Rub shoulders with beach lovers from across the globe at Seaside Chic, Janice Riordan’s magnet for homeowners with a penchant for coastal style. “Our clients could be from Ohio or Connecticut; they don’t have to live on the water. What they have in common is a desire to integrate wonderful beach memories into their lives,” Riordan explains.

She obliges with everything to create the look, from furniture to area rugs to chandeliers and exquisite hand-embroidered accent pillows. “The idea is to recapture the soothing atmosphere of the beach, to leave your worries behind. I call it the Feel Good Factor,” she says.

And she should know. “I was a registered nurse, but I left the field 20 years ago for design. Both are about helping people—in different ways. Our surroundings are important to how we feel,” she says.

Seaside Chic, 217 W. Venice Ave., Venice (941) 483-1177

Get Janice’s Look

“Coastal style is more than lighthouses and seashells. Expand your horizons,” says Riordan. Seaside Chic is about elegant fabrics and accessories that create stress-free environments with nature-inspired elements, like her Rainforest ginkgo lamps (from $425).

What this town needs: “Venice needs a hip new hotel to attract young, affluent people the way the Ritz does in Sarasota. A big hotel wouldn’t fly here, but a five-star mini hotel would. We could also use one really good large-scale restaurant—a destination like Mattison’s.”

Can’t live without: Color. “My home is very Zen—neutral with pops of color. Landscape plays a big part in creating my clients’ color schemes: browns, rust and greens if it’s woodsy; sea greens and blues if they overlook water.” (Round table lamp with rust leaves, $469.)