Tour a Sea Island, Georgia, Beach Retreat That Features the Perfect Shade of Green

May 26, 2023

By Troy J. McMullen

Photography by Eric Piasecki

Styled by Helen Crowther

By the time the foundation was being poured on his project in Sea Island, Georgia, architect Stan Dixon had already spent plenty of time on the barrier island assessing the building site. Though he typically goes to great lengths during on-site surveys, examining ways to maximize the land, this inspection presented Dixon with a challenge so unique it would ultimately become the home’s most distinctive feature.

Spread across the half-acre lot were six century-old live oak trees with sprawling branches that extended over 40 feet from their trunks in all directions. “The trees gave the property character,” says Dixon, an Atlanta-based architect whose debut book comes out this fall. “So we designed the home to reside beneath and among the trees and its branches so that the structure appears as if the trees grew up around it,” he adds. “The design accounted for every branch on every tree, including dictating roof heights.”

The lush climate facilitates the growth of numerous plants, including hydrangeas.

Incorporating the unwieldy vegetation underscores Dixon’s approach to creating a ground-up project rooted in its natural surroundings. The contemporary residence, which measures about 5,000 square feet, feels historically informed with detailed architecture that balances scale with character. A swooping, scalloped lattice awning sits next to stately coquina quoins on the home’s understated stucco facade and augments its vibrant green accents. A glass-enclosed space is shaded by a canopy of grand oaks, and a floating cantilevered staircase keeps pressure off the trees’ roots. Turned wooden posts give the impression that an original porch had been converted into a sunroom.

The home’s owner says she and her husband used the property for years as a seasonal getaway but recently decided to move there full-time. That required the smaller dwelling on the site to be torn down in favor of building a larger structure for year-round use.

The couple was inspired by the designs of Oliver Messel, the English artist and theater set designer who created a string of upscale home designs for wealthy clients in the Caribbean during the 1960s and 1970s. His signature was a blend of romance, symmetry, and classicism, often referred to as Caribbean Colonial. “We were really drawn to his ideas of mixing traditional and tropical designs,” says the owner. “It really fit well with how we viewed island life.” He also became known for using a distinctive shade of green—dubbed Messel green—which is employed to deft effect throughout this property.

Messel’s flair for incorporating awnings, latticework, and other decorative woodwork can be seen throughout the house. An open-air porch that leads into the foyer includes subtle details around its ceiling. The entry porch is furnished with louvered cabinets, and large-scale windows in the kitchen frame views into the semitropical landscape.

Indoor-outdoor living is a hallmark of the property.

When it came time for collaborating on the interiors, the couple turned to their daughter, New York–based interior designer Kristen Blood, who works at Kemble Interiors. She injected the home with essentials for island living, with plenty of wicker and woven materials and lots of coral accents.

“I wanted everything to feel just a little bit timeless,” Blood says. Berri Pink fabric curtains from Penny Morrison were installed in a bedroom that includes a Sorbonne Chandelier by Vaughan. In another bedroom, a vintage bed sits atop a braided Jute rug from Anthropologie, along with Hawkins Chestnut embroidered curtains by Namay Samay and vintage rattan bedside tables. An Anson Pendant Chandelier by the Urban Electric Company hangs in an entryway hallway lined with Silk and Abaca Imperial Cotton wall coverings by Phillip Jeffries.

“We all worked collaboratively from the very beginning of the process,” adds Blood. “That was crucial to building a mutual concept and plan that complemented the architecture.”

The exterior details of the home are painted a distinctive shade of green.

Custom cement-tile flooring in the entry foyer augments exterior doors and shutters by Stewart Brannen Millworks. The Palm Chandelier is by Paul Ferrante. The Camilla Fossilized Clam dining table is from Palecek.

The owners were inspired by the designs of Oliver Messel, the English set designer who created homes in the Caribbean during the 1960s and 1970s. Limestone and zellige floors by François & Co. line a sunroom adorned with Penny Morrison fabric. Arcadia-produced steel doors and windows; Jamb lantern.

An Anson Pendant Chandelier by the Urban Electric Company hangs in an entryway hallway lined with Silk and Abaca Imperial Cotton wall coverings by Phillip Jeffries. The rugs are vintage, and the mirrors are from Casamidy.

White oak flooring in the hallway outside an office that includes an antique desk and a chair outfitted in Abbey Stripe fabric by Fermoie. The woven pouf is from Luteca.

A custom rug anchors a living room with Capitola Club Chairs and Seychelles Chandelier by Palecek. Artwork from Jackson Fine Art hangs above the sofa (Annie Leibovitz’s Brian Wilson) and the Dunshay Jamb mantle (Vee Speers, Untitled #1, Phoenix).

Rattan mirrors by Soane hang in a dining room with interior doors from Stewart Brannen Millworks and a leaf wallpaper from Schumacher. The dining table is from Highland House; the dining chairs are Sika.

By Mel Studach

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Another look inside the dining room reveals its floral wall panels.

Laticework, rattan, and blue and green tones combine to create this appealing bar area.

Balboa Counter stools in the kitchen are from Serena & Lily. The Gibson Pendants lights are from the Urban Electric Company. The stovetop is Wolf.

By Mel Studach

By Hadley Keller

By Elizabeth Stamp

A Sorbonne Chandelier by Vaughan hangs in the pink bedroom with Berri Pink fabric curtains and Paola Rose fabric on the bench by Penny Morrison. The Vlad side table is from Arteriors.

The en suite bathroom of the pink bedroom.

Fittingly, the adjoining walk-in closet is painted a rosy tone.

By Mel Studach

By Hadley Keller

By Elizabeth Stamp

A vintage bed sits atop a braided Jute Rug from Anthropologie in the bedroom. The Hawkins Chestnut embroidered curtain is by Namay Samay. Vintage rattan bedside tables are from Etsy, and the Maverick fan is from Circa Lighting.

This daybed is swathed in textile pieces from Les Indiennes.

The Salterini dining set in the backyard is vintage. It sits below awnings from Diversified Fabricators and Erectors and turned columns by Oak Pointe.

By Mel Studach

By Hadley Keller

By Elizabeth Stamp

A live oak tree hovers above the pool at the back of the 5,000-square-foot home. The half-acre property included six live oak trees with branches that extended over 40 feet from their trunks. “The trees gave the property character,” says architect Stan Dixon, who designed the house to reside among the trees and their branches.

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