My Houzz: Dreamy, Organic Style in a Tampa Cottage

It takes time to create your dream home, and to find a location in your dream neighborhood. Shona and Shaun Carcary waited 17 years — until their two daughters left for college — to finally snag a cottage in Bayshore Beautiful, an oak-filled neighborhood in Tampa, Florida, just steps from the bay.

Natives of South Africa, the Carcarys (she's a personal trainer; he's a real estate investor) were able to look past the pink walls and dark brown carpeting that sullied the cottage's 1940s interior. “We could see the huge workload involved but could see the home’s charm and good bones,” Shona says. The couple spent six years revamping and tailoring the house to their liking. They painted floors, gutted and remodeled the bathrooms and the kitchen, converted the detached garage into a fitness studio and "man room," and gave the entire house a dreamy, all-white makeover.

Houzz 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; 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms
Year built: 1940

The couple ripped out the dark brown carpeting throughout the house to reveal hardwood floors. Shona is a huge fan of white, and painted the floors, pink walls and wood fireplace mantel all the same color, Ultra Pure White by Behr. The couple also replaced the original windows.

Shona tries to shop locally as much as possible, and worked closely with designer Christy McGeachy of Nest Designs and Katy Gagnon of Tampa's Blue Moon Trading Company. Most of the living room furniture, including the sofa, side table, tree trunk coffee table, lighting and decorative accents, are from Gagnon's shop.

How to paint your hardwood floors

Chaise: Deconstructed French Victorian Right-Arm Chaise, Restoration Hardware; wall and floor paint: Ultra Pure White PPU18-6, Behr


An oversize floor mirror draped in string lights helps create the illusion of a larger space.

An area Shona uses as her home office is visible through the French doors. "It's where I gather my thoughts and organize my days," she says. She converted a former garden table into a desk by adding a custom glass top.

Mirror, wooden vase, vintage oar, wire light fixture: Blue Moon Trading Company; desk base: Anthropologie (no longer available)


Shona's love of an (almost) all-white palette mixes well with the earthy, nature-inspired accents. "I have found that natural elements like wood, stone, metal and shells are what I'm drawn to," she says.

Go gutsy with white floors


Vintage French armchairs add a touch of elegance to Shona's office. To provide some privacy from the living room, the owners added French doors, which they painted the same shade of white as the rest of the interior; they create a smooth transition between rooms.


Painted stairs and risers sporting house numbers lead upstairs to the couple's bedroom. Shona purchased a different number every time she went to a hardware store, accumulating a collection over time. "I added them because I always count steps as I go up and down," she says.

Curio cabinet: Blue Moon Trading Company


The couple fashioned a stair railing from a birch branch they purchased at Michaels.


A local artisan made the dining room pendant light using materials salvaged from a chicken coop. "I love the eclectic feel of mixing old and new, repurposing items and using them in unexpected ways," Shona says.

Table: Sequoia Dining Table, Z Gallerie; dining chairs: Marshalls; mirror, lighting: Blue Moon Trading Company


The Carcarys completed the kitchen remodel themselves, inspired by compact kitchens with open shelving that they saw during trips to Italy and France. The tin ceiling proved to be the most challenging element, as each tile needed to be laid individually. (Shaun installed the pieces while Shona held the ladder.) The countertops are marble, while the kitchen island was made from barn wood floors.

The overall cost of the kitchen renovation was $20,000, including appliances and materials.

Shelves: Ekby Mossby/Ekby Bjärnum, Ikea; island: Blue Moon Trading Company; tin ceiling tiles: eBay; decorative items: T.J.Maxx and Marshalls; backsplash tile: The Home Depot


The first-floor guest bedroom was kept light and airy, with both the floors and walls painted entirely white.

Vintage door, console, lighting: Blue Moon Trading Company; bed: Lydia, Anthropologie


In the master bedroom upstairs, the couple removed a closet to create the shower, which they enclosed with a glass wall to make the space feel larger and appear more open.

Double vanity: Ikea; bed: Italian Campaign Canopy Bed, Anthropologie; metal hanging letters: Blue Moon Trading Company; wall paint: Ultra Pure White PPU18-6, Behr


Shona and Shaun did all the labor on their bathroom remodel. They sourced both the bathtub and the emerald-green and gold mosaic tile on eBay.

Pendant: Long Hanging Capiz Pendant Lamp, West Elm (no longer available)


Shona painted the master bedroom floors black but stuck to white with the linens. The nightstand is a birdbath that Shona fitted with a custom glass top.

By the time the couple found this home, both of their daughters were grown and had moved out of the house. (One of them, a real estate agent, helped them locate this property.) The Bayshore Beautiful house is smaller than the Carcarys' previous place, so Shona tries to keep things as clutter free as possible. "Now we have less wall space and storage, so I only have things out that mean something or that I use," she says.

Oversize mirror: Summer House Marketplace; birdbath: Lowe's


Shona splurged on this vintage-style shelf from Anthropologie, and uses it to display her collection of platform shoes and travel knickknacks. She's particularly fond of the leather handbag, which she purchased on a trip to Ibiza. "I love to spend time on the weekends looking for one-of-a-kind finds," she says.


Shona and Shaun use the family room the most and love to unwind together in front of the TV.

The number 7 is particularly meaningful to Shona, as her brother passed away on December 7. This numerical accent is a small way of honoring and remembering him in one of her favorite spaces.

Sectional: Karlstad, Ikea; coffee table: Blue Moon Trading Company


The outdoor areas, like this deck that Shaun built, extend the interior with natural surfaces and touches of white. The couple loves to entertain guests here, and hosts parties and evenings with wine often.

Wicker seating set: HomeGoods


This farm table on the back deck gives Shaun and Shona plenty of opportunities to host al fresco meals.

Farm table, groceries sign: Schiller's Architectural Salvage; chairs: Blue Moon Trading Company


The vintage wrought iron bed at the end of the deck is where Shona and Shaun like to relax and look up at the stars.


The desk, café chair and cart bench are all vintage and from Blue Moon Trading Company.


The couple created a backyard bathing oasis with a salvaged claw-foot tub.


A climbing plant shrouds the arbor leading to the converted garage, which now houses Shona's fitness studio and Shaun's home bar.


The couple divided their detached garage into two separate rooms. To the left is Shona's fitness studio, where she works from home. These French doors lead to what Shaun calls his "man room," where he spends time lounging in front of the TV.


The bar in Shaun's room is made from a kitchen door that the couple salvaged during their remodel. The back shelf was made from a headboard they brought over from South Africa, while the walls are decorated with building materials from the school in South Africa where Shona used to work as a nursery teacher.


Hardwood floors grace the home fitness studio, where Shona tends to clients as a personal trainer and nutrition expert.


The cottage is nestled behind grand oaks on an old brick-lined street just steps from the bay. When the Carcarys moved in, the exterior featured a mix of yellow siding, blue trim and exposed brick. The couple painted the entire house the same shade of white as the interior. Since they converted their garage into living space, they now park their cars in the driveway.

Exterior paint: Ultra Pure White PPU18-6, Behr


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 playful Chihuahuas) says, "I wake up daily feeling grateful and blessed to be in this wonderful country — and our home."

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