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Just thought I’d share a few images of our little beach house…

Just kidding, of course. While I wish with all my heart that this place was ours, it is actually a home from the portfolio of designer Kara Mann.

If I did have a stunning ocean-front villa, though, I’d want the combination of Moroccan shapes, ethnic textiles and rough-hewn textures Mann uses in this home.

And a bedroom with an ocean view, like this.

And a sense of light, space and charm as soon as you set foot through the door…

And I’d be very happy if it combined elegant neutrals with eccentric splashes of color, like this.

I doubt my guests would complain if they had to sleep here.

I came across Kara Mann’s portfolio in a rather circuitous way. I was browsing The Inside Source, a new blogazine from eBay, and read about Kara in a post by Marni Katz, who also runs one of my favorite blogs, Style Carrot. Off I went to Kara’s web site, where I was instantly smitten. Not that I’m claiming to have discovered a little-known designer. On the contrary, Kara is one of the most lauded designers out there – having won awards from InStyle, Vogue, Met Home and numerous others, as well as having her work featured in most of the top design publications.

It’s not hard to see why. Kara’s portfolio is full of the kind of upmarket homes most people can only dream of. But there’s nothing sterile about these places: each has its own unique personality combining texture in a way that is reminiscent of Amy Lau with the glamor of a Kelly Wearstler creation.

Despite the aspirational quality of her spaces, they all have ideas that us mere mortals can apply in our own homes: from the styling to the color palettes. So, although this is not our beach house and it’s unlikely ever to be, I can still hold onto the hope that, some day, I’ll incorporate some of this style into my own place. We can all dream, can’t we?