It requires time to make your dream home, and also to find a location in your dream neighborhood. Shona and Shaun Carcary waited 17 years until both brothers left for faculty — to eventually snag a cabin in Bayshore Beautiful, an oak-filled community inTampa, Florida, just steps from the bay.
Natives of South Africa, the Carcarys (she’s a personal trainer; he’s a property investor) managed to check past the pink walls and dark brown carpet that sullied the cottage’s 1940s interior. “We can see the huge workload involved but may see the property’s charm and great bones,” Shona says. The couple spent six years revamping and tailoring the house to their own liking. They painted floors, gutted and remodeled the bathrooms and the kitchen, converted the detached garage into a workout studio and “individual space,” and gave the entire house a dreamy, all-white makeover.
at a Glance
Who lives here: Shaun and Shona Carcary, and their Chihuahuas, Dinky, Peatri, Bumpy and Dobby
Location: Bayshore Beautiful neighborhood of Tampa, Florida
Size: 1,500 square feet (139 square meters); 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms
Year built: 1940
Mina Brinkey
The few ripped out of the dark brown carpet throughout the house to show hardwood floors. Shona is a huge fan of white painted the floors, pink walls and timber fireplace mantel the exact same color, Ultra Pure White by Behr.The couple also replaced the original windows.
Shona Attempts to store locally as muchas possible, and worked closely with designer Christy McGeachy of Nest Designs and Katy Gagnon of Tampa’s Blue Moon Trading Company. The majority of the living area furniture, including the couch, side table, tree trunk coffee table, lighting and decorative accents, are from Gagnon’s store.
The best way to paint your hardwood floors
Chaise: Deconstructed French Victorian Right-Arm Chaise, Restoration Hardware; wall and floor paint: Ultra Pure White PPU18-6,Behr
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An oversize floor mirror draped in series lights helps create the illusion of a bigger space.
An area Shona uses as her home office is observable through the French doors. “It is where I gather my thoughts and organize my times,” she says. She also converted a former garden table into a desk by adding a custom glass top.
Mirror, wooden vase, classic oar, cable light fixture: Blue Moon Trading Company; desk base: Anthropologie (no more available)
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Shona’s love of a (nearly) all-white palette mixes nicely with the earthy, nature-inspired accents. “I have found that natural elements such as wood, stone, metal and shells are what I’m attracted to,” she says.
Go gutsy with white floors
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Vintage French armchairs add a bit of elegance to Shona’s office. To supply some privacy from the living space, the owners added French doors, which they painted the exact same shade of white as the rest of the inside; they make a smooth transition between chambers.
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Painted staircase and risers sporting house numbers lead upstairs into the couple’s bedroom. Shona bought a different number each time she went into a hardware store, amassing a collection over time. “I added them because I count measures as I go up and down,” she says.
Curio cabinet: Blue Moon Trading Company
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The few fashioned a stair railing in the birch branch that they bought at Michaels.
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A local artisan created the dining area dividers light using materials salvaged from a chicken coop. “I love the eclectic sense of mixing new and old, repurposing items and using them in surprising ways,” Shona says.
Table: Sequoia Dining Table, Z Gallerie; dining chairs: Marshalls; mirror, lighting: Blue Moon Trading Company
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The Carcarys finished the kitchen remodel themselves, inspired by compact kitchens with spacious shelving which they saw during excursions to Italy and France. The tin ceiling proved to be the most demanding element, as every tile required to be laid individually. (Shaun set up the pieces while Shona held the ladder.) The countertops are marble, although the kitchen island was created from barn wood floors.
The general cost of the kitchen renovation was $20,000, including appliances and materials.
Shelves: Ekby Mossby/Ekby Bjärnum, Ikea; island: Blue Tooth Company; tin ceiling tiles: eBay; decorative items: T.J.Maxx and Marshalls; backsplash tile: The Home Depot
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The first-floor guest bedroom was kept light and airy, with both the floors and walls painted entirely white.
Vintage door, console, lighting: Blue Tooth Company; bed: Lydia, Anthropologie
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From the master bedroom upstairs, the few removed a cupboard to create the shower, which they enclosed with a glass wall to create the space feel bigger and look more spacious.
Dual vanity: Ikea; bed: Italian Campaign Canopy Bed, Anthropologie; alloy hanging letters: Blue Tooth Company; wall paint: Ultra Pure White PPU18-6, Behr
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Shona and Shaun did all of the labor on their bathroom remodel. They sourced both the bathtub and the emerald-green and gold mosaic tile eBay.
Pendant: Long Hanging Capiz Pendant Lamp, West Elm (no more available)
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Shona painted the master bedroom floors black but adhered to white with the linens. The nightstand is a bird bath that Shona fitted with a custom glass top.
By the time the few found thishome, both of the daughters were grown and had moved from the house. (One of these, a real estate agent, helped them find this property.) The Bayshore Beautiful house is smaller compared to the Carcarys’ preceding place, so Shona attempts to maintain things as clutter free as possible. “Now we’ve got less wall area and storage, therefore that I only have things out that imply something or that I use,” she says.
Oversize mirror: Summer House Marketplace; birdbath: Lowe’s
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Shona splurged on this vintage-style shelf from Anthropologie, also uses it to display her collection of stage shoes and travel knickknacks. She is especially fond of the leather purse, which she bought on a trip to Ibiza. “I love to spend some time on the weekends searching for one-of-a-kind finds,” she says.
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Shona and Shaun utilize the family room the many and love to unwind together facing the TV.
The number 7 is very significant to Shona, as her brother passed away on December 7. This numerical accent is a small method of honoring and remembering him in one of her favourite spaces.
Sectional: Karlstad, Ikea; coffee table: Blue Moon Trading Company
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The outdoor places, like this deck which Shaun built, extend the inside with organic surfaces and bits of white. The few loves to entertain guests here, and hosts parties and evenings with wine often.
Wicker chairs put: HomeGoods
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This farm table on the rear deck provides Shaun and Shona plenty of chances to host al fresco meals.
Farm table, markets signal: Schiller’s Architectural Salvage; chairs: Blue Moon Trading Company
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The classic wrought iron bed at the end of the deck is where Shona and Shaun like to relax and look up at the stars.
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The desk, café chair and cart seat are classic and from Blue Moon Trading Company.
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The couple created a backyard bathing oasis with a salvaged claw-foot bath tub.
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A climbing plant shrouds the arbor leading to the converted garage, which now houses Shona’s gym and Shaun’s home pub.
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The couple split their detached garage into two distinct chambers. On the left is Shona’s gym, where she works from home. These French doors lead to what Shaun calls his “individual space,” where he buys time living in front of the TV.
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The pub in Shaun’s space is made of a kitchen doorway which the few salvaged during their remodel. The rear shelf was created from a headboard that they brought over from South Africa, while the walls are decorated with construction materials in the school in South Africa in which Shona used to work as a nursery school teacher.
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Hardwood floors grace the home exercise studio, in which Shona tends to customers as a personal trainer and nutrition expert.
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The cabin is nestled behind grand oaks on an old brick-lined street just steps from the bay. When the Carcarys transferred in, the exterior featured a mix of yellow siding, blue trim and exposed brick. The few painted the entire house precisely the same shade of white as the inside. Since they converted their garage into living space, they park their cars in the driveway.
Exterior paint: Ultra Pure White PPU18-6, Behr
Mina Brinkey
Shona and Shaun moved their family from South Africa to Florida nearly two decades ago. Reflecting on the change, Shona (shown here with their four energetic Chihuahuas) says, “I wake up daily sense grateful and blessed to be in this wonderful nation — our home.”
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