If you’re a kindred spirit who finds your peace by the coast and your joy in a well-loved home, I am so glad you’re here. Welcome!
I’ve always been a homebody and to me, home should feel like the ultimate retreat! I believe our environment has a profound impact on our mood, and that belief has shaped many of my life decisions - including my move to California and even starting my business, Cailíní Coastal (more to come on both!).
East Coast Roots, West Coast Dreams
I grew up in the suburbs of New York City, but my heart was always happiest at the beach. The highlights of childhood summers were our family vacations in Avalon and LBI, New Jersey, and visiting friends out East on Long Island. That strong pull toward the water stayed with me and in my mid-20s, I moved from New York City to Los Angeles, California to chase the dream of coastal-living year round.
California holds so much of my adult history. I made some of my closest friends, met my husband (a fellow New Yorker!) in Santa Monica, we were married in my favorite California town, Santa Barbara, we welcomed both of our daughters there and I started my business Cailíní Coastal from our garage in Manhattan Beach (more on that Founder story soon!). It was an incredibly full and wonderful chapter, but after a decade of living my California dream, we decided to move back East to be closer to family.
We landed in Westport, CT - the perfect idyllic New England town that gave us access to both the city and the coast.
Finding Our Nantucket Sanctuary
While I love our life in Connecticut, we found ourselves vacationing on Nantucket every summer, falling deeper in love with its beautiful landscape, laid back living and historic charm. In 2024, we bought a home on island. We weren’t reallly looking, but it was meant to be. I will share that story another time!
I started the @ackbeachhouse instagram account as a creative outlet during the design process of transforming our Nantucket home (a former bachelor pad) into our family’s retreat. It was a place for me to play with design outside of my business, but it turned into something much more - a way to connect with islanders, island-lovers, and people like you who are simply happiest by the coast. There are so many of us who share that joy!
What to Expect
This Substack is an extension of my joy for all things coastal living. It’s a space where I can go a little deeper than a 15-second Instagram slide. I’m sure this will evolve but I plan to focus on the following and please let me know what else you’d be interested in!
Coastal Design: Sharing resources for everything in both of my homes (from paint colors to custom finds).
Travel Guides: My favorite coastal destinations from New England to Santa Barbara & beyond!
Coastal Lifestyle: From my favorite apparel to local artisans you should know.
Nantucket Life: Real-time updates on island life through the seasons.
Speaking of seasons, we are heading to our very first Daffodil Festival this weekend. I’m so excited to see the island in full bloom and share the magic with you next week!
Being by the coast brings me a kind of joy and calm I don’t experience anywhere else, and my hope is to share a little bit of that peaceful lifestyle with you through this platform.
If this resonated with you, I’d love for you to subscribe. It’s a joy to share this slice of coastal life with you.
Warmly from the coast,
Meg
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