattered to us—to what was meaningful,” says the wife. “I knew what this house needed to be, with all of the layers and colors, and it really suits them,” Lucas adds. “It truly is a forever home.