Location: Jupiter Island, Florida

Architect: Christian Thomas and John Melhorn

Interior Designer: Betsy Brown

Construction Company: Thomas | Melhorn

Photographer: Nicole Franzen

Wabi-sabi, the Japanese design principle that emphasizes the perfectly imperfect, is imperative to every aspect of this home. The architecture recalls that of the Florida vernacular with materials that would be found in the surroundings, with a wood shake roof, simple lime-washed stucco and local coral stone. This house was intended to be passed from generation to generation and so, with that concept in mind, the material palette was carefully curated with the intention that it would both age in harmony with the ocean’s environment, but also exude a memory of previous experiences and generations.

The floors are raw oak planks that have been fumed and gently waxed to present the natural beauty of the material. The walls and ceilings are a composition of waxed plaster and lime cypress, creating a soft elegance welcoming of the colours and light of the oceanfront setting. The house makes an intentional angle shift, the kitchen and family room reside within a wing of the house that faces southeast rather than directly east. This shift presents a different view of the beach and ocean, looking along the coast of sea grapes and coconut palms with the tropical Atlantic beyond. The kitchen is cypress wood that has been coated in a lime wash and stripped to reveal a beautiful, aged cypress and the counter tops are limestone sourced in Romania that resemble the colour of the local beach sand.

While the south wing was designed as a large family office, the north wing is dedicated to the children’s bedrooms and the ocean terrace; a magnificent post and beam covered terrace overlooking the ocean and entire property. This balcony has been purposely orientated to capture the breeze on any day giving respite from the tropical sun. Also on the property, a guest house provides guests with a private space with uncompromising views of the ocean. The property also contains a tennis court nestled into the landscape surrounded by a gym and generator building.