Feels Like Home

WORDS By Dana W. Todd  |  Photos by Callie WEBSTER 

A family of four, who enjoys spending summers and holidays at Kiawah Island, found a home on the marsh that suited them perfectly for their getaways. The only issue was that the home, previously a rental property, was in dire need of a total makeover to suit their family’s lifestyle. “The home had unique spatial challenges that required some creative reconfiguration,” says Katelyn Irizarry, co-founder of boutique design-build firm PRD Custom Homes & Interiors, whom the homeowners retained to transform the spaces into their new “home away from home.”

 A Boutique Team with a Hands-On Approach

The PRD Custom Homes team—Kyle Irizarry as project manager, Ben Fitzgerald as general contractor, and Katelyn Irizarry as interior designer—developed a plan to renovate the entire home. “As a boutique firm, our clients benefit from having all three company owners on their team,” Irizarry says. “We only accept a handful of projects at a time so that we can keep the level of attention high on each project’s details and the customer experience. This practice allows us the time to fully understand how the homeowners want to live in the space, so we can design and build appropriately.”

A Marshfront Getaway Gets a Fresh Start

The family was not interested in designing a typical beach home; instead, opting for a functional layout that honored their lifestyle, which included frequently hosting guests. They asked PRD Custom Homes to personalize spaces to feel like a retreat from their everyday lives. As an active family, they also needed a convenient place to stow away gear when they came in from the beach or after playing golf or tennis.

The PRD Custom Homes team reimagined the layout of the unusually shaped kitchen, transforming it into an eat-in space that functions effortlessly for everyday meals and easily converts into a welcoming dining area for entertaining. Irizarry paired a custom octagonal table designed for four, with the ability to expand and seat up to 10 guests, with a built-in bench that provides flexible additional seating. The thoughtful configuration delivers exactly what the homeowners were seeking: a kitchen that works beautifully day to day while seamlessly accommodating guests when the occasion calls for it.

Functional features further elevate the kitchen’s style and include a Ruvati workstation sink, customized in-cabinet organizers, and a custom CornuFé Range by La Cornue. Creative space planning continues around the corner, where a wall of cabinetry on the back side of the kitchen’s range wall separates the large space into an open, but cozy, bar and butler’s pantry.

Utility with a Design Moment

An unused dining room, combined with reclaimed space from a dark “stairwell to nowhere,” became a multi-purpose TV den and home office. “We take the time to get to know our clients and how they live so our design is intentional and specific to them,” says Irizarry. “We take pride in learning our clients’ lifestyles, rhythms, and aspirations to create spaces that are both stunning and deeply meaningful. For this family, we left a notepad on the kitchen countertop for a few weeks and instructed them to write down annoying issues as they arose. That’s how we found out the kitchen needed adjustment, and the existing laundry room was too tiny to work for them.”

To add more laundry and drop-zone space for the family’s beach towels, wet bathing suits, and sports equipment, the team took over an area near the front entrance. They reconfigured the space to create a new laundry room and mudroom. “At first, the family expressed concern about how the utilitarian space would feel near the front door,” Irizarry explains. “We found a solution by working with Crystalia to custom-design double fluted glass-and-iron doors at the entrance of this working room. The doors remain open for everyday use or can be closed when entertaining friends.”

While the mudroom is primed for functional use, the design team did not overlook the need for special details. A custom mosaic tile floor, laid in a plaid pattern, is uniquely wow-worthy. Color-coordinated cabinetry matches the tilework and flows with the cabinetry hues in the kitchen and bar for a consistent feel.

The team reworked the remaining floorplan as necessary. They modified a guest suite on the main level, for example, from a cramped space with an awkwardly angled ceiling into a larger, more functional bedroom and bathroom with elevated touches, such as specialty tile, thick stone countertops, and luxury fixtures.

Irizarry specified new furnishings and lighting for every room, mixing materials to make the home appear as if it had been there forever. “What makes me smile is the overall feeling of a warm hug when you walk in the door,” she says.

A Coastal Exterior Built to Last

The team also worked their magic on the home’s exterior, re-siding the entire structure with NuCedar cellular PVC shakes that look like wood but hold up infinitely longer in the salt air. A new plantation shutter on the side of the front porch provides privacy for the family’s only outdoor living space. Mahogany garage doors feature brass hardware to complement the new front door.

Designing from a Distance

PRD Custom Homes & Interiors served as the ultimate partner for these homeowners, who designed a vacation home from a distance. “Designing a retreat is a fun experience, but it can easily become daunting when you’re planning it remotely,” Irizarry says. “A ‘home away from home’ is meant to transport you out of your everyday routine and feel distinct and special. The sweet spot is creating the space to offer that escape while still allowing it to feel personal to your family and lifestyle. That’s where we shine—adding comfort with elevated details and incorporating thoughtfully chosen pieces that feel curated, but simple. Layering textures and using a paint scheme with deeper hues helps create a cozier vibe. By getting to know our clients personally, we can include a few everyday luxuries, such as a favorite coffee maker and hotel bed linens, that make them smile. These are the details that transform a vacation house into a retreat with a signature style.”

To learn more, visit prdcustomhomes.com.