When a Massachusetts couple moved into this 2019-built, nearly 9,000-square-foot Royal Harbor home in Naples, they called on Fort Myers designer Renée Gaddis to update the interiors. The couple wanted the waterfront home to better align with their tastes, which skew more Old Florida by way of Palm Beach than traditional Southwest Florida coastal.
With splashes of color and cheeky pattern mixing, the interior preaches timeless style. It’s easy to envision the home as a set for photographer Slim Aarons’ vintage images of Lilly Pulitzer and other jet-set-era socialites. Much of the heavy lifting of the redesign came through new paint colors for existing cabinetry, powerful wallpapers and new furniture selections that blend eclectic shapes with classic styling. “The homeowners were open to bright colors and fun patterns,” Gaddis says. From blue and green woven fabric for the sofa in the upstairs lounge to a cobalt blue front door (and matching kitchen island), the design is rooted in confidence.
Gaddis likes to use large, wild prints to channel the Palm Beach aesthetic. Additional bold choices include the great room’s snake-covered, floor-to-ceiling Schumacher Giove drapery and pillows. The serpent pattern repeats on the wallpaper in a guest bathroom. “When I first started working in design, I was taught to layer a large print with a small print then a solid as the base—that is no longer the rule of thumb,” she says, adding that modern preferences favor texture over pattern, so it’s more common to see texture changes infused with pops of solid colors. In this interior, Gaddis employs both but emphasizes pattern mixing. “It takes experience and talent to be able to successfully layer bold patterns and textures,” she says. “The result is so refreshing.”
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Photography by Mali Azima
Designer Renée Gaddis worked with the owners of a 2019-built, 8,672-square-foot Naples Royal Harbor home on updates to better match their Old Florida-by-way-of-Palm Beach style.
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Photography by Mali Azima
Bringing in a natural element, Gaddis incorporates furnishings with jute and rattan rope components in the great room via accent chairs and nesting tables situated over a custom-fitted, patterned rug in shades of blue and white. A glass and acrylic cocktail table keeps the space light. Gaddis wrapped the fireplace and media wall in Phillip Jeffries grasscloth, juxtaposing the natural element with an indigo-painted interior for the surrounding white bookcases.
The color palette in the home’s library and theater—masterfully flanked by bookshelves repainted blue—presents another triumph of unabashed hues. Large print, yellow-and-white gingham pattern wallpaper (Schumacher Traverse Yellow) stands out in the space. Meanwhile, a smaller patterned valance (Schumacher Crusoe Ikat Yellow) is busy yet balanced over a window bench in the same blue as the bookcases. Gaddis continues her fearless color choices with a Dash & Albert’s woven zigzag rug in Safety Net Green. The designer’s unconventional decision to hang art over the bookcase shelving, obscuring the objects behind it, raises the room’s energy.
Nearby, the expansive primary suite uses a blue tone-over-tone process, imbuing the space with a sense of calm. Details such as the wallpaper’s pattern (Phillip Jeffries’ Woven Wicker in Cool Blue), muted floor-to-ceiling, foliage-print drapery framing French doors leading to the pool area, and various avant-garde accessories—like the updated Made Goods Nima peacock chair—bring whimsy.
Photography by Mali Azima
Photography by Mali Azima
Photography by Mali Azima
Photography by Mail Azima
Photography by Mali Azima
Photography by Mali Azima
Photography by Mali Azima
Photography by Mail Azima
Upstairs, the spacious game room and lounge have leaf-toned furnishings, a serving bar and a Highland House ping pong table, which opens onto an expansive upper balcony. The home also has a mother-in-law wing with a separate kitchenette, a wet bar, a wine room and six guest rooms.
In the outdoor living room and pool, the style is decidedly less Palm Beach. The alfresco area fully embraces the Naples lifestyle with a zero-edge pool, raised spa, sun shelf, glass tile waterline, fire bowls and quintessential views, which, for the homeowners, brings together the best of both coasts.
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Photography by Mali Azima
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Photography by Mali Azima
Photography by Mali Azima
Blue decorated outdoor living space
Outside, the vivid blues of the kitchen inform fabric selections, creating a harmonious visual flow. The Naples lifestyle is celebrated in this space with a zero-edge pool, raised spa, sun shelf, glass tile waterline, fire bowls and quintessential water views.
Photography by Mali Azima