Old Florida Calling

In the latest issue of Flower Magazine, a Palm Beach residence with an illustrious past is brought back into focus. Once home to Austro-Hungarian royals and later refined by architect Howard Major, the circa-1918 house carries layers of architectural significance. Over time, however, a succession of uninspired renovations dulled its character, leaving behind a space that felt indistinct and disconnected from its origins. Designer Ellen Kavanaugh approaches the project with a discerning eye, restoring clarity, charm, and a renewed sense of identity to a home that had nearly lost its voice.

Written by Kathryn O'Shea-Evans. Photography by Carmel Brantley

A fantastical jungle-like scene unfolds across the dining room in Zuber’s ‘Isola Bella’ wallpaper, setting the stage for a vintage green marble table and custom chairs by The Raj Company. Antique Murano pendants sparkle against a ceiling of cabana matting. “It's literally grass matting they staple down on tiki huts!” Ellen says.

"The new homeowners enlisted Ellen, as well as Patrick Seagraves of SKA Architecture, to revive the house, and thankfully all were aligned from the start. While some might want to carve up a historic house for open-plan living, this team longed to preserve the small, separate rooms, each with its own identity, while bringing the home “back to its original glory,” Ellen says. “The homeowners have a deep appreciation for beautiful things—they’re old souls.”

The inspiration for the revival began with a single panel of Zuber ‘Isola Bella’ wallpaper, a panoramic scene that has been printed in Rixheim, France, using the same 742 antique wood blocks since 1843. “It very much fits Palm Beach with its tropical foliage and colors that are so warm and inviting,” Ellen says. She would unroll and hang the panel in her office every time her clients arrived for a design meeting, and it became their lodestar. “We would look at that panel as we were selecting other colors and textures.”

Ultimately, they ended up sheathing the dining room in the paper, which makes a delightful greeting at the front of the home. To balance the wallcovering’s grandeur, Ellen installed an unexpected counterpoint on the ceiling—a woven straw cabana matting that costs roughly $5 per panel. “It brought the formality of that Zuber down a bit,” she says. The grass matting anchors the room firmly in the humid lushness of Old Florida—almost like someone welcoming you with a tropical drink.

In the living room, a William Haines sofa sets a refined foundation, layered with antiques and a custom cocktail table by EKI Design. Silk wallcovering by Pierre Frey adds a soft sheen, while a sculptural pendant from Woka Lamps Vienna floats above.

At the bar, a custom console with a mirrored back heightens the light, offset by a playful faux tortoise shell finish. The focal point: a Lane Custom Knob in polished brass with rose quartz, a jewel-like detail that brings warmth and quiet distinction to the entire composition.

Shop Lane Knob

Custom window seats—trimmed with crisp Pierre Frey piping—invite lazy afternoons with a book and a breeze. The cobalt bolsters in Cowtan & Tout fabric pop against the neutral upholstery.

An antique desk from F.S. Henemader Antiques sits against walls trimmed in a jaunty Greek key motif, giving the Florida Room a dash of classical attitude.

Sunlight floods the Florida Room, where a custom tile floor by American Restoration Tile turns the entire space into a patterned canvas.

This seating area showcases a confident mix of pattern and global influence, from an India-inspired wallcovering by Pierre Frey to an Italian rattan chair by Bonacina 1889 and vintage Moroccan tables layered with ease.

The bar itself gleams in hammered brass cabinetry by Patterson’s of Palm Beach, grounded by striped, ball-shaped stools that add a playful note. Ellen brings cohesion through our Cosmos Pulls and Cosmos Knobs, their polished brass finish catching the light and elevating the space with a precise touch of glamour.

“The cabana bar is the coolest room in the whole house. It includes layers on layers—very mismatched but in all the right ways.“

- Designer Ellen Kavanaugh

Shop Cosmos Collection

Upstairs, the private quarters are equally transportive. A petite dressing room fulfills a childhood dream of the client, whose grandmother had a formal dressing room that she loved. Ellen envisioned an indulgent version worthy of Marjorie Merriweather Post with cabinetry fronted in a Pierre Frey silk fabric, as well as a Murano vintage pendant and ornate lambrequin valances of her own design.

The ladies’ dressing room feels like a jewel box with custom cabinetry by Patterson’s of Palm Beach, vintage Murano lighting overhead, and cabinet interiors lined in Braquenié by Pierre Frey. Even the ceiling joins the party with paper by Jeffrey Michaels, while hardware by Modern Matter provides the finishing sparkle. Ellen used the Allen Lucite Appliance Pull.