Feel like daydreaming a little?
This house was built last year on the coast of Rhode Island as a summer retreat for one lucky family, who named it “Peace of the Rock.”
The builders and architects are Polhemus Savery DaSilva.
Their website says: “The South Coast Rhode Island neighborhood in which Peace of the Rock is situated is largely flat — a coastal plain punctuated by large glacial erratics.”
“The house has a playful attitude appropriate for a family that uses it for summer vacations.”
How dreamy would it be to have a place like this to retreat to with your family each year?
Not sure I’d be able to leave it again in the fall, though.
Older homes in the neighborhood are generally smaller, gambrel-roofed cottages, the architects explain, whereas the newer homes being built in the area tend to be much bigger and more elaborate.
These clients, however, “were not interested in something large and showy.”
“They wanted a comfortable family home more in keeping with the vernacular cottages that give their neighborhood a character of laid-back, friendly, fun.”
The house is around 2,500 square feet.
I’d love to know what’s hiding behind that skinny door next to the stairs:
“A second floor deck spans between the pavilions and offers ocean views.”
Thanks to Polhemus Savery DaSilva for sharing this project with us!
Visit the their website for more photos and information about Peace of the Rock.
Photography by Brian Vanden Brink.
Awwwww . . . so beautiful! Thanks for sharing! Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend, Julia! 🙂
Thanks, Maryellen! You, too! 🙂
Wow, what a beauty! I love everything about that house. I love that it is not too large, really big homes overwhelm me. You are so funny, I would also like to know what ‘s behind that skinny door!
Hi Julia I would be happy just sitting out on that beautiful deck looking out towards the ocean and I would love to know what’s behind the skinny door. Thank you for sharing there is a lot to take in but it sure looks like a holiday home. Enjoy your Memorial Day weekend. Regards Esther from Sydney.
This place is fabulous! I thought it was funny that it was described almost as a modest little beach house, when in reality it’s 2500 square feet of tasteful luxury. I love that the light fixtures in the upstairs hallway don’t match.
STOP IT. This is absolute perfection. Heaven on earth. Dream house. Need I go on?????
This would be my dream cottage too!
Beautiful house and location. I love the Rhode Island coast. This looks bigger than 2500 sq. ft., especially on the outside. What a great place to spend the summer!
I thought so, too, Laura. I was surprised it was only 2,500 square feet!
I agree. There is not a chance that house is 2500 sq ft. Maybe for “tax” purposes…
Swoon! Love everything about it, but especially that fireplace! Gorgeous colors.
I must point out that this “cottage” is bigger and nicer than my one-and-only house, though. Oh, to be wealthy.
Yeah….I too kinda laughed about “not wanting it to be showy”. At 2500 sq. ft, in my book that’s a pretty big house 😉
It’s gorgeous, but yeah… in whose world is that not “large and showy?” And where do I sign up? 😉
What a beautiful river rock fireplace and all those paintings of ships are great, too. The weathervane looks like a whale maybe, cute….thanks for sharing Julia!
how beautiful I agree I wouldn’t be able to leave and I don’t think I’d change thing
What a beautiful home! And what a perfect location! I was born in that area, and after we moved from there our parents would take us (5 girls!) back every summer for two weeks vacation. But not at a house like this! We always stayed at Burlingame State Park and tent-camped. Great memories!
Ooh, nice. I love the colors they chose, and the little windows up in the eaves. I can just picture kids playing hide and seek behind that mysterious skinny door, just because they could. 🙂
Belle maison!!
Beautiful home! And maybe that skinny door is where the homeowners stash their large flat screen TV (turned on its side, of course) since there doesn’t appear to be a television sitting out in any of the rooms! 🙂
Maybe you’re onto something there, Karen! Ha. 🙂
We are getting ready to demolish and rebuild our fireplace, this fireplace is a great inspiration. Just needs a little Gaynell tweak!
You have to send me photos when you get yours done, Gaynell. Would love to see what you do with it! 🙂
will do, before and after!
What a wonderful house!!!! I loved all the attention to detail! I especially loved the cutouts on the shutters and that terrific weathervane! I will always love shingle style homes! I hope you and your family have a fun Memorial Day weekend, Julia!
Thanks, Lisa! Same to you! 🙂
I dream of having a place like this all the time. I couldn’t imagine having this as a second home. Wow! My guess for that cute, skinny door is storage for surfboards, skimboards, etc. ??
Love the idea of storing surfboards in that skinny closet. Why not? 🙂
Oh the view! Seriously though, my heart started beating a little faster when I saw the lighting fixtures in the butler’s pantry? and the front entry? I’m seriously crushing right now! I’m going to take a peek at the link and hopefully find out 🙂
Every inch is perfection, I love all of Polhemus Savery DaSilva homes.
I do, too, Sue. I’m a big fan of their work!
Sigh, that right there is my dream house (not even holiday house – just regular house!). So beautiful. I love every single little bit of it!
I love R.I., we lived there for awhile, and have rented houses for several years. I would love to see the floor plan, I went on the website and it was not there. We are building a similar sized house on a lake in Mn. and I would like to see how I could work a butler’s pantry in!! Ours would be a walkout to the lake.
Shout out to the cute puppy! Beautiful seaside cottage with nice nautical details. It really evokes that peaceful easy feeling. Skinny closet guess: brooms/swiffer. (For cute puppy cleanup).
I know, I love a good puppy-in-the-house photo. And a Swiffer closet would be a nice thing to have!
Perfection! I love every square inch of it. That one is a beauty Julia!!
This is some house. That backyard and the screened in porch? Yeah, I would be all set for summer there.Heck, winter too!!
Gorrrrrgeeeous! I’d live there forever 🙂 Hey, if that was my little ‘secret door’ by the stairway, I’d have designed it for an old-fashioned broom closet. Always handy to have a broom on hand at the beach 😉 Although it might just be a doorway for hiding an electrical panel or something….or maybe just a fun secret doorway for visitors to guess at 😉
My heart skipped a beat when I saw the ‘teaser’ picture of the outside of this house. I can’t find one thing wrong with this house. It is sheer perfection!!
“These clients, however, ‘were not interested in something large and showy.'”
This house sure looks large to me! Trying to wrap my head around the fact that this house is only 2500 sq feet. My 2500 sq ft ranch seems like it would fit in only the first floor of this house!
What a beautiful home! This is really a gorgeous place. The main house provides a great space for meals and gatherings, and the cottages provide privacy for individual guests. I wish it was my dream house.
Thanks Julia for another beautifully done feature on one of our houses, and thank you all for the lovely comments. We are very proud of the design and construction we did for this wonderful client on their spectacular site. While size is relative, most of the new houses in this neighborhood are much bigger. We think the compact form and floor plan was just right for contemporary living and also for relating to the historic vernacular in the area. The thin little closet doesn’t take up much space but provides some very useful storage and, apparently, a vehicle for imaginative thinking in everyone who sees it!
Fell in love with the house!
Congrats on a great blog!
This is a lovely home. And yes by Quonochontaug, standards it straddles the line between the elaborate mansions and the tiny coastal cottages. It’s a lovely area, unfortunately most of these places are owned by people in NYC, as it’s an easier commute up 95 than getting out the LIE in the summer. It’s awfully quiet out there about 8/9 months of the year.
New subscriber! Love the photos!!
Thanks, Jaclyn! Glad you’re here! 🙂
Would love to know the wall color. Looks like SW sea salt.