Step Inside an Elegant Florida Beach House That Redefines Coastal Chic

Shortly afterJennifer Bunsaposted the image of an elegant midcenturyPeter Løvig Nielsenflip-top desk on Instagram, she received a message from an intrigued stranger. Conversation flowed between the two design aficionados and, soon,Bunsa’s namesake Miami studio被雇佣来提供这个陌生人的一个homes. “We have similar taste,” Bunsa reflects. “He’s always been interested in collectible design and vintage furniture. One of my favorite things is finding pieces that are unique and have a story to tell.”

Two more collaborations later, Bunsa, with the assistance of local architectMaiju StanselandC.F. Knight Builders & Remodelers, has completed her biggest project yet for this like-minded individual and his family: the gut renovation of an abode in a Jacksonville-area beach community, in Florida. Although the structure was built in the early 2000s, its architecture echoes the simple 1930s cottages that were once abundant in the location—including one that formerly stood on this very site. Referencing that history, Bunsa worked closely with the homeowners to create interiors that exude serene New England, Japanese, and Scandinavian sensibilities. “The process went quickly in terms of making decisions,” Bunsa recalls. “We knew what looks we wanted to achieve and were always on the same page. We started ordering materials before there was even a general contractor involved. We got all of those big building blocks sorted out and then went back in.”

Cooking is important to the clients, so they had big ambitions for the kitchen, which is now awash in sleek slabs of Calacatta Viola marble juxtaposed withHenrybuiltwalnut cabinetry. The area underwent the most dramatic changes compared to anywhere else in the house. “It was tiny and took up about one third of the space,” Bunsa explains. “Just by changing the location of the door to the mudroom, we were able to make it seem a lot bigger.” Along with the central island, intimate family gatherings unfold on the built-in banquette festooned with cushions that are spruced up byJosef Frank’s Mirakelfabric.

Since the clients have children, durability and functionality were top of mind. At the same time, they craved a specific aesthetic. Recessed lighting, for example, was largely shunned, and vintage fixtures likeLouis Poulsensconces in the primary bedroom were celebrated. The couple also expressed their dislike of plain painted walls, leading to the use of wallpaper, plaster, and copious amounts of wood throughout the entirety of the home. The layered impact of those wall treatments ultimately paid off. Vertical painted boards “make the house feel a little more coastal,” according to Bunsa, while the Pecky cypress, which wraps the study and the dining room ceiling, “has a lot of texture, like it’s been eaten away.” In the primary bedroom, cedar plank-clad walls provide “an extra layer of warmth,” Bunsa adds. The designer further punched up this relatively neutral room by incorporating elements such as a pair ofBDDWleather nightstands andLindsey Adelman’s ethereal Cherry Bomb chandelier. Above the bed, which is dressed inNickey Kehoelinens, a painting by Alfred Hair lends a meditative touch.

The cozy study, brimming with vintage treasures and backdropped by a delicate Adam Pogue curtain panel reminiscent ofbojagi,a traditional form of Korean textile art, is a vignette that Bunsa adores. The same is true of the dining room, when it “gets filled with light” as the sun streams through expansive windows on three sides. Bunsa was just as thoughtful in her approach to the children’s rooms. Consider one of the bathrooms, dominated by playful encaustic cement tiles fromPopham Design, or the nursery, adorned inJosef Frank’s Sagoträdet print. “What I love is Frank’s use of scale. The patterns are so big that they don’t have as much of a small repeat. They are dynamic,” Bunsa muses.

Typically, at the end of a project, Bunsa Studio lets her clients fill up the home with their own personal details, but this residence has Bunsa’s touches everywhere. “I was heavily involved in every single little detail, so I have a lot of affection for this house,” she says. “It has all my favorite things in it.”