For Elizabeth and Frank Queally and
their three teenage children, days on
the beach are all about being outside.
Because they prefer riding the waves
to fussing over precious furniture, the
family relied on their close friend,
interior designer Carrie Miller, to help
create a low-maintenance design that
brings ocean hues and motifs indoors—
the next best thing when the Queallys
don’t have sand between their toes.
Miller selected easy-care furniture
and accessories such as painted wood
and wicker tables and chairs. Sofas are
all slipcovered in washable cotton.
Rugs, like the durable sisal in the living
room and the patterned wool version in
the family room, camouflage dirt and
stains with their texture and pattern.
“The Queallys love bright and
cheerful color,” Miller says. Coral and
pale blue are the couple’s favorite
shades; at least one of those hues
appears in every room, along with
yellow, pale green, and beige.
Seaside and nautical prints appear
throughout. To avoid crossing into
kitsch, only a few ocean-inspired
patterns punctuate each room.
Elizabeth, who is from North
Carolina, adores the look. “I grew up in
Southern houses with loads of color, so
this just feels right,” she says.
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JUNE 2008 BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS
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The hub of the Queallys’ home is the open
layout of the kitchen, breakfast nook, and
family room. Elizabeth loves-,to casually
entertain in this room because everyone is
within talking distance.
