The Brewsters at Home in Little Compton, RI - Remodelista
Dara and Dan Brewster share a serious wanderlust: Both longtime media veterans, they’ve cumulatively logged visits to more than 100 countries over the years. Photography by Nathan Fried Lipski of Nate Photography, except as noted. And most of that travel of late has been on behalf of Dara Artisans, the online emporium they launched nine months ago to showcase the work of unsung craftspeople the world over. The house sits on the coast of Sakonnet Point overlooking Newport. Photograph by Nicole Franzen. Above L: Roses climb on the porticoed main entrance, which opens into the kitchen and offers views clear out to the ocean. The salt air is so hard on wood that we have to replace them every five to seven years.” Above R: Place markers from the couple’s wedding made from ocean-tumbled rocks collected in front of the house and hand labeled by Dara. The living room has its original wood paneling and floor. Dara and Dan bought the wall-mounted candleholders at a flea market. Above L: Dried hydrangeas from the rows of bushes that border the driveway. The black-and-white ceramics are Acoma Pottery from New Mexico, a Dara Artisans specialty; the black on black pot is from the San Ildefonso Pueblo. Over the course of a winter, Dan, Graham, and Joe converted what had been a dog kennel/shed (see first photo) into a 600-square-foot winterized guest cottage (where Dan and Dara spend weekends in the off season). Designed in collaboration with Greg Crozier, the compact kitchen, shown here, has a Sub Zero glass-doored fridge, Fisher Pakel dishwasher drawers, and floorboards made from beams that came out of a nearby Fall River textile mill. The master bedroom in the airy attic has its original exposed rafters, beadboard paneling, and built-in drawers. The windows offer a prime ocean view. All the bed linens are from Matouk, a third-generation family-owned company in Fall River, Massachusetts, and a Remodelista favorite. The master bedroom’s paneled door has Shaker peg rail hung with scarves from Gautemala and India. The remodeled second-floor bathroom has a refurbished clawfoot tub and new paneling (that came from elsewhere in the house, buried under a layer of plastic paneling). The pale green-blue walls are Benjamin Moore Sea Foam. Photograph by Nicole Franzen. Above L: A local metal worker made the chrome shower curtain frame. Above R: An antique subway light (from a since-closed architectural findings shop in New York) hangs over a Kohler sink. The house has its original protected dining room–”it’s incredibly windy here, so all of our outdoor meals are here,” says Dara. Wooden fish from one of the Brewster’s trips to Guatemala decorate the space. The table and chairs are from Smith & Hawken. Above L: Dara with just-picked corn from their local produce place, Walker’s.