"The plan started with the idea of a simple, one-room-wide design that accommodates great cross ventilation and balanced light," says Ted Flato, one of the architects for our exciting and unique Florida Idea House. Located on the Great Northwest Coast near Panama City Beach, West Bay Landing is part of RiverCamps on Crooked Creek. RiverCamps, a development of the St. Joe Land Company, occupies a 1,500-acre inland nature preserve.

"St. Joe has owned this magnificent piece of land for more than 60 years," says Kevin Fox, vice president of RiverCamps. When completed, the community will also include a swimming pool, library, fitness center, outdoor dining pavilion, boat dock, and other facilities.

The construction is by builder Paul Thrasher and his team of craftspeople from Lynn Haven, Florida. Paul used cypress and pine throughout the 2,051-square-foot home to give warmth and character to the design. "People can learn a lot from the details in this house, from paneling on interior walls to mechanisms that hold the wooden support columns to their concrete foundations," Paul says.

Designers for West Bay Landing were Susan Lovelace and Patricia Kramer. Susan says, "For the interiors of this home, we used natural elements that you would picture in the most delightful camp an adult could ever imagine."

Going Back
Vintage cottages inspired many aspects of this home, including the long front stairway, the porches, and the galvanized metal roof, which cools the house by reflecting sunlight. "The early, simple houses on the coast are great to learn from," says Ted Flato. "They were built well and built to last."

Expand With a Screened Porch Outdoor living spaces make West Bay Landing seem much larger. "We designed screened porches as well as open porches," says architect Jonathan Card. "One even has a fireplace so that in the cooler months, with the protection of the house on one side, it's still a very pleasant place to be."

A large screened porch runs from the front of the house to the rear, nearly doubling the size of the first floor. Wooden rafters and metal roofing remain exposed, emphasizing informality and regional style. Doors on this porch open to the dining room, kitchen, and master bedroom, so there is a nice flow, and the house can be open regardless of the weather. Chairs and a sofa are centered around the brick fireplace. Wooden daybeds constructed to fit single bed mattresses fill the other corner of the porch and can be used for both sitting and sleeping. For easy maintenance, the designers used colorful acrylic indoor/outdoor fabrics on the furniture.

Iron lanterns and other rustic items serve as accent pieces on the screened porch. Found objects add interest and character, says designer Susan Lovelace. "Something nostalgic is always comforting," she explains.

Creative Kitchen
The kitchen stands at the center of the house. On both kitchen and dining room walls, cypress 1 x 10s alternate with 2 1/2-inch-wide boards; an 1/8-inch gap separates them. A sheer ivory-colored finish was applied to the horizontal cypress paneling, giving a light and airy feel.

Here, the open storage is both a means of displaying cookware and an example of creative shelf design. The 1 1/2-inch-thick wooden shelves rest on metal supports and hang from pieces of 1-inch-diameter galvanized pipe. The open shelving is great for showcasing serving pieces and pottery, and guests love them because they can easily find needed items.

Use Wood on Walls and for Open Shelving

Going Upstairs
The stairway in the kitchen features photographs of Florida landscapes. On the second floor, the sloped ceiling gives a feeling of spaciousness to the hallway, laundry room, guestroom, and children's room. A collection of framed photos creates a gallery-like display in the upstairs hallway.

Fine Dining
The dining room has natural, handmade elements, which offset the clean lines of the house. The designers used a striped woven rug under the dining table, and an old-fashioned pie safe stores china and glassware. Glazed pottery for the table settings mixes in shades of red and green that are used throughout the interiors.