Book cover and text excerpted from Southern Rooms II by Shannon Howard, Quarry Books © 2005

Mike Ruegamer: "When I think of the South, I think of porches. Every good Southern home should have a porch."

Off the coast of South Carolina, where white sand beaches weave through meandering blue lagoons, the island community of Hilton Head offers a gracious and leisurely lifestyle. It's here, where stunning natural beauty envelops first-class resort "plantations," that the owners of this mellow beach house decided to build their dream home. Working with architect and designer Mike Ruegamer, they wanted a casual, family-friendly house that maximized the ocean views and gently invited the outdoors in.

It wasn't a new challenge for Ruegamer, whose award-winning firm, Group 3, is based on the island, but the project did pose a unique set of obstacles. The lot was very narrow, with neighboring houses nudging closely on either side. The design had to meet strict standards laid out by the local architectural review board. And then there was the pool—the lone reminder of the home that once stood on this site, and a large, unmovable object around which the entire plan would have to be created.

Faced with substantial exterior hurdles, Ruegamer began by envisioning the details of the interior. He spent time with the owners, took notes on how they used certain rooms, and then tried to craft the ideal indoor environment for their lives. "I'm always thinking in terms of space planning, and my dad was a space planner," he says, "so I like to approach a design in terms of living spaces and really explore how a family might feel inside their home."

On this project, he was able to address both form and function by carving out numerous vistas while still affording plenty of privacy. In the kitchen, where a wall of windows flows gracefully into the side yard, the simple interior space is enlivened and sheltered by the gardens outside. At the end of the entry hall, which rises three steps above the living room, a similar visual delight entices the eye, expanding the sense of space and warmly drawing visitors into the heart of the house.

It's an aesthetic that Ruegamer calls "Sea Pines meets the West Indies." Sea Pines, of course, is the development in which the home is located, and it's renowned for its understated architecture and careful preservation of the natural surroundings. Paired with the breezy, quietly elegant style of the West Indies—a lush tropical haven still ripe with Colonial influence—the result is a timeless, seaside retreat that reflects the very best of both worlds.

Easy and casual is the key in this laid-back family room, where most of the furniture is slip covered. The homeowner changes out the green and white covers in the wintertime, replacing them with heavier fabrics in warm beige and chocolate. Made from a combination of pine and mahogany, all of the home's ceiling beams and wide-plank floors were stained a deep dark brown to contrast the neutral walls. Even darker are these Asian cabinets found in an Atlanta antique store.

[ TO TOP ]