The Perfect Backdrop for a Setting Sun

BEACH HOUSES ARE PART OF THE CLASSIC SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA BACKDROP. OCEANSIDE RESIDENTS choose interior styles to suit their personal vision, but more often than not they are casual, comfortable and filled with possessions that don’t suffer from the sea air. Crisp white fabrics used for slipcovers and upholstery maintain the year-round summer mood. Blue-and-white striped pillows or sunny yellow chaise longue mats of cotton canvas echo sea and sun. The accessories on display--photographs of the ocean, various beach finds, a child’s wooden sailboat--help emphasize the water theme. Underfoot, cool tile or bleached wood floors or simple sisal mats are designed for easy maintenance and sandy feet. A hammock strung on the deck, daybeds for lounging and wicker, rattan and bamboo chairs set in the direction of the setting sun contribute to the beach-house decor.

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Wicker armchairs, $495 each; urn used as table base, $195; pillows, $125 each; picture frame, $80; plastic shopping bag, $15, at Pom Pom, Los Angeles. Towels, $19 each, at select Banana Republic stores. Chenille rug, $520, at Lawrence of La Brea, Los Angeles. Sailboat, $165, and wooden bowl, $50, at Heaven on La Brea, Los Angeles. Driftwood lamp, $1,200, at Twentieth, Los Angeles. Wooden bird, $95, at Outside, Los Angeles.