At Home with Katie Lee

When Katie Lee bought her Hamptons house, she was afraid of how much work it needed — not because it was old and dilapidated but because it was brand-new. The 6,700-square-foot shingle-style house in Water Mill, NY, had no decor, and there was virtually no landscaping. “It needed some personality in a bad way,” she recalls. Katie loves antiques but didn’t know how to take this place from blank canvas to homey retreat — until her designer friend Nate Berkus offered his help. They filled her garage with furniture and accessories, “and then we just played,” she says. “It was like putting a puzzle together.” They added character to all those white walls with textured papers and paint in pretty shades of green, Katie’s favorite color. She loves how cozy and inviting the interior is, but the main draw is the backyard: “Entertaining in the Hamptons is all about being outside, so I like that the living room and bar area lead straight out to the porch,” she says. “My friends make a drink and then take it right to the pool. It all just flows.”

Katie loves the round marble table in the foyer because it’s the perfect catchall — and at 1,200 pounds, it’s way too heavy to move elsewhere. She chose pale green paint for the walls, inspired by the Laduree macaron shops in Paris, and a friend made her the (functional) wooden surfboard that Katie displays as art.

Katie grew up in a house where the dining room was never used, so “I wanted to make mine fun — somewhere people can hang out and not feel like the etiquette police are coming,” she says, laughing. She accented the room with kilim and sisal rugs, emerald printed pillows and art deco–inspired wallpaper.

Katie comes out to the house year-round from her apartment in New York City, and the den is her go-to spot for all seasons. “It’s cozy in the summer,” she says, “but it’s also great with a roaring fire.” She painted the walls a deep green, hung velvet curtains, then mixed in brass accents, like her 18th-century coffee table and much newer peacock mirror that Nate persuaded her to hang over the stone fireplace.