Beach Cottage Bargain Decorating

A gung-ho antiquer, Mary Kay Andrews has braved dust-choked attics, swampy cellars, and cobwebbed toolsheds in pursuit of secondhand steals. But even this champion rummager had her dollar-stretching skills tested when she and husband Tom Trocheck purchased a dingy 1932 cottage on Tybee Island, GA, in 2013. With more than 2,000 square feet to furnish and fix up—and a desire to stick to a budget—Mary Kay, a best-selling author of feel-good beach reads, used all her scavenging smarts to transform the dated home into a laid-back seaside retreat.

Now filled with upcycled treasures and rehabbed castoffs, it’s ideal for mellow family vacations —and banging out her next page-turner. “I get inspired when I write here,” she says. “My books feature plucky women reinventing themselves, and there’s always a happy ending. And that’s the story of this house.” Bonus: It's just 75 yards from the Atlantic Ocean.

Mary Kay’s most jaw-dropping bargain: a 1930s collapsible walnut camp cot that she nabbed for just $10 at an estate sale. Cozied up with mattress-ticking pillows and bolsters, it’s a favorite spot for midday naps and doing puzzles with the grandkids. The mismatched rattan chairs, found at an estate sale, have identical cushions sewn from an awning-striped fabric from Warehouse Fabrics, so they look like a set.

The pine table, snatched up at an Atlanta bookstore’s going-out-of-business sale, has sentimental value for Mary Kay: She once did book signings at it. Teamed with an oak church pew that came with the house and 1940s chairs with new fabric cushions from Ballard Designs, it turns a sunny part of the porch into a cheerful dining area for six—with ocean views. The olive-basket pendant light is an original that Tom created.