See Inside Julia Berolzheimer’s Charming Charleston Home

Timeless Beauty

The crisp white paint and buzzy blue shutters (Benjamin Moore’s Simply White, OC-117 and Blue Porcelain, 1641) complete the photogenic cottage style.

Gal Goes South

The custom-renovated home is one way that she and her husband, Thomas Berolzheimer, really are living the modern dream. Running their own company afforded them the flexibility to pick up and move to South Carolina from San Francisco practically on a whim. Northern California natives who met in college, they fell hard for Charleston on a vacation in 2016. The fact that it’s so photogenic didn’t hurt; Thomas, a photographer, had been helping Julia with her blog since she launched it in 2011, during her junior year. After graduation, the two grew the lifestyle brand full-time out of their San Francisco apartment.

The travel-obsessed couple had been mulling which cities could offer them a balanced lifestyle, a big backyard, and a beautiful backdrop for their growing company. Charleston instantly felt like the place. “We loved the historic homes of downtown, and when we came over to the Old Village, there was just this sense of calm,” she says. “It immediately felt like a natural spot for us,” he agrees. So much so that they booked a return trip a month later, touring 14 houses in two days and putting down an offer on a property they almost hadn’t bothered seeing because of its unimpressive listing. With a pink exterior, a green roof, and a perplexing floor plan, it had just been sitting on the market—probably because young families thought the layout made no sense, Julia says, noting how the upstairs was about 80% primary suite. Still, they decided to swing by. “It’s in a magical spot with a water view from the front porch and on a wonderful street,” she adds. The house also had great bones, charming shiplap walls, and ample windows to welcome the ethereal coastal light—more a necessity than a mere perk when your home doubles as a lifestyle-blog setting.

Get an Up-Close Look at This Gorgeous Home

The Vision Within

That said, they wanted to make major changes to the floor plan and redecorate to reflect their aesthetic—traditional with lots of travel-inspired color, plus pops of lush florals. Coming from apartment living, the couple felt overwhelmed by the project’s scale, so they reached out to local designer and Olivia Brock of Torrance Mitchell Designs—a fellow young entrepreneur with a rapidly growing following. “A mutual friend mentioned her,” Julia says. “I took one look at her website and was like, “yes!” Once we met with her, it wasn’t even a question.” The next step was talking with architect Beau Clowney, who has collaborated with Brock on many projects. The footprint of the house, built in 2005, would remain mostly the same, but the layout was rearranged. “We centralized the kitchen and put it on axis with the courtyard,” says Clowney. That major layout change helped amplify the home’s indoor-outdoor connection. The upstairs updates were more about constructing a family-friendly floor plan. They moved walls to create an en suite guest room and two bedrooms with a Jack-and-Jill bath in between.

Then there was the challenge of shoring up the newish structure with plenty of authentic Charleston personality. Brock typically focuses on historic homes, so working with a younger house was a departure for her. But like Julia, she’s proven adept at intermingling past with present. “Despite the fact that it’s effectively a brand-new house, we pulled in so many timeless, handmade, and artisanal things that create character and give it that old-world feel,” says Brock. The result is a totally fresh take on Southern charm. Or as one would more succinctly say in Instagram land, #decorgoals.

Watching the World Go By

The wraparound front porch couldn’t feel more Southern. Iconic bamboo-lattice Brown Jordan Calcutta furniture sets a “trop-traditional” tone that carries throughout the home—”it feels like a family came to Charleston in the 18th century by way of the Caribbean,” Brock describes. “These pieces have been around for 60 years and will forever be around, so you can start a collection and build on it,” she adds. Julia and Thomas love to sit out here and eat lunch or dinner overlooking Charleston Harbor.

Outstanding Find

Thomas loves to garden, forever swapping plants in and out of pots, many perched on vintage plant stand the couple impulse-purchased during a visit to Petersham Nurseries in London. “When we realized how much they’d cost to ship to South Carolina, we wanted to back out, but we were committed—so we said OK, we need to make these front-and-center,” recalls Thomas, who also edged the porch with blush Clouds of Glory roses sent by a flower-farmer friend back in California.

Local Color

A graphic wood floor, hand painted by artist Suzanne Allen, establishes a vibrant welcome. The coral lantern from The Urban Electric Co. and paintings by Karin Olah and Kate Long Stevenson—all based in Charleston—make the space double as a gallery filled with Lowcountry talent.

