Tour a Maryland River Home With Tons of Chill Charm

Paddleboarding, sailing, hikes, s’mores, repeat. That’s daily life in Sherwood Forest, a woodsy community in Annapolis, Maryland. “My husband, Burke, grew up going to his parents’ home here, and his grandparents and great-grandparents had houses here too,” says Sarah Hayes. It was only natural that Burke proposed to her by the river — and that the two would get a vacation home of their own once they had a family. (They live about an hour away, in Chevy Chase.) The 3,300-square-foot place they bought in The Forest, as locals call it, was a total teardown — the foundation wasn’t sound.

Paint color pictured: Essex Green, Benjamin Moore

Sarah, an architect, steered the new build, re-creating the space with cozy seating areas inside and out, chic cottage-meets-nautical touches, lots of blues — and dedicated screen-free zones. Says Sarah, “I’m grateful that our time here allows our family to go back to a simpler way of life.” Pictured: Sarah and Burke with twins Genna (standing) and Ella (seated, middle), 14, Lilly, 12, and Burkie, 9.

“This is where we live and lounge, so it had to feel casual,” Sarah says. She brought in a skirted denim sofa from Lee Industries as comfy as a fave pair of jeans and an open coffee table by Noir. To keep the focus on old-fashioned fun (tic-tac-toe, anyone?), the TV stays off during the day and is recessed to minimize its presence. Clover, the family dog, is fond of lying against the cool stone of the fireplace.

Sarah’s campers are always whipping up snacks: “They make a mean guacamole!” she says. She went pretty-but-not-precious with white quartzite on the island, Shaker-style cabinets and wide-plank white oak floors. Unable to resist a seafaring touch, she picked up a pair of pendants salvaged from an old ship from GJ Styles and had them rewired. For custom style (without a big custom price tag), she added shiplap and white oak accents to the vent hood and island. Textured porcelain subway tiles by Architectural Ceramics look hand-glazed.