Beach house ideas

Beach house ideas work best when the house is simple and the sea does the rest: pale or weathered walls, a sheltered terrace and rooms open to the water. The six views below come from two beach houses Domusia drew on the coast, a single-storey white house and a two-storey timber one.

Draw your house by the sea
Two-storey beach house exterior in charred and light oak timber with a dark gable roof, a terrace and wild coastal planting
Single-storey white beach house with a terracotta roof on a coastal path at sunset, the sea behind
Beach house kitchen with a dark wood island, rush stools, pendant lights, open shelves and a window onto the sea
Beach house kitchen with lime plaster walls, a wooden island, glass pendants and a small window over the coast
Beach house bedroom with whitewashed walls, a wooden bed with layered linen, lamps and a window onto the rocks
Beach house bathroom with a freestanding tub under a vaulted plaster ceiling and small windows onto the sea

Rendered with Domusia

Beach house exterior and modern beach house design

  • A simple volume under a gable roof, either low and white or two storeys clad in timber.
  • Exterior materials that weather well in salt air: lime render, charred timber, light oak boards.
  • A terrace on the sheltered side with outdoor seating and wild coastal planting around it.
  • Kitchens with a wooden island, rush or wooden stools and a window over the water.
  • Bedrooms and bathrooms with small, deep windows that frame the rocks and the sea.
  • Interiors in plaster and wood with linen, old rugs and very little that can be damaged by sand.

Questions

Are these construction plans?

No. Domusia draws what your beach house looks like, inside and out, not how to build it. A house on the coast needs local advice on wind, erosion and permits.

What is a good exterior for a modern beach house design?

Pale render or timber. The white house here uses render under terracotta tiles; the two-storey house mixes charred and light oak boards under a dark roof.

Should a beach house have big windows?

Not everywhere. The houses on this page keep windows small on the weather side and open up on the terrace side, which protects the rooms from wind.

How do I draw my own beach house?

Choose By the sea as the setting in Domusia, then a style, a facade and a roof. Domusia draws the exterior, then every room inside.

Styles for this setting

Draw your house by the seaSee an example houseDream house quiz