FIELD of DREAMS

For years, designer Kara Miller had longed for a house on some land, but it wasn't until she serendipitously found this parcel in Jupiter, Florida, that she finally built her forever home

- BETSY WATSON

BALANCE YOUR BUDGET

Kara splurged on the brick chimney, hiring a local mason to lighten it with a German smear treatment, and saved on stucco siding that reads like wood.

“WIDE-OPEN SPACES and nature have always been of the utmost importance to me,” says Jupiter, Florida, designer Kara Miller, who spent her early childhood years on a sugarcane farm. So when she discovered this 5-acre piece of land after a visit to her beloved father's grave in 2020, it felt like a divine nudge. “I just knew it was supposed to be mine,” she remembers. “I was like, ‘This is it. This is meant to be. It's in the stars. I knew in my heart God was saying, ‘This is definitely going to be a part of your story.’”

THROW ON ANOTHER LAYER

Kara maxed out seating in the living room. "A lot of times, when using a white sofa, I'll order it with a bench seat and then wrap the cushion in a throw to preserve its life a little," says the designer, whose two dogs, Molly and Murphy, often lounge on the furniture. "And it also helps with the layering process."

INCLUDE A HEAVY HITTER

A local artisan from Maurice's Furnishings built a custom dining table that can seat up to 14 people with the addition of two leaves.

"When decorating with lighter tones, brown furniture is your friend. It helps ground the space and gives it a little weight," Kara explains. Jasper's Malmaison fabric in Fontaine frames the casement windows.