East Coast Tradition Meets West Coast Chill In A Youthful Hamptons Abode

Details

An all-gray exterior defines this...

Designer Jake Arnold chose off-black shingles and board and batten siding “as a contrast to the typical Hamptons home, which is mostly bright and light,” he explains. “The idea of a black exterior seems really daunting but is in fact extremely calming and inviting.”

Black and white colors contrast...

Designer Jake Arnold placed a custom table with a shou sugi ban-inspired finish in the main entry of a Hamptons home. “We wanted a dominant entry so we could place dramatic arrangements and create a sense of space with the double-height ceilings,” he says. Above is a fixture by L7 Lighting.

The dining room sits in...

Throughout the home, Arnold played with old and new silhouettes. In the dining area adjacent to the kitchen, he chose a custom table and bench both crafted with traditional mortise-and-tenon joinery and paired them with a set of Niels O. Møller chairs found on 1stdibs and a striking, linear Apparatus fixture of brass.

Small barstools sit in a...

Airy open shelving, bleached white-oak tongue-and-groove paneling on the appliance fronts and Calacatta marble countertops from North Shore Stone balance opposing cabinetry painted in Farrow & Ball’s Off-Black. The Kohler faucet, Allied Maker sconces, Lostine pendants and Summer Studio stools echo the casework finishes.

An all-white sectional sofa sits...

Arnold intended for the living area to be comfortable and welcoming regardless of the season. A summery Chivasso linen covers the sectional while a wool blanket and inviting kilim from ABC Carpet & Home are the cozy touches needed for a chilly day.

This dark den contrasts to...

“I’m not a wallpaper person at all, but every time I use it, I use a William Morris design,” Arnold says of the Morris & Co. heritage print he chose for the den. Combined with Farrow & Ball Studio Green paint on the wainscoting and ceiling, lush draperies in a Holland & Sherry velvet and a Trnk NYC sofa, the space feels like a welcoming retreat.

Abstract art and a small...

Arnold took the master bedroom in a moody direction, using Portola Paints’ Oliver on the walls. He covered the custom bed in a Mokum linen and dressed it with Parachute Home bedding. A vintage settee from Laurin Copen Antiques and a Pierre Jeanneret chair and ottoman in a Rogers & Goffigon fabric offer spots to perch.

A white chair sits in...

Arnold took the master bedroom in a moody direction, using Portola Paints’ Oliver on the walls. He covered the custom bed in a Mokum linen and dressed it with Parachute Home bedding. A vintage settee from Laurin Copen Antiques and a Pierre Jeanneret chair and ottoman in a Rogers & Goffigon fabric offer spots to perch.

A modern white bathtub defines...

Breezy sheers in a Calvin open-weave linen form a chic backdrop for the master bathroom’s Barclay tub fitted with matte black Newport Brass fixtures. The rustic stool speaks to Arnold’s affinity for primitive pieces, which thread through the home.

An Angeleno by way of London, designer Jake Arnold has worked primarily on the West Coast with occasional forays east—but never to the Hamptons. That changed recently thanks to an about-to-be-married Manhattan couple who tapped Arnold to bring his laid-back California essence to their new digs. To say the opportunity was catnip for the designer is an understatement. “It gave me the chance to expand my horizons,” says Arnold. “I loved the chance to take in a different lifestyle. I would always stay a few days during each visit and get to know the area.”

Beyond pushing him outside of his geographical comfort zone, the project held further creative appeal. Arnold came on right at the beginning of the ground-up project, allowing him to collaborate with Farrell Building Company on the plan and layout, and put his stamp on just about everything. “That was the fun part for me—going from choosing plumbing fixtures and tile down to the dishes,” the designer recalls. One of his highest impact decisions was establishing the home’s overall look. “We wanted Shingle style, but I said, ‘Why don’t we do a black house because you don’t see those all the time?’” he recalls. This approach translates to the exterior feeling of-a-piece with the silhouettes of its more traditional neighbors, but the matte black color sets it apart as a modern riff on the vernacular.

Inside, Arnold’s moody-hued take on Hamptons style is just as enticing. “We kept colors dark and neutral to maintain tonality,” explains the designer. “We wanted strong, but also easy on the eyes.” A sea of faded black, pebble gray and chestnut tones lace through the timber-beamed great room, coming to a crescendo in the adjoining den, which Arnold designed as “a jewel box to be seen from the living space.” There, he employed shadowy velvet drapes, floral wallpaper and painted tongue-and-groove style wainscoting to cozy effect. Equally cocooning is the master bedroom, which manages to feel light and breezy in spite of its black plaster paint walls. “In summer, it’s actually quite nice to retreat to a darker, cooler room,” he muses.

As with all successful design, Arnold took great care in maintaining balance. “I love primitive pieces, and it would have been easy to stay in that lane, but you could end up being too on the nose,” he says. Instead, furnishing choices are a measured mix. For every rustic form, there are contemporary counterweights—a dichotomy on chic display in the dining area, which features a custom dining table made from salvaged timber surrounded by a seating medley of a reclaimed bench paired with vintage Niels O. Møller chairs. “Not everyone loves a bench, but these clients love to cook and their entertaining style is more interactive and casual, so it suits them,” adds Arnold.

So in tune was designer with clients that the couple even enlisted Arnold’s help in curating items for their wedding registry—many of which now sing from the kitchen’s open shelving. Furniture sourcing, too, was collaborative and convivial. Early on, the designer took the couple on a local shopping excursion, yielding a pair of black leather club chairs and an antique rug that now reside in the den. “Those were the first pieces we bought, and they stayed in storage until install,” says Arnold, adding, “The best part of the reveal is when my clients get to see something we bought together in context.”

With his maiden Hamptons design voyage in the books, Arnold has the chance to reflect on his work and likes what he sees. “All of my projects are different, but they share a lineage: how the space feels rather than how it looks,” muses the designer. “This home holds up within the work I do, but it offers a different dialogue and personality. It goes to show that you can achieve both classic and timeless and updated and relevant without being trendy.”

PHOTOS BY TRIA GIOVAN