Cool & Collected

A favorite pink velvet sofa the couple brought from San Francisco—a piece frequently seen on the blog—was re-covered in a camel shade for a more neutral, sophisticated feel. Like the rest of the house, this room features antiques alongside affordable finds, such as the Wisteria étagères beside the sofa. “I like mixing it up: something custom, something catalog, something antique, and something vintage or found,” says Brock. “Not only is it fun, but it’s also more accessible.”

Exotic Style

This formal dining room does not feel uptight, thanks to a mix of design periods and price points. Moving cross-country, the couple brought only pieces they truly loved, like this vintage Milo Baughman burled-wood Parsons table. Helping its minimalist shape adapt to this traditional setting are French-style chairs from Ballard Designs, reupholstered in a Cole & Son fabric.

Island Time

The vaulted kitchen favors generous windows, amplifying its bright, breezy feel. The focal point is a La Cornue range with a tall patterned backsplash of Tabarka Studio tile that matches the pale blue cabinets (Farrow & Ball’s Parma Gray No. 27). Woven rattan pendants and stools bring in a little bit of the beach.

Let Light In

“I eliminate as many upper cabinets as possible to allow bigger windows and more art. It makes a kitchen feel less fitted and a little more old-school,” says architect Beau Clowney.

Rise & Dine

The breakfast nook is so cozy that the couple uses it throughout the day, often as a home office. People often inquire about the oval pedestal table—Brock dreamed up the design to fit the space and had Charleston’s Perrin Woodworking build it.

Tucked Away

Nestled next to the breakfast nook is a clever reinvention of the classic butler’s pantry. The glass-enclosed space contains conveniences like a bar sink and second dishwasher without visually closing off the space.

Easy Breezy

Open to the kitchen, the family room features Henredon chairs chosen for their cool back view and a custom sectional made to look classic with English roll-arm styling. The white walls (Benjamin Moore’s Simply White) that run through this and most rooms of the house work as a great backdrop for artwork. This large piece is by painter Shannon Wood, who lives right across the street.

Inside Out

Fully embracing California-style outdoor living within an oh-so-Southern space, a newly expanded screened porch flows off the family room, connected by French doors. When the weather is nice, Julia and Thomas leave the doors open so the sea breeze can filter straight through the open floor plan into the kitchen.

Central Location

The house is situated around a courtyard, the feature the couple loves most. This was also the main reason they repainted the exterior in a neutral; the previous pink was visible from nearly every room and would have limited their decorating options. “Going white meant we could introduce colors like pink inside the home instead,” Julia says.

Unfussy Feminine

Enveloped in lavender-and-green Bowood chintz from Colefax and Fowler, the primary bedroom indulges Julia’s love of all things botanical and floral. Curtains in a smaller, geometric motif (Quadrille’s Volpi) and funky lamps on the faux-bamboo nightstands keep it all from seeming too precious or overdone.

Rosy Retreat

The home had to have at least one room done in pink, Julia’s signature color. “She looks so good in it that I thought, ‘Why not make it the space where she gets ready every morning?'” says Brock. The hue glows via modern cement floor tiles, a pink-painted vanity (Farrow & Ball Pink Ground), and Roman shades, but it’s balanced by the clean white of the walls and tub. French doors with gold hardware open to outside, the natural light further preventing the pink from overpowering and giving the room a porch-like feel.

Soak It In

The freestanding tub is the perfect spot for winding down. A small painting and monogrammed Weezie towels bring in hints of blue to the space without distracting from the pink hues.

Paradise Found

The loft guest room, known as the tree house, practically begged for a canopy bed to play up its vaulted ceiling; panels made from a sheer embroidered fabric (Colefax and Fowler’s Melina) add a dreamy air. “You feel like you’re up in a cloud. We have this huge magnolia tree in the backyard that you can see from the windows on three walls,” Julia says. Bird prints, found at an antiques mall and reframed, are configured into a gallery wall that outlines the bed’s shape.

Making a Splash

As much an escape as the adjacent tree house room, this bathroom evokes Caribbean seas with its immersive, over-the-ceiling blue subway tile (the shower also features a window for some on-demand sea breeze). The Phillip Jeffries grasscloth wallpaper is vinyl, so it holds up to water and humidity.