What I love most about the Hamptons look

The Hamptons style is proving to be a popular style choice in Australia as it suits our relaxed way of living and climate.  If your renovating or planning a new build its a style that not only looks beautiful but is also lovely to live in.

Here are my five top things I love about the Hamptons look

1. Its a classic and timeless style that won't date

Incorporate timeless and classic elements in your design such as high ceilings, timber flooring, large windows with lots of natural light, shaker style cabinetry, weatherboard cladding, a soft colour palette, marble and stone as some of the key elements for the Hamptons look. For the interior the home should feature texture, soft colours, rugs, baskets, indoor plants, beautiful layered fabrics and blue and white china for that relaxed but stylish lifestyle.

Shaker style cabinetry and marble used as a splash back  - image Louise Treacy Photography

Open plan, large windows, timber flooring and a airy look are key elements to the Hamptons style

2. Country or coastal

 I love how the Hamptons look can be adapted to mix with either Modern country if you live closer to the mountains or coastal if your near the beach.  In the sunnier states of Australia you could add a pool and poolhouse for that relaxed beachy lifestyle vibe or in the colder states where we have four distinctive seasons add a stone fireplace for warmth.

Hamptons/Modern Country style using Scyon Linea Weatherboards

Stone fireplace with wood heater for warmth in the cooler states - image Louise Treacy Photography

Hamptons/Coastal style 

Just add a pool for a relaxed lifestyle in the warmer states

3. The Hampton exterior

 This is a design area that certainly shines with this look and is one of the most important elements when designing your new home. Hampton style homes have amazing street presence, you shouldn't be able to drive past without taking a second look.  Use weatherboard such as Scyon Linea to clad the exterior or incorporate it as a feature with render like we did with our own home.  Add timber windows and a beautiful large entrance door for interest. Ensure the exterior colour scheme is kept elegant using soft tones with contrast. Landscaping should be kept formal but interesting with a colour palette of green, greys and whites

Hamptons meets Modern Country  - image Louise Treacy Photography

Amity Dry's dream Hamptons home (photographed by Aaron Citti Photography)

4. The Hamptons look adapts to the Australian way of living

In Australia we are lucky to have a relaxed way of living and beautiful weather year round. The Hamptons look suits our climate and our easy way of living with features such as verandas, wide open spaces, lots of natural light and alfresco entertaining areas for those lovely summer nights.

Easy living, Hamptons style. Cladding by Scyon Walls

5. Its sophisticated but family friendly

This style definitely has the wow factor but also a sense of warmth and family friendliness.  Its classic natures lets the design stand the test of time while providing families with gorgeous entertaining spaces and easy living.

Family friendly kitchen and dining - image Louise Treacy Photography

A warm outdoor entertaining area (Amity Dry's home photographed by Aaron Citti Photography)

Love the Hamptons look? Find out more at www.scyon.com.au

All images via Pinterest unless otherwise noted


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My building story shared with Scyon Walls

Building our dream house was an incredible journey and I was honoured to share my story with Scyon Walls along with my top tips for helping you build your very own Hamptons forever home!

Read the case study on the Scyon Walls website HERE 

How I got my dream Hamptons home

The Hamptons is well known as the summer retreat of the rich and famous.  Large sprawling homes on the beachfront with gorgeous gardens and pools to match make this area of the world swoon worthy.

Over the past few years the Hamptons look has become very popular in Australia as we've started to embrace this style and adapt it to the Australian way of living.   Depending on where you live the Hamptons style could be a little more relaxed and coastal if you're near the beach, or mixed in with a modern country look.

Hamptons style can be defined as classic, elegant and sophisticated but also warm and friendly.  A soft colour palette is generally used with plenty of natural textures.  Lots of light, high ceilings, large timber windows, built in cabinetry and a timeless appeal are the key design elements to this style.

My Hamptons Story

When we purchased our half acre block of land with beautiful views, I knew the style of home that I always wanted but it was a difficult road to achieve our dream.  Four years ago, the Hamptons style was just coming into popularity, so it wasn't a case of simply finding a builder, pointing to a display home and saying 'yes please I'll take that one'.  We needed an expert to bring our Hamptons dream to life.

In designing our home  I used magazine clippings from gorgeous homes that I had saved for years, and images saved on Pinterest to communicate the style I was after.  I took a whole folder to our architect and builder, and sat with them both for hours going through the exterior and interiors, piecing the style together bit by bit for our dream house.  I think my builder had a slight heart attack during the process -  what I was designing wasn't something they had built before!

Images below are just a small example of the images I saved on Pinterst during this build - I literally had hundreds!

This home was the inspiration to the colour scheme and weatherboard details

Our land is located closer to the mountain ranges and far from the beach, so it made sense to mix the classic Hamptons style with a modern country look.

My architect was fabulous and delivered exactly what we were after - a mix of Hamptons and modern country style - a home with street presence, one that you have to stop and look at as you drive by. It has a classic and timeless appeal, high ceilings and lots of natural light.  We took into consideration the size of the land, the large 38.5 metre street frontage and situated the house and living areas to the amazing views with floor to ceiling windows.

The look of the exterior was one of the most important areas to design - I wanted it to be timeless and well built.  We mixed exterior elements to achieve the Hamptons meet modern country look, using render with weatherboard details for interest. The front elevation was staggered slightly to go in and out so it prevented our very long house looking 'ranch style'.  We also used 200 x 200 thick veranda posts to the verandas to give the house a very solid well-built feel. The colour palette was kept soft but still had contrast.

Read more - Get the Hamptons look with Sycon Linea weatherboards HERE

Our architect plans - front elevation

Back Elevation

Our house as it stands today - Images Louise Treacy Photography

Classic and timeless features such as high ceilings, large skirting boards and cornice, timber windows, solid hardwood flooring and shaker style cabinetry throughout were some of the design features we included.

Almost every element used, whether it was the style of windows and doors, to the smaller details such as cabinetry hardware had to be researched and sourced independently  - it was a lot of work but I actually enjoyed the design process immensely and the end result is a home that we adore and suits us perfectly as a family.

If you love the Hamptons style and lifestyle and are ready to build your dream home, I suggest pinning all the images of homes, rooms and features you love.  This will give you a great starting point and makes it much easier to communicate the style you are after to your builder. Next, work with an architect or building firm to design your home keeping in mind the location, size and orientation of your block.  Make sure the design of the home,  suits you and your family all the while keeping to your budget ( easier said than done!) The Hamptons style is such a classic look and  I think it's a style that will never date.

Would I do it again??  Its a good question!  I think I'd like to stay in this home until we're old and grey - its our forever home after all!