Inside a Coastal-Chic Guest Retreat Layered with Luxe Textures and Ocean Hues

Sherri and David DiClemente hadn’t planned on selling their historic Shingle Style home in Narragansett, Rhode Island. As empty nesters the couple decamp to Delray Beach, Florida, for winter, but downsizing up north had not been discussed. Until a general contractor friend mentioned a trio of townhomes he was building in Jamestown. Curious, they swung by; they had a contract within 24 hours. “The moment we saw the amazing view of the Newport Bridge, it was a simultaneous, ‘I would leave ’Gansett for this,” Sherri recalls.

Getting in early on the build, the couple worked with Alex Crecelius of Alex Interiors to personalize the interior finishes and curate the furnishings. “Alex had us with her ‘never boring’ mantra,” Sherri says.

Crecelius, who cooled off in the ocean at this very spot between waitressing shifts during college, guided Sherri and David in discovering their vision for their new home. “They wanted it to feel airy and modern, like a W Hotel,” the designer says. The inspiration for the scheme was the beach; specifically, the sand. “The sand is light—almost white—but can also look taupe and still feel bright,” Crecelius explains. For contrast, she incorporated black accents and a drop of moody blue. “We love the way she made our neutral and monochromatic preferences so interesting with texture,” Sherri says.

Entry is up a flight of stairs on the side of the home, and there’s an elevator from the garage too. The open concept living space is white and airy, compliments of Benjamin Moore “Simply White” paint, a modern designer favorite for its clarity. The white oak floorboards that run through the home lend that sand-on-the-beach aesthetic Crecelius was after.

Custom white Shaker style cabinetry punctuated by linear brass pulls wraps a corner of the kitchen while white quartz with gray veining reminiscent of clouds folds up the wall and down the center island, waterfall style. Rift-sawn white oak shelves and the shiplap-clad range hood are a slight nod to nautical.

It wouldn’t be an Alex Interiors design without glamour. Here it’s derived from the gilded underside of pendant lights, curvy Tom Dixon bar stools, and black metal and glass door fronts that turn a typical storage cabinet into an eye-catching bar. In the adjacent dining area, a draped coco bead chandelier adds romantic allure above the custom white oak table with a monolithic base that undulates like an ocean wave. Dining chairs with art deco appeal play off the bar stools while S-shaped head chairs composed of 29 strips of wood are rhythmic works of art.

The living room overlooks the water and leads to the front deck. There’s also a three-sided, floating gas fireplace and a floor-to-ceiling Lucite wine rack that injects a sense of celebration into the salt air. A crushed-silk floor lamp ascends as though from the sea. “It’s like something pulled out of a Disney ocean,” the designer says. Like the supple Italian leather sofa, it came from Sklar in Boca Raton. “Sherri and David picked me up from the beach to shop when I was down there,” Crecelius shares.

The designer amps up the unexpected in the powder room, where a backlit quartzite sink gives off nightclub vibes, and a Lindsey Adelman “Knotty Bubbles” pendant light is the epitome of coastal cool. Then there’s the large Bob Marley portrait that Crecelius implored the owners’ son, Derek DiClemente, to paint as a housewarming gift. “When they said their son’s an artist, I thought, ‘Yeah, so’s mine,’” Crecelius quips about her four-year-old. Sherri adds, “He put his heart and soul into this, but the idea for Bob Marley was all Alex.”

Prints of two more entertainers—Johnny Cash and Frank Sinatra—hang over the sensuous, sculptural sofa in the bourbon room, which Sherri likens to a speakeasy. The walnut-lined space with inlaid brass detailing is accessed through a black metal door boasting reeded-glass insets meant to cue the experience of entering a hotel lounge. “Dave showed me of a picture a friend’s traditional oak-paneled den,” Crecelius says. “This skews sexier.”

Upstairs in the guest bedrooms, Crecelius was influenced by Boston-based designer Rachel Reider’s work at the Lark Hotels. “We didn’t go crazy with the budget, but they’re a fun place to be,” she says. The serene primary bedroom features sea glass accents including Sklo sconces that resemble skate egg purses hung from brass hooks.

In the bath, Crecelius filled the wall above the vanity with an enormous pill-shaped medicine chest and then hung unique lighting overhead; the sculptural linear pendant reminds her of tying up a boat with a glow-y rope. Meanwhile, the floor tile transports her to standing on sandy cement at a beachside refreshment pavilion. “All of this is Alex, we just said okay; her talent is off the charts,” Sherri says. “She started as our designer and ended as our friend.”