While perusing Laura Fenton’s captivating new book, The Little Book of Living Small, we were delighted to see designer Glenn Ban‘s compact East Hamptons home featured. Julie wrote about his Provincetown cottage a few years ago, and it remains one of our favorite beach houses we’ve covered on our site.
No surprise, Glenn’s Long Island hideaway, measuring just 600 square feet, is just as charming and refined. “I’ve always lived in smaller spaces. I connect with them. I like being able to see a home and its intentions,” he tells us, while conceding that “living small does force you to make choices, but it doesn’t mean you can’t be creative.”
No, it doesn’t. And this tidy little home is proof of that. Built in the early 1800s as just a single room, it was used mainly as an artists’ retreat. Though more rooms (two bedrooms, a kitchen, and a bathroom) were added in later years, it remains a humble, characterful abode—just the way Glenn prefers it.
Above: Glenn transformed the enclosed porch into a mudroom/reading room. His affinity for a neutral palette, natural textures, and vintage and antique objects is clear from the get-go. Above: Glenn sold this house this past summer (he has since resettled in nearby Sag Harbor). His favorite room while living here, though, was this one: “It has wonderful natural light and allowed me to create a cozy spot to read or just drop towels after the beach.” Above: The Donald Judd-inspired plywood daybed was built for his old home but fit nicely here. Above it hangs a photograph of a Cape Cod beach by his friend Barry Balczun. Above: Another favorite feature: the wooden ceiling beams in the living room, the original “single room” from the 1800s. Above: “I love vintage furniture and objects and include them not only in my home, but also my clients’ homes. I think they offer a level of interest that’s necessary when developing an interior. My favorite resources are online auctions, 1stdibs, Chairish, Etsy, but I also love a good tag sale, vintage shop, or flea market.” Above: Two modest-sized bedrooms, nearly identical in size are just off the main living area. Above: Each bedroom is big enough for just a bed and a couple pieces of small furniture. Above: While collections of his favorite objects and art can be found in the main living areas, the sleeping quarters remain pleasingly serene and bare. Above: A Saarinen table in the dining area is a modern counterpoint to antique wooden chairs. Above: The kitchen, humble and practical, was left untouched. Above: Glenn brought in a large bookcase for more storage in the kitchen. “Play with scale,” he advises. “Sometimes people tend to buy furniture and objects that are too small. Take a risk. Bring in something a little off. Often that’s what a space needs.” Above: The exterior is clad in classic cedar shingles.
When you register as a free Member of the Remodelista family of websites (Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home), you gain access to all current posts plus 10 archived posts per month, our internal bookmarking tool, and the community bulletin board.
Access 10 archived posts (older than one year) per month on each site
Use of our internal bookmark tool, so you can save products, posts, and other pages for quick reference
Access to our community bulletin board so you can ask and answer design-related questions
Unlimited access to the Product Catalogs, Design Travel sources, and Architect & Designer Directory listings
Choose from our ten newsletters to keep up with the latest on the sites
Or Subscribe for Maximum Value!
For $5/month ($59.99 paid annually) you'll enjoy unlimited, ad-free access to Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home and all the benefits of Membership.
Annual subscribers pay 50% off the monthly subscription price of $9.99
×
Subscribe to the Remodelista family of websites
For $5/month ($59.99 paid annually) you'll enjoy unlimited, ad-free access to Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home and all the benefits of Membership.
Annual subscribers pay 50% off the monthly subscription price of $9.99
×
Sorry! As a registered member you get 10 free posts from our archive (posts more than a year old) every 30 days. You have reached your limit for this 30-day period. If you would like to access unlimited posts from the archive (ad free, too), become a subscriber today, and keep reading as many articles as you want.
Full Access Individual Subscription
Benefits include:
Unlimited access to Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home sites
Ad-free browsing environment
Unrestricted access to 30,000+ archived posts
Receive the full-text daily newsletters
All features that Members have access to
Annual subscribers pay just 50% off the monthly subscription price of $9.99
Sorry! You have reached your limit of three (3) free posts from our archive every 30 days. You can increase this to 10 posts by joining as a free Member, or read unlimited posts with no ads by becoming a paid Subscriber.
Subscribe to the Remodelista family of websites
For $5/month ($59.99 paid annually) you'll enjoy unlimited, ad-free access to Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home and all the benefits of Membership.
Annual subscribers pay 50% off the monthly subscription price of $9.99
Become a Member at no charge
When you register as a free Member of the Remodelista family of websites (Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home), you gain access to all current posts plus 10 archived posts per month, our internal bookmarking tool, and the community bulletin board.
Have a Question or Comment About This Post?
Start the Conversation