Nearly All the Furniture in This Charming 100-Year-Old Beach Bungalow Is Vintage
Name: Sydney Beach Zester, my husband, and our dog
Location: Carolina Place — Wilmington, North Carolina
Type of home: Bungalow
Size: 1,200 square feet
Years lived in: 1 year, own
Tell us a little (or a lot) about your home and the people who live there: My husband and I bought our beach bungalow, who we lovingly call “The Bishop House” after the original owner, Ms. Ida Bishop, in July 2021. Like so many others, we had a real “what the heck do we want out of life” kind of reckoning during the pandemic, which ultimately had us packing up our things in the Blue Ridge Mountains and heading across the state to our little historic, coastal town. I work full time in public health and as an artist and my husband works for a tech startup. We both went remote during the pandemic, which gave us the flexibility to really live wherever we wanted. I’ve always dreamed of owning a historic home and so we ended up buying our little bungalow in the Historic Carolina Place neighborhood in Wilmington, NC. She turns 100 years old this year! We’re going to throw her a birthday party.
I’m an artist and have a real desire to make everything in my home art if I can. Truly anything that has a function, I want it to be happy, wonky, or fun. We have an amazing pottery collection that I love slowly adding to. I also collect textiles — I love how quickly they can warm up a space.
Describe your home’s style in 5 words or less: Joyful, Bright, Peaceful, Safe
What is your favorite room and why? Probably our living room. We have our Katie Pumphrey painting as the focal point and an incredible vintage Beni Mguild rug. All of the furniture is thrifted or vintage — something I’m very proud of. You can also see the hallway arches from this room and we 100 percent bought the house for the arches.
What’s the last thing you bought (or found!) for your home? I just found some new pottery at an estate sale that I’m very excited about!
Any advice for creating a home you love? Don’t be afraid of color. Ask yourself why you like certain trends and then pull those elements into your home without copy and pasting the full trend. Textiles and books make any room feel warm.
This submission’s responses and photos were edited for length/size and clarity.
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