living on island time

IN THE BAHAMAS, CAREFREE PATTERN AND SUN-SOAKED COLOR BRING FRESH ENERGY TO A BUNGALOW FRAMED BY PINK SAND AND A TURQUOISE SEA.

- KATHRYN O’SHEA-EVANS,MARY CRAVEN

at first blush, Harbour Island can seem postcard perfect. But according to designer Lindsay Rhodes, the 3-mile-long Bahamian atoll known for its rosy-pink sand has a laid-back quality.

Harbour Island is a Bahamian daydream, known to locals as Briland. Designer Lindsay Rhodes worked with clients to refresh their island bungalow with pastel storybook charm.

She incorporated layers of vintage finds, including these 1960s wrought-iron butterfly chairs, below right, that capture the salt-air chic of the island.

“Yes, the island has fabulous boutique hotels and restaurants,” she says. “But there’s a casual vibe: Everyone’s driving golf carts and there are chickens in the road,” she says.

That blend of barefoot ease and polished charm is what drew her longtime Nashville-based clients to purchase a getaway home there.

The couple were married on the island and continued to vacation there for years, making it a place layered with memories for their family, long before they considered buying a vacation house.

In the family room, a woven sectional that came with the house was reupholstered by a local Bahamian workshop with Lisa Fine fabric, giving the piece new life.