James Stork and Joe Henry’s Cedar Lawn home brings a little slice of Miami’s South Beach style to the island. Colorful Murano glass spears, left, create an airy divider between the foyer and the dining room, which features a large, antique model airplane as part of a sculpture by Houston artist Matt Messinger. Photo by Jennifer Reynolds

Home in Cedar Lawn dazzles with bright whites, vivid colors

Tucked between Galveston’s East and West beaches, there’s a tangy slice of South Beach — as in Miami. [Read more…]

Don and Sandy Gartman sit in the living room of their Dickinson home. The open-concept living area provides plenty of elbow room for family and friends when the Gartmans entertain. Photo by Stuart Villanueva

Furniture, pieces collected through years of marriage create inviting home

After living and working in Santiago del Estero, Argentina for eight years, Don and Sandy Gartman returned to Texas City in 2002 along with 18 custom-made pieces of furniture. As time went by and Don Gartman started thinking about retirement, they decided to give themselves a present. They bought a ¾-acre wooded lot in Dickinson and built a new house. [Read more…]

Frank Tamborella’s nearly 4,000-square-foot Nassau Bay home features a panoramic view of Clear Lake with decks surrounding all four floors. Photo by Karin Gaylor Photography

Single father adds his own style to house with Clear Lake view

There’s a view of Clear Lake from almost every room in Frank Tamborella’s Nassau Bay home. [Read more…]

Elizabeth Whelan sits with her daughters, Catherine, left, and Victoria and their dog Hope in their Seabrook home. Elizabeth and her husband, David, have incorporated a homey atmosphere in the seaside house that includes many personal touches. Photo by Stuart Villanueva

After misfortune and disaster, family rebuilds waterfront home

Elizabeth and David Whelan, of Seabrook, suffered a double-whammy loss in 2008. Just six weeks before Hurricane Ike destroyed their waterfront home on Galveston Bay, thieves had broken in and taken just about everything that wasn’t nailed down while the Whelans were out of town. Rather than walk away, this resilient family dug in and rebuilt. [Read more…]

Ellie Peters loves lots of light, fresh flowers and bright colors, as shown in the living room of her house. The room contains Peters’ most prized item: a doll house built by her grandfather. “It is an exact to-scale copy of the house I grew up in,” she said. Photo by Robert Mihovil

Isle cottage is perfect mix of sentiment and sophistication

As witness to more than 150 years of family history, Ellie Peters’ colorful Church Street cottage is a treasure trove of memories and memorabilia. Vintage furnishings, serious antiques and Peters’ own current decorative touches flow throughout, tempered by an awareness of the home’s significance in time. [Read more…]

The Kemah home of Mike Tindall and Jennifer Stevenson features natural light combined with a surfer vibe. Photo by Stuart Villanueva

Surfers build Kemah house their way

After 17 years of city life in Houston, Mike Tindall and Jennifer Stevenson decided it was time to return to the water. At least it was for Tindall, who spent his youth around Galveston Bay, where his family owned homes in and around Bacliff. Stevenson, a Texas transplant, was eager to make the transition, too. Like Tindall, she’s an expert surfer. [Read more…]

Gary Foy, George Parsons III and their dog, Mikey, have restored the 1892 William and Lena Juneman Smith Cottage in the 1700 block of Ball Street in Galveston. The Queen Anne cottage is one of three sister cottages built by architect William Pautsch. Photo by Jennifer Reynolds

Former Houstonians thoughtfully restore historic cottage

Long before builders developed colorful beach house communities on the Texas Gulf Coast, architects such as Nicholas Clayton and Alfred Muller stitched their signatures across the city blocks of Galveston Island. [Read more…]

Islander Maureen McCutchen bought a 70-by-120 foot lot on Lake Madeline two years ago and built her dream home, which was completed in March. Photo by Kara Mullins

Isle attorney builds contemporary, comfortable and dog-friendly home

Maureen McCutchen lived on the West End of Galveston for 14 years, but wanted to get closer to her downtown office at Mills Shirley, where she’s a law partner.

So, McCutchen bought a 70-by-120-foot lot on Lake Madeline on the island two years ago and finally built her dream home in March. [Read more…]