Home Tour: Blogger shares her family’s coastal-inspired Cotswold home

Who: Christina, Matt, Caroline, 4, and Thomas, 3, Marcellino. He’s a partner at Marcellino & Tyson, and she runs Carolina Charm and works at a law firm as well.

Their story: They’ve been in Charlotte for nine years and have lived in Cotswold for most of their time here. They bought their current Cotswold home in 2017 and have slowly been making it their own — it needed a lot of love.

“During one of neighborhood walks came across house we loved. It was not for sale but for rent,” Christina told the Agenda. “It was the perfect fit. We wanted to own it, so we tracked down the owner who was living abroad in Ireland. Matt reached out with a cold but funny LinkedIn message, they chatted a couple months, became friends and he eventually agreed to sell us his home off market.”

The basics

Square feet: 2,300

Rooms: 4 beds & 2 1/2 baths

Style: Contemporary, bright, coastal

Designers: Sara of Pearce Reed Design & Stephanie of Olive and Tate

Shops and inspiration

Cheerios, Goldfish and beer: The kitchen was a total overhaul (done by Atreum Construction) Christina said. They wanted the kitchen and living room to be one big family space since that’s where they spend the most time — and they love to entertain. So they restructured the kitchen, added in storage for all the Cheerios and Gold Fish and a beer tap (Matt’s favorite part of the house).

“It took a lot of negotiation between us,” Christina said. “At first I told him he could have it in the garage, but we compromised by letting me have the appliances I really wanted and he got his tap.” Right now they’ve got Fat Tire on tap (and guests love it).

A little bit of Florida: Christina told me her style is influenced by her love of the coast and a bright space — she dubbed it “classic contemporary with a peppering of some coastal elements.” Having grown up in Florida, most of the nautical or coastal-looking pieces in the house actually come from her parents’ place. All said and done, you get a bright white interior with a modern twist on the classic blue and white color scheme.

Online shopping and local steals: World Market, Cotswold Marketplace, Wayfair and Home Goods are Christina’s favorite home shops, because you can get an elevated look for less if you hunt hard enough, she said. To make it all work financially, they’ve waited for items they love to go on sale or check for coupons, and they’ve gone room by room, setting a budget — and sticking to it — for each space.

Sharks and golf: The latest room to get a re-do was Thomas’s bedroom. He’s obsessed with sharks and golf right now — and Christina is obsessed with how the room came together.

“For this room specifically, I leaned on Olive and Tate to put together a design board. She basically pulled entire room together under $1,000, and it turned out so cute,” Christina said. “It’s such a happy little place — we love to spend time in there. I didn’t know how golf and sharks go together, but it’s not overly golf or overly shark.”

And more photos …

Photos by Taylor Stading & Laura Sumrak. Love home tours? Here’s a full archive of noteworthy homes that we’ve toured in Charlotte. Willing to let us in? Shoot a note to [email protected] for a chance to be featured.