What Tommy Hilfiger’s estate says about getting that “resort at home” vibe on a budget

Tommy Hilfiger’s homes get labeled “over-the-top,” but when you strip away the square footage, the formula is simple: strong architecture, one memorable moment per room, and playful color grounded by classic bones.

His Palm Beach place, reworked with Martyn Lawrence Bullard, reads like a relaxed coastal hotel—arched openings, stone underfoot, and rooms that flow outdoors. The details are grand, but the ideas translate.

Lead with bones and flow

You notice the layout first: broad openings, sightlines that connect living and dining, and covered outdoor rooms that feel like extensions of the house. Even in smaller homes, you can echo that by widening a doorway with trim, repeating an arch shape in a mirror, or defining a “loggia” with an outdoor rug and two chairs. When rooms talk to each other, everything feels more resort than residential.

Pick one “moment” and keep the rest calm

In Hilfiger’s properties—Miami, Greenwich, Palm Beach—the team lets a single feature sing: a lacquered wall color, a sculptural light, or a graphic art piece. Everything around it goes quieter—slipcovered seating, pale floors, natural textures—so the room feels chic, not busy. At home, that might be one bold paint color on a bar nook or a big piece of art over a clean-lined sofa. One star, solid supporting cast.

Layer color with discipline

His Miami house is famous for color and pattern, but notice the guardrails: repeated hues, consistent metals, and classic shapes underneath. You can borrow the energy with two repeating colors (say, coral and navy) that pop against a neutral base—linen drapery, sisal rug, light walls. It reads intentional instead of “we bought the whole aisle.”

Treat outdoor space like a real room

Resort at home lives outside: a shaded seat, a small table, and lighting you don’t have to fuss with. Copy the Hilfiger approach by creating zones—dining, lounging, a bar cart—then repeating one material (teak, powder-coated metal) for cohesion. Solar path lights and a single plug-in lantern warm it up without hardwiring.

Resort style isn’t about price tags. It’s bones, flow, one confident focal point, and outdoor rooms that feel as considered as the living room. Get those right and your porch or patio starts doing what the Hilfigers’ spaces do—invite you to stay.