TL;DR
Get furniture and decor delivered free — and shop member deals
- Fast, free delivery on millions of items
- Access to Prime Big Deal Days deals on October 6–7
- Prime Video, Amazon Music and more included
House Beautiful profiled textile designer and artist Serena Dugan’s renovated cottage on Shelter Island, New York. The home’s expansive porch, with two hanging beds and rocking chairs, is a standout, while the project also included major foundation work and a rebuilt fireplace.
House Beautiful has profiled textile designer and artist Serena Dugan’s renovated cottage on Shelter Island, New York, where a broad front porch with two hanging beds and rocking chairs is among the home’s defining spaces. The renovation preserved the cottage’s character while addressing major foundation repairs and rebuilding its original stone fireplace, according to the magazine’s report.
Dugan first spotted the Adirondack-style cottage as a small mark on a Zillow map while considering an East Coast vacation home. Based in California, she asked a local friend to visit the property. After he urged her to see it in person, she booked a flight. She recalled arriving at dusk and being struck by the fireplace, porch and view of the water at Coecles Harbor.
The condition of the house called for more than cosmetic updates. Dugan told House Beautiful that the structure needed major foundation repair, and the fireplace she admired had to be completely reconstructed. The rebuilt fireplace uses local stone and was made to match the original, the magazine reported. The source does not specify the construction timeline or the contractors involved.
The porch was designed around its generous proportions. Dugan said she wondered whether a hanging porch bed would fit; she ultimately installed two hanging beds, alongside rocking chairs. Inside, the renovation opened the family room to the kitchen to create a larger shared living area. The home also includes textiles and wallcoverings from Dugan’s own line, vintage furnishings and contemporary fixtures. House Beautiful’s report presents the choices as a mix of investment pieces and lower-cost details, including matchstick blinds that Dugan said cost about $29 per window.
A Porch Designed for Gathering
The porch is more than a striking feature in the home tour: it reflects Dugan’s stated aim of making the house a place where guests could gather and create memories. The hanging beds and rocking chairs make the outdoor space usable for sitting and resting, while its scale gives it a central role in the design.
The project also illustrates a practical distinction between structural restoration and interior design. Foundation repairs and fireplace reconstruction addressed the home’s condition; materials, furnishings and lighting shaped its appearance and everyday use. For readers considering an older vacation property, the report offers a clear reminder that an appealing feature may sit alongside significant repair needs. It does not provide renovation costs, so it cannot establish what a similar project would require financially.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
From Harbor Cottage to Family Home
Dugan described the house as a place to present her creative work and gather pieces she had made and collected. She told House Beautiful, “I really saw this house as an investment back into me.” That aim is reflected in the use of her own fabric and wallcovering designs alongside vintage furniture, art and pieces from other makers.
The interior choices balance appearance with signs of use. In the kitchen, Dugan selected Calacatta Macchia Vecchia marble, despite the possibility it could stain, saying she was comfortable with the stone developing a patina. In the living room, performance fabrics were chosen for the sofas; Dugan said, “The house is meant to be lived in.” The report also describes a pantry whose patterned tile floor and colors were selected to relate to the adjoining kitchen.
House Beautiful’s piece is a design-focused home tour, not a real-estate listing or a construction account. It documents the renovation through room descriptions and Dugan’s comments, but gives no purchase price, project budget, precise completion date or detailed account of the work process.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
Costs and Construction Details Omitted
The House Beautiful report does not state when the renovation began or finished, how much it cost, how long the foundation work took, or which professionals completed it. It also does not give engineering or permitting details. Those omissions mean the tour cannot establish the full scale or cost of the work beyond Dugan’s account that substantial foundation repair and a complete fireplace rebuild were needed.
The source provides no independent assessment of the property’s structural condition, and its description of the porch as especially appealing is part of a design feature rather than a measured comparison with other homes. The phrase “best porch” in the supplied headline is promotional and subjective, not an independently verified ranking.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
No Further Project Update Listed
The source material offers a completed-home tour and does not identify a forthcoming renovation phase, sale or public event. No next milestone is confirmed. Readers seeking further details on the home or the project would need additional reporting or information from Dugan and the people involved in the renovation.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
Key Questions
Where is Serena Dugan’s renovated cottage?
The cottage is on Shelter Island, New York, in a corner of Coecles Harbor, according to House Beautiful.
What makes the porch a focus of the home tour?
The expansive front porch has two hanging beds and rocking chairs. Dugan said she considered whether a hanging bed would fit and decided that two suited the space.
What major repairs did the cottage need?
Dugan told House Beautiful that the house needed major foundation repair and a complete reconstruction of its stone fireplace. The rebuilt fireplace uses local stone and was made to match the original.
How much did the renovation cost?
The report does not give a total renovation cost. It mentions some individual design choices, including matchstick blinds Dugan said cost about $29 per window, but that figure is not the project budget.
Is “the best porch” an independently verified ranking?
No. The wording is a subjective headline. House Beautiful’s report describes the porch but does not provide a ranking or comparison with other homes.
Source: rss
Fall Picks
fall essentials
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
