A Look Inside Some of the Most Whimsical Homes in Palm Beach

Ever since it was established around the turn of the 20th century by the oil baron Henry M. Flagler, Palm Beach has been home to some of the most glamorous residences in the country. In grand mansions designed by legendary architects like Addison Mizner, Marion Sims Wyeth and Maurice Fatio, cozy apartments and whimsical cottages, the locals have a knack for putting their own, often idiosyncratic stamps on their homes.

Few people know this better than Jennifer Ash Rudick, the author of the new book, Palm Beach Chic (Vendome Press, $75). Her mother was the longtime the publisher of the Palm Beach Daily News, better known around town as The Shiny Sheet, and Jennifer became an expert on its houses and landmarks. Her first book, Tropical Style: Private Palm Beach, came out in 1992, when, as she explains in the new book's introduction, "new edifices had not challenged the imperial ladies of the 1920s." But in the two-plus decades since then, a new crop of glamorous houses appeared, along with an interest in gardens by renowned designers like Mario Nievera, and Palm Beach Chic, with photographs by Jessica Klewicki Glynn, visits some of these newer dwellings—from sprawling villas to sleek condominiums--in addition to some of the classics. Herewith, a sampling:

The noted theatrical producer Terry Allen Kramer built this 43,000-square-foot Italian Renaissance-style house, designed by the architect Jeff Smith, in 1995; the morning room is shown here. Jennifer Ash Rudick calls this house the impetus for Palm Beach's "next mansion boom."

Palm Beach isn't all mansions; this poolside office is located in one of the six 1920s Georgian-revival cottages in Major Alley, named for its architect, Howard Major.

Two 1920s cottages were transformed by Liza Pulitzer Calhoun, the daughter of the Palm Beach fashion icon Lily Pulitzer. The rooms' colorful, beachy interiors—like the vintage bar, painted to resemble pecky cypress, shown here—reflect its owners' relaxed, indoor-outdoor lifestyle.

The West Palm Beach home of the Swedish designer and antiques dealer Lars Bolander and his wife, the artist Nadine Kalachnikoff boasts lofty proportions, a worldly, eclectic mix of furnishings, and lush verandas like the one shown here.

The oldest surviving house in Palm Beach by Addison Mizner, this 1919 structure had fallen into serious disrepair before being renovated by its current owner and decorated by David Easton; its exterior is typical of Mizner's Mediterranean-revival style.

The noted contemporary art collector Beth Rudin DeWoody's house and garden are filled with art, including "Lovestream," an Airstream trailer that was transformed by the artist Randy Palumbo.

William and Katherine Rayner's Orientalist dream of a house was designed by Peter Marino to include things like the Turkish pavilion shown here, with its carved wooden doorways framing views of a Persian garden.

The dining room of designer Meg Braff's West Palm Beach apartment plays bright, vibrant colors off the sunlit white of the walls.

Addison Mizner's Worth Avenue arcades are famous, but the grandly-proportioned apartments he designed above them are a well-kept secret, changing hands only rarely. When one became available, a local couple couldn't resist.