Family Home on Sullivan’s Island

Formal and Casual in an Elegant Home

Award Winning Architectural Design

This home was awarded the 2020 ArCH Design Award.

Sullivan’s Island is a wonderful place to live and raise a family.  Our clients came to us looking to design a home with classic Americana appeal, but with a coastal twist.  The design incorporates arched doorways, shingles, wood clad porch ceilings and dark trim that evoke European or tudor-style details with classic American architecture lines and masses while incorporating native materials to South Carolina including tabby work.  All the central living spaces, including the master, are on the main floor.

The family likes to throw dinner parties, so it was essential to have formal spaces for entertaining and more casual spaces for the family.  In addition to the 10+ seat large formal dining room, the screened porch at the rear of the home that overlooks the pool has ample seating for more casual dining.  When it’s just the family, there is plenty of seating at the built-in banquet table in the kitchen.  The L-shaped kitchen with deep blue-toned cabinetry and large center island that seats five was designed with entertaining and style in mind.  The custom designed metal-clad vent hood positioned over the 48-inch range and pot-filler is arguable the center piece of the kitchen.  A drink station and wet bar with ice maker flank the refrigerator, which has custom panels to match the rich navy blue cabinetry. The custom cabinetry with brass hardware continues in the butler’s pantry between the dining room and kitchen where a warming drawer is perfectly positioned.  Large windows bring in plenty of light and the blonde wide plank oak floors make the kitchen feel bright and airy even with the dark cabinetry.

Just off the kitchen you’ll find a convenient mud space with built-in cabinetry to organize and store at the ready all the items for this young family.  At the back of the house in a separate wing is a den space with vaulted ceilings perfect to keep clutter out of the main area and to be a space just for the kids in future years. A special variance was needed to grant relief to encroach 3’ into the side yard setback for this children’s wing.  An abundance of mature oak trees ran along the south side of the property. As a valuable island resource and an effective privacy screen, we could not push the home closer to the side setback on that side. Inside the house upstairs are two identical bedrooms, as well as a guest bedroom and an office.

Step outside and down the back, wide-set stairs and you’ll find another lounge area directly under the screened porch.  This pool side lounge has generous seating and dining options.  The second fireplace is clad in traditional tabby as are the support posts for the porch directly overhead.  Smooth ceilings and fans make this a comfortable spot perfect for outdoor living including sitting fireside to enjoy some fall sports on the TV.   Just off the pool area a third, back entry garage allows for easy access to extra pool and beach items.

As a home for a young professional couple, we did not have a deep budget, but we maximized the budget by prioritizing the fixtures, appliances, and trim detail with lasting, timeless appeal.  We were also able to achieve ‘style-on-a-budget’ by designing a coordinating trim package using paint grade materials.  Where possible we used high style alternatives such as porcelain floor tiles paired with marble accents.  For the guest bath we choose budget friendly white subway tile, but tiled to the ceiling to increase the drama.  We also found patterned ceramic tile that mimicked more expensive cement tiles for the high traffic mud space, laundry area, and guest bath.

Image Gallery

Sullivan's Island custom designed new construction home by Swallowtail Architecture
Large center island in new kitchen with blue cabinets and metal hood vent
Screened porch dining and living in Coastal Home
Architect: Rachel Burton, Swallowtail Architecture
Builder: Sea Island Builders