Welcome to Coastal Granddaughter Headquarters

There’s something about having a space that feels completely like you that changes the way you want to work.

For a long time, I had been dreaming about creating a real home for Coastal Granddaughter, not a traditional office, but a place where I could write, edit photographs, dream up new ideas, package books, plan what comes next, and surround myself with all the things that inspire me.

So I finally did it.

Welcome to Coastal Granddaughter Headquarters.

I wanted it to feel collected, not decorated

If you’ve followed me for any length of time, you know I’m not particularly interested in rooms that look perfect. I like spaces that feel personal. A little unexpected. Layered with things that mean something.

That became the starting point for this room.

I wanted it to have a coastal feeling without becoming a “coastal-themed” office. No matching sets. No room full of navy stripes and anchors. Instead, I wanted to mix the Cape and the Islands with pieces I already loved, family photographs, vintage finds, art, books, plants and plenty of color.

Basically, I wanted the room to feel the way Coastal Granddaughter feels to me.

Nostalgic. Personal. Colorful. A little quirky. And never too serious.

It started with the wallpaper

The pink crane wallpaper was already in this room before when it was our guest bedroom. 

I knew I wanted wallpaper in the room, but I didn't want the predictable blue-and-white coastal look. I thought about changing it, I still may, but the dusty pink immediately makes the room feel warmer and more interesting, while the birds still give it that subtle waterside connection.

Against all the white trim and natural light, it became the perfect backdrop for everything else I wanted to layer into the room.

And yes, pink can absolutely be coastal.

Maybe it should be more often.

Mixing old, new and sentimental

One of my favorite things about the room is that very little of it feels brand new.

The big wooden writers table I use as my desk gives the room some weight and history. The vintage credenza brings in another beautiful warm wood tone. Then I layered in brass birds, shells, art, books, family photographs and little treasures I've collected along the way.

There’s a vintage Martha’s Vineyard pennant hanging next to family photos and a pink-and-white life preserver (from my launch party). There are old coastal paintings mixed into the gallery wall. A vintage-style roadside sign points “This Way to the Coast.”

None of it necessarily matches.

That’s exactly why I love it.

I think the best rooms tell you something about the person who lives there before they ever say a word.

And, of course, the book

Seeing stacks of Coastal Granddaughter in this room may be my favorite part.

This book began as such a personal project, a photographic love letter to a place that shaped me. Now it sits in the middle of a room where I'm figuring out what Coastal Granddaughter becomes next.

That feels pretty special.

One copy sits upright among my favorite art and photography books, held by a brass shell. More copies are stacked beneath a plant. On the other side of the room, there's a little Coastal Granddaughter display filled with postcards and pieces from this whole adventure.

It makes the room feel less like an office and more like a tiny physical world built around the brand.

A room for ideas

My desk itself is intentionally simple: a giant old wood table, my laptop, pens, scissors, notebooks and whatever project I'm currently working on.

And plants. Lots of plants.

I wanted room to spread out, to pull photographs, packaging, paper samples and ideas onto the table without worrying about keeping everything perfectly styled.

This is a working room.

There will be boxes on the floor. There will be piles of paper. There will probably be 14 ideas happening at once. Just ask my husband.

But when I look up, I'm surrounded by reminders of where all of this started.

The details are always my favorite part

A scalloped lampshade. A tiny brass lobster. A shell bookend. Hot-pink art books. A little vintage sailboat dish. Fresh pink flowers sitting on an old book.

Those things aren't necessary.

They're also kind of the whole point.

I've always believed that a home should be filled with things that make you happy, even if they don't make sense to anyone else. The objects we pick up on trips, inherit from family, find at antique stores or simply fall in love with are what give a room its personality.

That idea has always been at the heart of my photography, too.

It's the little things that tell the story.

A place for all the things I collect

One thing I knew I wanted was a giant inspiration board, a place where I could pin photographs, postcards, artwork, magazine pages and random little things I find that spark an idea.

Right now, it’s already filling up with pieces of Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and the Coastal Granddaughter world. There’s no real system to it, which is probably exactly how it should be. I can add to it after a trip, tear something out of a magazine, tack up a photograph or save a color combination I don't want to forget.

Next to it is one of my favorite things left over from my launch party.  A handmade “This Way to the Coast” signpost, complete with Coastal Granddaughter pieces and little bits of coastal inspiration.

Together, they make this corner feel like a living mood board for the brand.

And I think that gets closer to what I wanted this entire room to be—not just a pretty office, but a place to collect ideas and see where they lead.