Naples Island Long Beach
Approachable luxury with traditional touches. Adorned with designer fabrics, motorization, and hand crafted hardware, this waterfront home balances class with the casual.
Working with an open-minded home owner, a very capable out of town design team, and an impressively efficient GC, we were able to outfit this canal-front home on Naples Island in Long Beach with a whole array of premium, custom window treatments. These included pleated draperies on custom ceramic-coated traversing style rods, pleated draperies on hand-made French return rod-and-ring hardware , custom roman shades made from delicate sheer linen in one of our house fabric, designer fabrics blackout lined, a motorized woven wood shade and motorized roller shades. Then the last minute addition of a super fun portiere leading into the primary bath inspired by Sarah Paulson’s Malibu bungalow, which the home owner came across in an Architectural Digest spotlight. Who did it better?
A portiere in this Peter Dunham printed linen inspires a bit of fun in what is otherwise an overall very sophisticated design.
While we offer design-guidance in nearly all our work, in this case many of the materials were selected by the design team, Hannah Sutter Interiors, and included fabrics from Holly Hunt, Schumacher, Zax + Fox, Peter Dunham, Pindler, and Kravet - and a trim from Samuel and Son’s for good measure. Where designer fabrics needed to be supplemented with something a bit more understated, we were able to use our in-house sheer linen, and source blackout motorized roller shades, and a blackout lined motorized woven wood roman shade for the primary bedroom. Ultimately the mix of high-end yet never-stuffy fabrics, touches of natural materials, and the convenience of automation led to a very balanced aesthetic that brings a bit of luxury to beach.
We take a special pride in working in these neighborhoods in Long Beach, homes we grew up in from the time we were kids, and in the case of Naples, canals we swam in, and bridges we jumped off. To see this project come to life was special.
An unlined semi-sheer fabric from Schumacher on a dual drapery rod (linen sheer behind), custom coated in a 1 of 1 cerakote finish.
My step brother owns a ceramic coating business here in Long Beach (and also happens to be one of SoCal’s highest quality commercial and residential paint contractors). The vast majority of his Cerakote work is in the automotive industry, but he and I had been talking about, and looking for a project to use one of his finishes on drapery hardware. When the design team spec’d a pretty unique color for these drapery rods, we decided to give it a shot. The finish is durable, attractive, and infinitely customizable. We’re looking forward to bringing this truly custom approach to future projects.
A look at the combined kitchen and living space, with its harmony of fabrics for custom roman shades and draperies. Click to enlarge.
Bedrooms all got a variation of blackout window treatments to aid sleep and increase comfort. While guest bedrooms got either a blackout lined roman shade or blackout lined drapery, the primary bedroom got it all - a blackout lined, motorized woven wood roman shade, and an elegant yet casual sheer drapery covering that 2nd story deck slider, that also helped conceal low-profile motorized blackout roller shades.
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Where designer fabrics were not called for, or where we needed a little touch of something more subtle, we used in-house linen fabrics which felt right at home. For example on these small windows adjacent the living area and kitchen, we wanted something to soften the exterior view, but did not want to distract the eye with a complicated pattern. It was also an opportunity to cover the windows with something elegant, but save a few dollars by bypassing the brand names. With so much repetition in a small amount of space, keeping it understated was the goal. A soft, sheer linen did just that.
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A few more details on window treatments throughout the space.
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And because we had so much fun with it, we’ll leave you with the portiere. There were countless details and considerations that bought this project to life, and I am grateful for the opportunity to have done so.
A peek through the floral linen portiere at a delicate roman shade we snuck behind these ceiling mounted vanity mirrors.