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The window-side beds on the upstairs sleeping porch are blanketed in vintage kantha quilts, with oak tree branches at eye level in one direction, and a wallpaper of seashells, vines, and snails in the other—a cozy treehouse come to life, a nook to loll about in the afternoon, read a book, and nap.
That’s just one of the cocoon-like settings created by interior designer Allison Abney for a family of five who retreat to the tangled, sandy landscape of Sullivan’s Island—a beachside community just 10 miles away from downtown Charleston—for holidays and vacations. For several years, the clients had squeezed into an original 1920s cottage, measuring just 842 square feet, that once provided housing for nearby Fort Moultrie. (Remnant bunkers are still lodged in the dunes just across from the property’s ocean-facing edge at Poe Avenue, named for onetime resident Edgar Allen Poe.)
Old-fashioned board walls in the living room in the “new house” set the backdrop for an array of patterned textiles, including patchwork-like Mariner (on the Hollywood at Home ottoman) and Rapscallion (on vintage rattan seating) by Zak + Fox and Schumacher’s Marietta (on curtains). Custom-painted tiles of Lowcountry shorebirds by Aviva Halter surround the fireplace; above is a Soane Britain mirror. The custom Landrum game table is surrounded by Creel & Gow chairs.
Peter Frank Edwards
The shutters and porch floor of the “new house” are painted a vibrant hue (Arugula by Sherwin-Williams) that echoes the lush surroundings. The clients’ vintage rattan furniture was restored and reupholstered in performance fabrics by Sister Parish (on the sofa) and Christopher Farr Cloth (on chairs). Lantern, Hector Finch.
Peter Frank Edwards
Shaded by oak trees, the new house includes deep porches front and back, with tall screen doors to allow sea breezes to flow through. Landscape architect Cindy Cline of Wertimer + Cline designed the garden, which includes a star jasmine plant that will eventually climb the fence and scale the 13-foot-tall screened porch.
Peter Frank EdwardsThe family was captivated by the cottage’s simple charms, but eventually outgrew its tiny footprint, and decided to restore the 100-year-old building and add a second, larger home on the lot that would capture the spirit of the original. Most importantly, they didn’t want to lose the quirky aspects of beach living—stacks of games and books, doors left open to screened porches and sea air, and sandy feet and wet bathing suits allowed as much as possible—that made it so comfortable for friends and family. “We almost always prefer old to new,” they jotted in a list of design notes shared with Abney, who worked closely on the project with architect Brent Fleming of B.W. Fleming Architects, also of Charleston.
Because the family had grown so attached to the original pine beadboard on the walls and ceilings of the cottage, they asked the builders to preserve as much as possible. To do so, the century-old exterior walls were carefully disassembled during renovation, the pieces numbered, and later put back together. (Only a handful of the Fort’s cottages were ever built and few remain, so town officials on the preservation-minded island were thrilled they’d keep it intact.)
Warm woods and sunlight flow through the classic, airy kitchen with oak flooring and countertops, and a herringbone design on the hood over the green Lacanche range. Pendant lights, deVol.
Peter Frank EdwardsAlong with guiding the careful improvement of the historic cottage, Fleming designed the newly completed main house, which already feels like a Sullivan’s Island original. Now the primary domain during family visits, the structure is enveloped in curving oak tree branches, and includes deep porches on the front and rear, 13-foot ceilings on the first floor, and tall screen doors at either end to allow sea breezes to flow through unobstructed. Much of the first floor is one room, including the kitchen on one side and a living room with a broad fireplace and bookcases on the other. Various seating areas include a custom game table by Charleston craftsman Capers Cauthen of Landrum Tables, antique wicker pieces with freshly upholstered cushions, and a round dining table passed down from a grandparent’s beach house in North Carolina. Upstairs, three bedrooms are snug with alcoves and lower ceilings that often follow angles of the roofline.
Abney describes the upstairs sleeping porch as “an ideal daydreaming room,” with windows that open to the trees and removable cushions around the bed for added comfort. Secret Garden wallpaper by Cole & Son “doesn’t distract from the view, but mirrors it in a more playful way.” Quilt, John Robshaw; sheets, Matouk; sconce, Nickey Kehoe.
Peter Frank Edwards
The guest cottage bedroom “has a great patina and age to it because we didn’t disturb the original beadboard,” says Abney, who painted the walls and ceiling in French Toile by Benjamin Moore. Curtain fabric, Soane; bed, Scott James Furniture; ceiling light, Schoolhouse Electric; hooked rug, The New England Collection.
Peter Frank Edwards
C.F.A. Voysey’s Apothecary’s Garden wallpaper is a period-perfect fit for the cottage’s bathroom; the sink is skirted in Schumacher’s Key West Check; wall light, Thomas O’Brien for Visual Comfort.
Peter Frank EdwardsAbney used color to further enhance the character of both the original and new cottages. The vibrant arugula hue of the shutters—inspired by a foyer floor at Monticello—feels right at home here, echoing shades of jasmine vines and spiky palmettos outside, and even the green of the island’s landmark Irish pub a few blocks away. In another historic nod, a milkshake-pink wall color uncovered in the restoration of the 1920s cottage is now the primary color in its bunk room.
The rear porch overlooking the pool—a favorite spot for alfresco dining— is outfitted with Fermob chairs and a custom outdoor dining table by Landrum Tables; an Urban Electric pendant with a bold fabric shade (in Mill Pond by Fanny Shorter) lights the entryway.
Peter Frank EdwardsOutside, a camellia-lined path leads to an outdoor shower. Between the two cottages is a swimming pool, pool house, and vegetable garden beds—yet another tucked-away respite for the family and all who visit. “Whenever I drop by in the summer,” Abney says, “the pool is full of kids swimming and their friends and family always coming and going on bikes—dropping by and enjoying life on Sullivan’s Island.”
THIS ARTICLE ORIGINALLY APPEARED IN VOLUME 17 OF FREDERIC MAGAZINE. CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE!
