Flip Flop Inn guests in summer 2023 will notice a few changes to the kitchen area, including all new stainless steel appliances, a flattened island countertop with a larger 5-burner 36-in cooktop, overhead draft vent, and new quartzite counter tops. We wanted to maintain the warmth of our hickory cabinets, so we had new custom cabinets fabricated to house the oven under the cooktop where the old slide-in stove stood and for the new oven/microwave/warming drawer (of course, the cut out dimensions for the new appliances were not the same as the old appliances). To complement the natural look of the coastal North Carolina cypress and hickory in the living area, we selected a gray-blue quartzite with brown veining for the counter top and back spash. We think you’ll agree the flattened island provides an air of openness and maintains the fantastic oceanviews (even I, at 6’7″ am not obstructed by the island vent duct), Finally, the Zephyr Anzio island vent fan provides improved cooking ventilation over the old Jenn-Air down draft.

The Flip Flop Inn and Pearl-by-the-Sea have handicapped accessible walkways from their lower oceanfront decks to a 12×12 deck at the toe of the dune. This was a huge undertaking and we know it will be appreciated by guests for both houses. The walkway is constructed with ipe deck boards with all stainless steel fasteners. Screws are counter sunk and plugged so that no fasteners are exposed on the deck surface. Railings are TimberTech composite rails.

Topsail Island’s name is supposedly derived from its nefarious history, however, this is still debatable among the locals on the Island. According to popular belief, pirates used to hide in the channel between the island and the mainland waiting for merchant ships loaded with goods to pass. The pirates would attack the ships and claim the cargo as their own. Eventually the merchants became aware of the hiding place and began looking for the topsail, which was supposedly the only part of the pirate ship that could be seen by the passing victim. There is a legend that Blackbeard hid his treasure on Topsail Island and that prior to WWII, treasure hunters searched for the hidden gems and gold throughout the islands’ maritime forests.