See Inside 21 Dreamy Seaside Homes

The book’s cover.

“There are so many books about seaside homes. The last thing I wanted to do was deliver another,” explains the photographer, Instagram sensation, and men’s underwear entrepreneur Douglas Friedman.

Instead, The Seaside House: Living on the Water (Rizzoli, $55), penned by Nick Voulgaris III with photographs by Friedman, shows an eclectic range of 21 waterside homes—from stripped-back beachfront cottages to grand, opulent manors—capturing varied coastal lifestyles. Highlights also include Giorgio Armani’s ultrachic villa in Antigua and Martha Stewart’s historic stone estate in Maine.

So what ties the spaces together? First, explains Voulgaris, they had to be “accessible and comfortable—whatever the owner’s definition of that is.” Second, they are places where you can be yourself. And third, there had to be enough space to welcome friends to stay.

Both Friedman and Voulgaris are drawn to the outdoors and nature. A keen sailor, Voulgaris spends his free time restoring his 59-foot boat, while Friedman heads to Marfa, Texas, whenever he can. “The sky in the desert goes on forever, it’s almost like having an ocean on the ceiling,” explains Friedman. “But the book takes prime place on my coffee table there, so I can visit the sea whenever I want.”

Below, the duo share some of their favorite seaside locations.

Celerie Kemble’s grand Dominican Republic home.

Designer Celerie Kemble’s Dominican Republic home is at both exuberant and relaxed. “Island homes exude a different ambience to anywhere else. You immediately feel you have arrived on vacation,” says Vouglaris.

A Valerian Rybar–designed breakfast room in Newport.

In contrast to the typical whimsical island style, this breakfast room in Newport, Rhode Island, boasts a more formal design aesthetic. Valerian Rybar designed the interiors in 1961, and they have been beautifully preserved ever since.

A picture-perfect Shelter Island home. Photo: Courtesy of Rizzoli

Voulgaris had long been admiring this home in Shelter Island, New York, from the water. “It has such a quintessential summer view,” he comments.

Gambrel’s marble-clad kitchen in Sag Harbor, New York. Photo: Courtesy of Rizzoli

“Designer Steven Gambrel’s house in Sag Harbor is my dream. Everything he does is special and looks effortless,” says Friedman.

Martha Stewart’s stunning home sits on a hill that looks over Seal Harbor. Photo: Courtesy of Rizzoli

“It’s a very special experience to wander the halls Martha Stewart’s moody house in Maine,” says Friedman. Longtime friends, Stewart was asked to pen the book’s forward.

A maritime-inspired bedroom with an antique brass bed frame and indigo fabrics in designer Ken Fulk’s lovingly restored late 19th-century cottage. Photo: Courtesy of Rizzoli

“Designer and event planner Ken Fulk’s house in Provincetown, Massachusetts, looks as though it’s been there for 100 years. He’s such a genius at conjuring lived-in spaces,” says Friedman.