“I didn’t grow up in a house on the water, but I did grow up on the beach,” writes Phoebe Howard in the introduction to her new book, The Waterfront House: Living with Style on the Coast (Abrams, 2025). Living just three doors down from the ocean in south Florida shaped much of Howard’s design philosophy: “The houses I saw on the beach—with their patios and porches; their wooden walls indoors and out, often painted a cool white; and their palettes pulled from their oceanfront settings—all very much influenced how I design today,” she says. “I look for [prints and materials] that echo the subtle shimmer of sun on water, the movement of waves across the sea, and the patterns and textures those waves leave in their wake. Every time I look at the water, I find new inspiration.”

From coastal California to Howard’s roots in Florida and up the eastern seaboard to New England, waterfront style has prevailed as a timeless, calming aesthetic. “There’s nothing I love more than a soothing color scheme of pale blues and light greens set off by the whites, ivories, and other neutrals you see in the shades of seashells, dried seagrass, driftwood, and the sand that surrounds them,” Howard explains. Of course, waterfront design choices need to be practical, too: houses on the water must adapt to the elements, sandy feet, and limited storage space. Howard argues this is because “waterfront houses are resort-like retreats—designed for a crowd and for a good time. Party houses, in the most sophisticated sense, these homes are meant not just to be lived in. They get to be enjoyed by the generations of families who call them home—plus the friends, neighbors, and assorted other guests who are always stopping by.”

Melhorn Architecture and Construction designed the formal living room of this Florida home, situated on the Intracoastal Waterway, with light-filled spaces, large windows, and glass doors that blur the lines between indoors and out. Howard curated both antiques and new furnishings to complement the room’s palette of pale blues and neutral hues, which, paired with natural materials and soft textures, allow the water views to command attention. Wood paneling in the entryway extends to the ceiling of the living room, and Howard chose to mix stripes with medallion and lattice prints atop a flat-weave rug that’s easy to keep clean, no matter how many sandy feet walk across it. Design your own waterfront-style home with these nine finds.