May is a month for daffodils and honeysuckle, strawberries and basil, linen dresses and sandals. But most importantly, May is the month of Mother’s Day. On that second Sunday, we recognize just how much our values, passions and maybe even hobbies, are shaped by our moms. While some mother-daughter bonds are formed in nature, some in libraries, and some around a mixing bowl, others are formed around a blueprint and tile samples.
Eileen Riddle has worked as a professional designer for over 25 years and is now the lead designer at Kitchens by Eileen in Lititz (www.kitchensbyeileen.com). Apparently, creativity runs in the family. Eileen’s daughter, Elizabeth Riddle, is a designer for Ethan Allen. Several years ago, Eileen and Elizabeth worked together to design and install a basement kitchen for Greg and Gina Holsinger. This husband and wife had been wanting to remodel the master suite in their Hershey home for eight years. When the time was right, they called upon the familiar mother-daughter duo.
Greg and Gina “loved their beach house and wanted to recreate the tranquil spa retreat,” Eileen explains. They found inspiration in calm waves, gleaming sand crystals and miles of breezy strolls, asking their designers to replicate such colors and vibes, blending the bed and bath into one peaceful, open space. Eileen, who confirmed that “it was time to update these two important rooms,” set to work on the master bath. She used a monochromatic color scheme with soft blue accents, playing with hues of the sand and sea. To create that airy openness, her team removed a corner tub that Greg and Gina rarely used and enlarged the walk-in shower with clear glass walls, sand colored tiles and niches of sea glass. Keeping in mind the spa retreat concept, they installed a rainfall showerhead, massaging body sprays and a hand-held showerhead. These, along with a quartz shower seat and ledge, helped to make “each shower feel like a special occasion,” Eileen says.
She kept the airy vibe flowing with a floating vanity and gray-stained rift oak cabinets. While searching magazines for style ideas, Gina had fallen in love with the look of a wall covered in glass tile. So Eileen’s team affixed seafoam glass subway tiles on the wall above the vanity before adding two wide-framed mirrors and several silver sconces. “A creative way to have the wood look in a bathroom,” Eileen says, they installed wood-look porcelain planking tiles in a gray tone, laying the 6- by 24-inch tiles in a horizontal, staggered design. For storage, Eileen designed a large linen cabinet matching the driftwood color of the vanity.
Meanwhile, Elizabeth, who “has always had an eye for color,” according to her mom, led the bedroom remodel. Her team painted the walls in a sand-colored tone with a light, textured carpet setting the backdrop. The bed, being the main focal point of the room, was completed with a quilt of white, sea glass and taupe hues, plus lots of inviting pillows. An upholstered fabric headboard was used to continue that soft, welcoming feeling. Elizabeth situated mirrored nesting tables next to the bed along with an antiqued white chest. Each table was accented with a sea glass blue lamp to create symmetry and balance. Elizabeth had rods finished with mercury glass finials installed over the two large windows, then hung floor-to-ceiling Dupioni silk panels accented with a blue border. "[The treatments] give the windows that finishing touch with a bit of sparkle,” she adds.
Many pros in the know use glass and mirror accents to help make a space appear larger or more open. Interior designer Elizabeth stood a large mirror against the wall with a warm, metallic frame matching the rods. She layered the look by placing a leather ottoman in front of the mirror, where Gina and Greg love to relax or catch up with their teen daughters. For some final touches, Elizabeth tucked a wooden chest reminiscent of driftwood into the corner and illuminated the space with a white lamp resembling the twisted texture of coral.
What we learned from this project is that, sometimes, the best collaborations happen between mother and daughter. Maybe it was the shared creative gene or the years of May festivities, but Eileen and Elizabeth’s design dynamic worked in crafting a master suite getaway fit for any coastal spa. This month, the two have much to celebrate.
Want to come home to this beachy style? Here’s where to find the products: Almost all furnishings are from Ethan Allen in East Petersburg, PA (www.ethanallen.com). Paint colors are Sherwin Williams (www.sherwin-williams.com) and Benjamin Moore (www.benjaminmoore.com). Specific shades: Smokey Taupe for the bedroom walls, Winds Breath for the bedroom ceiling and Comfort Gray for the bathroom walls. The bathroom cabinets came from local cabinetry company, Signature Custom Cabinetry, based in Ephrata (www.signaturecustomcabinetry.com).