Inn Style

Photo: Tria Giovan

There was no room at the inn for innkeepers Steve and Marianne Harrison. After five years of living "inn-style" in their 1820s bed and breakfast, the Rhett House, located in historic Beaufort, South Carolina, the Harrisons needed more space. When the couple first bought the inn, it was important to live on the premises. But, living in only two rooms with no privacy was difficult. And once they'd gotten the hang of things and established their business, it was also no longer necessary.

Photo: Tria Giovan

The Harrisons decided to build their new house at the edge of the inn's property, in the historic district of Beaufort. The couple reunited with builder Chuck Ferguson and architect Jim Thomas of Thomas & Denzinger, who had also renovated the antebellum inn, with its two-story wraparound verandas.

Keeping the scale of the new house in proportion with the inn and working within the parameters of the strict historic-district codes, Thomas created a design plan inspired by the regional Low Country vernacular. The result: an unassuming white clapboard house (also called a "cracker cottage"), with the requisite red tin roof. "We wanted the drama to be on the inside of the house," says Marianne.

Photo: Tria Giovan

When viewed from the street, the house appears deceptively small and narrow. But Thomas' long design boasts 2,300 square feet on the first floor alone. The unfinished second floor is another 1,200 square feet, enough room to finish out two or three bedrooms and two baths.

"We really took time to consider how we lived," says Marianne. The empty nesters had the opportunity to closely examine their lifestyle, and consider their past lives as homeowners and innkeepers, in order to shape their desires for the new house. A common theme surfaced: "We had always lived in old homes with the original details intact. Our farmhouse in Connecticut, a circa-1810 home, had a lot of small, cramped rooms, while our prewar New York City apartment had large formal rooms. In both situations, we only used the sitting room, kitchen, and bedroom," Steve says.

Photo: Tria Giovan

The couple wished to re-create the ambiance of old houses--the solid feeling of Old-World construction and careful detailing, such as thick plaster walls, high ceilings, 12-inch base boards, and large paned windows. But, the way they actually lived and entertained called for a more contemporary "loftlike" open floor plan that allows "one-level" living.

"We do a lot of cooking and entertaining. Our guests always seem to end up in the kitchen," Steve continues, "having a formal dining room, just wouldn't fit our lifestyle."

Photo: Tria Giovan

They told Thomas that they wanted him to build only what they needed. As a result, he came up with a spacious, airy plan with soaring, nearly 12-foot-high ceilings. The front hall and the dining and living areas are all in one large room that flows into the kitchen through an open archway. The master and guest bedroom suites bookend the main living/entertaining area. The architect created a long unobstructed look for the interior by ingeniously framing both levels with long steel beams, eliminating the need for obtrusive columns or supports.

Marianne is responsible for the formal, yet inviting and comfortable interiors of the Rhett House. There, she decorated with elegant, traditional elements: floral chintzes and English antiques--think Ralph Lauren meets Laura Ashley. The guests appreciate the atmosphere, one commenting, "It feels like we are staying in a wonderful person's guest room-not in a hotel."

Photo: Tria Giovan

I wanted that same feeling for our new house," says Marianne. Although, at the same time, she also wanted something fresher and more contemporary. For the dramatic look of the interior, Marianne drew inspiration from a number of sources. She liked the stark contrast of dark woods and light surfaces in the British Colonial-style houses she had visited on trips to the Caribbean. Marianne also admired the mahogany floors in her brother Roddy Smith's home and decided that she wanted the same flooring in her own home. Smith, who is an established fashion photographer, has much of his black-and-white photography displayed throughout Marianne and Steve's house. With the exception of the "inn-style" bedroom, Marianne abandoned the floral patterns of the Rhett House for crisp white walls and dramatic black-and-white slipcovers for both the sofa and the chairs.

The floor space flows freely from the living area to the kitchen, which sparkles with shiny marble, mahogany, and stainless-steel surfaces. The mahogany cabinets are a natural complement to dark woods in the living space. The gray marble floor tiles with green marble diamond insets neatly tie in with the deep green marble countertops. There is enough space for several guests to nibble on hors d'oeuvres and socialize while Marianne whips up a gourmet meal. Dinner parties often take place at the locally made mahogany table or, in the warmer summer months, outside on the east-facing porch.

Photo: Tria Giovan

Marianne kept the master bedroom formal, reminiscent of the Rhett House. And with their collection of heirloom English antiques, a traditional look made the most sense.

The mahogany French doors have shutter inserts that can be closed in order to obtain more privacy or pulled out for optimum light.

"We travel so much, but we always look forward to coming home again." says Marianne. "When we walk through the door, it looks as fresh as it did the day we moved in."

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