Key Largo Abode Goes Nautical For A Large Family

As designer Tracie Schumacher can tell you, fashioning waterfront digs for a multigenerational family of 14 is no day at the beach–but the result is well worth the effort.

Eventually remodeled to include nine bedrooms, her clients’ property in Key Largo’s Ocean Reef community lacked character, so Schumacher collaborated with architect Robert A. Richard and general contractor James Gregory to add stone cladding and fish-scale shingle siding on the exterior to create textural layers. Inside, a network of beams and trusses stained a driftwood color now adds visual interest.

As a nod to the canals on two sides of the home, Schumacher established blue as the design’s dominant hue. In the living room, for instance, a Belgian linen sectional sports an assortment of turquoise, navy and cerulean pillows. Elsewhere, aqua-stained panels wrap the staircase, while tones of tea in the junior master suites drive home the beachy feel.

“The beams and ceiling treatments give the house a sense of history, but it’s the pops of color that make it fresh and modern and tie everything together,” the designer explains.

Nautical accents, such as boat-cleat towel hangers and a rope light fixture, add to the abode’s overall laidback aesthetic.