boutique homes dispatches

Beach House Rentals at Boutique Homes

The beach house occupies a special place in our hearts. It represents warmth, fun, relaxation, and total freedom from the daily stress of urban living, even if it’s just for the weekend. From the sunny sands of California and the rocky eastern seaboard to the balmy beaches of tropical islands and the azure Mediterranean coastline, anywhere you find a gorgeous stretch of beach and someone who appreciates it, you’ll find a beach house.

Commander’s Keep
Newfoundland, Canada
From a historical perspective, the beach house plays an important role in the American consciousness. The prospect of owning a second home specifically for the purpose of leisure became a reality for the newly prosperous middle classes of the United States in the post-World War II boom years. They suddenly had the means to hire architects to quickly design and construct small, economic summer getaway homes that could be easily closed up when not in use. The seaside vacation home swiftly became assimilated into the American dream as a must-have item, at least for a while. Images of the beach house still abound throughout our culture, inevitably tied up with thoughts of summer, family, picnics, good times, and, most significantly, sunshine.
Above all, the beach house is a construction dedicated to the worship of the sun. This is not strictly an American conception. Beach houses around the world come in all shapes and sizes, but they all share one overarching design principle: let the sunshine in. Here are a few different beach houses to give you an idea of what I mean.

Frank House designed by Andrew Geller
Ocean Bay Park, Fire Island, NY, 1958

Geller was inspired by the Franks’ pictures of the Mayan Ruins at Uxmal, Mexico to design this glazed pyramid, set among the rolling sand dunes of Ocean Bay Park. The result is a house with panoramic views of the Atlantic ocean and the Great South Bay.

Villa Miramar
Theoule-sur-Mer, Cote d’Azur, France

Marion Davies Estate designed by Julia Morgan
Santa Monica, California, 1926

Newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst commissioned Hearst Castle architect Julia Morgan to design this 34-bedroom Georgian beach estate for his mistress, actress Marion Davies. Once reserved for luminaries such as Greta Garbo and Clark Gable, the estate is now open to the public as the Annenberg Community Beach House.

Casa Moderna
Todos Santos, Mexico
As you can see, the form taken by the beach house changes radically based on the desires of the owners, as well as the coastline itself. Just as the beaches of the world differ in climate and topography, beach house architecture must adapt to the needs of the environment – or possibly get blown away by a thunderous storm in certain regions. However, no matter where in the world it may be located, the beach house begins and ends with the desire to create a seaside residence within steps of a stunning strand; the perfect place to soak up the sunshine in the summer and to dream about in the midst of a bitter winter. So dedicated to the worship of the sun is the beach house that Arts & Architecture Magazine astutely noted in 1955: “Most vacation houses are designed to work, roughly, like a camera: a box, glazed on one side, with the glass wall pointed at the view.”

YL Residence
Koh Samui, Thailand

In short, the proper beach house is made up of sweeping sea views, fresh breezes, and good times, all illuminated up in the warmth of the sun. Though actually owning a second beach home isn’t in the cards for most, finding the perfect beach house rental is as easy as clicking here. MT.

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