
Lounging in the living area that faces the pool.
Photo: Brie Williams

French doors open to the hallway leading to the bath.
Photo: Brie Williams

Fresh orange juice made in the kitchen, window looking out to the private pool.
Photo: Brie Williams

The bath, which opens to an outdoor shower.
Photo: Brie Williams

Guests paddle out to the houseboat on Atchafalaya Basin.
Photo: Cedric Angeles

Chef Marissa Martin bought the secondhand duck-hunting houseboat in 2015.
Photo: Cedric Angeles

Chef Melissa Martin sets flowers on the dinner table.
Photo: Cedric Angeles

Fresh seafood on the edge of Martin’s floating entertaining space.
Photo: Cedric Angeles

Sunday suppers are an all-day affair on this Louisiana house boat.
Photo: Cedric Angeles

Martin hosts up to eight guests at a time on the boat.
Photo: Cedric Angeles

Martin cooks on a camp stove—peel-and-eat crabs and shrimp, fish, plenty of summer produce—and serves it all on the screened porch.
Photo: Cedric Angeles

Sunday supper essentials laid out on the house boat.
Photo: Cedric Angeles

Homeowners Carey Pickard (right) and Chris Howard outside of their 1,600-square-foot converted waterworks station.
Photo: Emily Followill

Guests mingle in the cistern garden in front of a fence with old letters from Pickard’s family business.
Photo: Emily Followill

A guest leans in for a slice of cake created by Mary Virginia Kay Gage that is a scale replica of the rondel garden.
Photo: Emily Followill

Homeowner Chris Howard pours himself a glass of champagne in the garden.
Photo: Emily Followill

A large urn from a public park in Belgium filled with flowers is the center of the cistern garden.
Photo: Emily Followill

Tuteurs (four-sided pyramid-like trellises) and foxgloves.
Photo: Emily Followill

Drinks at a converted Texas cistern, built in the 1880s.
Photo: Kate LeSeur

A board of fresh vegetables, fruit, cheese and honey is served to accompany the gathering.
Photo: Kate LeSeur

Chairs made in Comfort, Texas, inside the structure.
Photo: Kate LeSeur

The large, dramatic sconces on the walls are made by an Austin company called Texas Lightsmith – they are made of a forged copper assembly and two layers of mica with torn top edges. They were handcrafted in Austin.
Photo: Kate LeSeur

Traditional details lend the kitchen a historic feel.
Photo: Eric Piasecki/OTTO

Dramatic wallpaper in a guest bedroom.
Photo: Eric Piasecki/OTTO

French doors suit a Frenchie in this Lowcounty guest house.
Photo: Eric Piasecki/OTTO

Intricate millwork throughout the bath of a Charleston guest house.
Photo: Eric Piasecki/OTTO