Sunday, March 6, 2011

By GEORGE FONTANA Special to The Citizen

For thirty years, Louise Thayer and her late husband, Brooks, operated a boys sailing camp on Cape Cod. Today, Thayer can still enjoy the sight of sails billowing in the wind from her oceanfront unit at the Beach Club, 1500 Atlantic Avenue.

With four active sons, it was difficult to gather the family together at Christmas. The Thayers traveled en famille to Bermuda for several holiday gatherings before they decided to "stay on the mainland and see how far south we could go and be warm." Key West, at the end of the road, became the resort of choice.

In 1985, the Thayers purchased their first-floor Beach Club unit, along with another couple. "We rented out the unit and came to Key West for our allotted two weeks. Two weeks was not enough time."

When Brooks died in 1990, Thayer bought out her friends' share and made Key West her winter home, while continuing to spend her summers at Orleans, Cape Cod. "One can't duplicate what I have here," Thayer said. "I'm close to the water and close to a city with so many cultural advantages and yet retains its special character." Although Thayer is the Key West condo's owner of record, her beautiful, blue-eyed, "rag doll" feline companion Jasmine rules the roost with impunity.

Key West decorator David Dresie was responsible for the unit's tropical décor.

"I have bits and pieces from my former home, but I left the serious stuff on Cape Cod," Thayer said.

Twenty-five years ago, Dresie created an island-casual ambiance with off-white wicker furniture, blue-striped slip-covered chairs and couch and a large put-your-feet-up coffee table cube with matching end table cubes. It still charms. A poised Florida panther sculpture covered in gray mosaic tiles adds interest to the coffee table. Lime-green accent pieces, lamps and pillows complete the cool-as-a-breeze appeal.

Key West artist Sal Salinero's acrylic tropical bird paintings and Palm Coast artist Art LaMay's bird prints line the walls. The living room space appears doubled, thanks to a full-mirror wall, while an area carpet continues the island theme with tropical flora and birds. Remote-control sconces were added later, requiring no cosmetic disruption to the walls. The dining area is highlighted by four glass-cube lights suspended from the ceiling.

From the deck, the million-dollar ocean view beckons one to sit and stay awhile. Sailboats aren't the only objects of interest. "Some years ago a Cuban refugee boat landed on the beach just below the deck," Thayer recalled. "Also, I enjoy having a close-up view of the activity on the beach and in the water that my first-floor perspective allows."

Key West artist Dick Moody has painted a white heron mural on one deck wall and a great blue heron on the opposite wall. There is more of Moody's vibrant mural work in the kitchen, which he has decorated with tropical exuberance, replete with palms, birds and Thayer's much-loved frogs.

The backsplash of green and blue tiles complements Moody's vision. To step into the kitchen, with its sky-blue ceiling and colorfully painted cabinets and counters, is not unlike entering Nancy Forrester's Secret Garden or the Key West Tropical Forest & Botanical Garden. Each trip into the kitchen for a snack or beverage is an adventurous jungle trek -- and it's mosquito-free.

The guest room features two twin beds and a small lanai dining area where guests can take their morning coffee in privacy. "They always prefer to sit on the deck with their coffee," Thayer smiled. A small office off the kitchen features a fold-up Murphy bed, which provides an additional sleeping option.

The walls of the master bedroom became the canvas for Key West artist Sherry Sweet Tewell's frangipani murals. "I asked Sherry to highlight my lighted display of frog art with flowers," Thayer said. Tewell's art took on a life of its own. Now all the bedroom walls are adorned with flowering frangipanis. Above the master bed is a large print of two parrots, lest you forget you're in the subtropics.

In the master shower, Moody, noted for his trompe l'oeil paintings, whimsical sculptures, antiques cars and lovely wife, Kathleen -- not in that order -- has created a recessed heron in white mosaic tile. It resembles an intricate intaglio.

"The tile is simply 1-inch tiles cut to fit," Moody said. "The hard part is to cut the full size tiles to fit the mosaic." The effect is striking: The heron appears ready to step out and move on. The remaining shower walls are finished in blue and green mosaic tiles.

Thayer enjoys the best of two worlds: Cape Cod in the summer, Key West in the winter. Her Beach Club condo is an idyllic tropical retreat perched next to the Atlantic Ocean and with quick access to all the cultural amenities the Southernmost City offers.

For Thayer, life is good. And if she could speak, Jasmine would be quick to agree.

George Fontana, a freelance writer and recovering innkeeper, divides his time between Key West and Cape Cod.