ROMANCING the COAST

SOPHISTICATED AND BREEZY, THIS FLORIDA RETREAT IS CAMERA-READY THANKS TO A MAKEOVER INSPIRED BY THE SILVER SCREEN

- LACEY HOWARD,CARMEL BRANTLEY,KRISSA ROSSBUND

Interior designers—the good ones—are known for channeling their clients’ wants and needs while also opening their minds to new ideas and possibilities in their home’s design. For West Palm Beach, Florida, designer Danielle Rollins, just laying eyes on one client gave her a cinematic vision for the decor she wanted create.

“She is beautiful, tall and stately, and could be a character in Out of Africa,” the designer says. The 1985 film proved to be a strong influence for Rollins when reimagining the Palm Beach-area vacation home that her Nashville-based clients, Christina and Mike Apperson, purchased. When the two women got to know each other, Christina’s personality also added to the designer’s inspiration. “She has very romantic leanings and loves things that have a story,” Rollins says.

Fortuitously, the Appersons subscribed to Rollins’ vision for their now-storied home, named Casa Paloma for the pair of doves that were nesting over the door when they moved in. “They wanted a British Colonial vibe with a romantic feeling of Ralph Lauren in Round Hill,” Rollins says of the Montego Bay, Jamaica, resort. It’s been known for decades as a Hollywood favorite that promises an impeccable stay of timeless luxury in villas nestled on a secluded 100-acre peninsula. “It’s a place I love and have visited all my life, so it was a pleasure to have the opportunity to give my own spin to it,” she says.

The Appersons’ vacation property was already a dreamy getaway in an exclusive enclave that entices with intracoastal sunrises, pods of dolphins swimming by, and plenty of fishing expeditions, Rollins says. But when the designer first arrived on the project, the home itself wasn’t quite camera-ready. The exterior was painted “a sad, dull taupe” and the interior had an exuberant color palette, Rollins says.