A Northern California couple’s search for a vacation home near their older daughter at the University of South Carolina ended with an empty lot and a new beginning on Sullivan’s Island. “When I drive onto the island, things just kind of melt away,” says the husband.
While their initial plan was to buy and renovate a home, the competitive real estate market in 2021 pushed the couple outside their comfort zone. After losing a bidding war on a house on I’On Avenue, the husband happened to drive past an empty lot on the quieter end of the street. A World War II bunker cloaked in maritime forest sat between the property and the ocean, creating a natural buffer. “I called our agent and said, ‘Hey, what’s going on with that lot?’” he recalls. The answer was simple: It had just listed; pay the asking price, and it’s yours. They jumped on it.
The couple’s connection to Sullivan’s stretches back decades. The husband, a Maryland native, attended USC and spent weekends on the island with fraternity brothers from Charleston. His wife, who grew up in New Jersey, came to know the Lowcountry later, while visiting their daughter in college. During the pandemic, those trips stretched into weeks at a time. “It was one of the silver linings of COVID,” she says. Before long, the family of five’s center of gravity began to shift 3,000 miles east.
They hired architect Beau Clowney, Structures Building Company, and Allison Elebash Interior Design to craft a home with a classic cottage feel, featuring six bedrooms, a wine cellar worthy of their Napa connections, and ample space for family and friends. What followed was an almost three-year journey—more than a year of planning and 16 months of construction—managed largely from the West Coast via weekly Zoom calls with their design team.
From the start, the husband knew he wanted Clowney as the architect. “We just like his aesthetic. It really fits the island,” he says. And it was Clowney’s suggestion to bring on a designer early that proved transformative. “If there was one piece of advice I have for anybody building a house, that’s what I would say,” notes the husband.
Enter Allison Elebash, a Charleston-based interior designer who was their eyes and hands on the ground. The almost 4,300-square-foot house was completed in March 2024, just in time for their older daughter’s graduation from USC.
From the street, the home reads like a classic Sullivan’s Island cottage that has evolved over generations, a deliberate effect achieved through a mix of wood siding, stucco, and shingle cladding, topped with a metal roof on the main house and shingles on the office wing.
Landscaping by Wertimer + Cline softens the brick-paved entry courtyard. Inside, the front door opens into a light-filled foyer with herringbone hardwood floors and shiplap ceilings. Straight ahead, a wet bar painted in a bold blue with brass and glass shelving sets the tone for a home built for entertaining.
Elebash anchored the interiors in a neutral palette punctuated by moments of warmth and color. “We wanted it to feel appropriate to Sullivan’s and relaxed,” she says. “From spending time as a family to their kids entertaining friends, we thought about how they were going to gather in the spaces.”
The open-plan living area revolves around a fireplace flanked by windows that pour light across the room. Exposed wood beams overhead and a modern chandelier balance Lowcountry ease with West Coast sophistication. A pair of swivel chairs and a small cocktail table sit between the main seating area and the kitchen—positioned so guests can turn toward the television during a game or pivot toward the island while someone cooks.
The kitchen continues the neutral palette: off-white cabinetry, brass hardware, marble countertops and backsplash, and a walnut-wrapped island illuminated by globe pendants by Urban Electric. A pantry with a concealed washer and dryer leads to a back hallway connecting to the elevator and stairway.
Off the living area, a den wrapped in cypress paneling offers a plush retreat. A burnt orange sectional, Eames lounge chair, and double-sided fireplace shared with the living room make it the most intimate space in the house. “This is my favorite room. It’s so cozy,” the husband says.
The dining room sits just off the living area, where patterned wallpaper provides a subtle contrast to the shiplap that runs through the communal spaces. A custom table expands to seat up to 12 near sliding doors, allowing the party to overflow onto a large, covered porch. And tucked into a corner of the dining room, visible through a wall of glass, is the wine cellar.
This 800-bottle, climate-controlled room with floor-to-ceiling oak racking and a library ladder was the husband’s one “nonnegotiable.” The couple, who have run the Longfellow winery in Napa for 25 years, are avid collectors. “Any house needed to have some sort of wine feature,” he says. “They’re not super common here, so I was a little nervous, but the team did a great job. It turned out so much better than I expected.”
A long hallway leads from the dining room to the primary suite, where an alcove wrapped in cypress frames a window seat overlooking the garden. The bedroom leans into natural textures—grass-cloth wallpaper, a rattan headboard, and a wood-paneled ceiling with detailed millwork. In the en-suite bath, a freestanding tub sits before a fluted marble accent wall, its soft green-gray veining echoed in the sage-toned vanity.
Upstairs, a spacious lounge serves as their adult children’s domain. Three bedrooms and three bathrooms branch off from this central hangout, each decorated in serene neutrals with pops of earthy green and soft blues. Clowney intentionally kept the bedrooms compact. “When you’re at the beach, you’re really only sleeping in your room,” says Elebash. “It’s much more about the communal spaces.”
Below the elevated house, Clowney transformed the ground floor into a finished living area. An outdoor kitchen, dining room, and lounge are shaded beneath a wood-paneled ceiling, and a large pool surrounded by chaise lounges and a sauna create a resort-like atmosphere. The garages provide space to store two cars and a golf cart, an essential mode of transportation on the island. “I love the lifestyle here,” says the wife. “We get in our golf cart and go down to Middle Street for dinner or over to the grocery store on Isle of Palms.”
For now, the family visits as often as schedules allow—during fall football weekends; parents’ weekends at USC, where their younger daughter will attend this fall; and longer stretches whenever work permits. The wife, who works in finance, especially appreciates the proximity to downtown Charleston. “You can be there in just 15 minutes,” she says. Eventually, the island house will become the family’s primary gathering place, after trading their Bay Area home for a smaller spot in San Francisco.
“Despite the long process of building the house, it was fun, and we’re really happy with how it turned out,” the husband says. “Just knowing that everything in this house is how we wanted it.” But the real pleasure comes from the island itself, where life slows down the moment you cross the Ben Sawyer Bridge.
