Janet Butler 
This surfside residence in Montauk (the Hamptons), NY, isn’t just any beach house: it’s a superb luxury house with four bedrooms and four bathrooms, designed by Steven Harris LLP. It’s not a huge home: when you look at it, it’s rather compact, a little gem tucked among the greenery; that being said, floor-to-ceiling glass walls, offering panoramic views of shore and countryside, make it seem much bigger — especially with its handy private courtyard and Gunite pool literally steps away from the living area. Love to hang ten? Go down a short flight of steps and you’re on your own private beach, with some of the best surfing in the county. If you’re an angler, fishing from that beach is equally rewarding. Naturally, at a beach house, you’ll want to do most of your living outdoors — but the indoors here has plenty of visual interest, too.
Open-air bedrooms let you wake up to sky and surf; an open plan living/dining/kitchen area means entertaining is easy. Note the clever storage, camouflaged behind charcoal-toned wall units, off the kitchen; through glass doors is a totally-pampering bathroom. Wood is a unifying element: in the flooring, as a cabinet for the entertainment center (notice the whimsical “swimmer” art above it!), in the oval dining table, framing the main living area’s glass windows. And at times, this can feel as much like a treehouse as a beach home: notice the “floating” quality of the second floor, suspended as it is over the pool. Views are premium here; water sports go without saying; and relaxation is the order of the day. However long you spend “surfside,” you’ll come away refreshed.
