Considering fashion designer Vera Wang's renowned taste, is it any wonder that she admired her late father's Palm Beach oceanfront home, a 1923 mansion designed by noted society architect Addison Mizner? Not at all.

"I've always been fascinated by Mizner," Wang says. "To me, he did 'Spanish lite.' His whimsical style was never as heavy as the castles in Spain. He always adapted that sense of romance."

She also appreciates Mizner's legendary architectural quirks: "His houses have stood the test of time. His architecture is dramatic, and some features aren't quite proportioned. That's how I find it unique."

And suppose she was asked to design a Mizner-inspired dress – what would it look like?

"I would do something that would have an uneven hem line," she says, without hesitation. "I'd use very exotic color combinations for a feeling of whimsy. Then, to make it a little weirder, I'd wash the fabric. To represent his love of nature – he built to enjoy nature – I'd maybe add some peacock feathers, or something having to do with fauna or leaves."

She adds: "That sense of whimsy I'd love to capture."

Wang and her brother, Kenneth Wang, inherited Villa Tranquilla at 640 S. Ocean Blvd. from their father, C.C. Wang, who bought it in 1995.

"My father had just been diagnosed with cancer, and this is the place where the family would gather. My children, nieces and nephews grew up in that house," Wang recalls. "It gave us a root in Palm Beach."

Offered for sale by the Palm Beach brokerage of Corcoran Group for $19 million, the Spanish Mediterranean-style residence presides over an acre of oceanfront at the corner of South Ocean Boulevard and El Brillo Way, several blocks south of Worth Avenue in the Estate Section.

It was designed for Dr. DeGrimm Renfro, and Mizner fashioned it after his own residence, Concha Marina. With a total square footage of 11,654 – and 9,706 of that indoors – the villa has 11 bedrooms and 10 bathrooms.

Landmarked by the Town of Palm Beach, the house abounds in all architecture Mizneresque, including its L-shaped layout. So that the entire eastern façade could be devoted to ocean views, the architect placed the front door on the north wing facing El Brillo Way.

The entire property is walled to ensure privacy. The main entrance is accessed through wrought-iron gates by way of a charming bricked courtyard edged in greenery. Recessed into a stone-carved arch are rectilinear carved pecky-cypress front double doors with a fanlight above them.

Inside, the vestibule is castle-like, with stone walls and vaulted ceilings that Mizner is said to have copied from a monastery. A second set of doors, twin to the entry, is found to the south and opens onto the home's swimming pool and adjacent patios.

Strolling west from the foyer, one enters the first floor of the two-story addition, which once housed staff quarters. According to Mizner's Florida by historian Donald W. Curl, Mizner remodeled the entrance façade and added several staff rooms in 1931. Later, architect Marion Sims Wyeth enlarged the staff area.

Wang is married to Arthur Becker, and their two children, Cecilia, 17, and Josephine, 14, have enjoyed this part of the house, with its large sitting room, bedroom and bathroom that serves as a perfect retreat for teenagers.

"I'm not a socialite," Wang says. "I do, though, enjoy what Palm Beach has to offer – golf, (easy access to) CityPlace, Worth Avenue. My daughters love Palm Beach, because they (can) have friends at home."

She recalls that when her children were younger, the residence – which Wang calls a "multi-generational house" because of its size and layout – often brimmed with activity.

"Sometimes, it felt like a day-care center. The kids would all come over and run around," Wang says. "I took great pride in that."

Farther west in the floor plan is a spiral staircase leading to the staff quarters, a gym, a three-car garage and the chauffeur's quarters.

On the ocean side of the property, the home seems to revel in it its 1920s Mizner roots. A second foyer forms the hub for this part of the house, with a stairwell leading to the second floor. The home also has an elevator.

Heading east on the ground level, one comes to the dining room, placed on the north side of the house and distinctive with its pecky-cypress beams, double fireplaces, arched china display shelves and original Cuban-tile floor. On the east side of the room are colonnaded triple arches, with other arches to the north and south. All the openings are fitted with French doors and fan windows to capture ocean views. Next to the dining room are two kitchens.

Moving into the south wing, one finds the formal living room, loggia and a second loggia. All of these rooms have repeating glassed arches that view the sea. On the west side, repeating glassed archways look out to the pool and its extensive patio area.

The living room's coffered ceiling of old pecky cypress with painted decorations is exquisite. In the center of each coffered area is a gilt sunflower. A green cloverleaf pattern is painted on the beams of the coffers and on the crown molding.

Among the room's other architectural features is a large stone fireplace with an inscription chiseled into its front: Sperate et Virite et Fortes – "Hope and Live Boldly." The room also has built-in display shelves for china, intricately carved entry doors and a floor of octagon-shaped Cuban tiles inset with dark green squares.

Vera Wang furnished the living room simply with a creamy color scheme to let the architecture make the boldest design statements. Some of the furniture was designed by Mizner, too – a stunning commode and a corner cabinet.

Wang's family has used the northernmost loggia as a den. With its built-in wet bar and stone fireplace, the room has architectural features similar to the living room, with arched windows to the east and west. Pecky-cypress washed paneling covers the walls and the beamed ceiling, which is embellished by corbels.

With its floors of coral Keystone, the second loggia is simpler in design, although it, too, has a pecky-cypress ceiling, columns and triple arched glass doors. The windows to the far south open onto a secret garden.

Back at the second foyer, the stairway winds gracefully upwards, its shape emphasized by the original Mizner wrought-iron railing and the arched windows. On the second floor landing is a seating area and a tiled balcony overlooking the pool.

In the portion of the house facing east are the master suite and four guest bedrooms, each with its own bathroom. The bedroom in the northeast corner, meanwhile, has a balcony and fireplace and could easily serve as a second master suite.

The expansive cream-and-white master suite – furnished simply but with elegance and crowned by a chandelier – stands to the far south. The bedroom is distinguished by crown molding and a fireplace with a marble surround and a carved-wood mantle. The room has eastern and western views along with his-and-her dressing rooms, closets and bathrooms.

Outside, the grounds feature mature landscaping, five fountains and a 12-car parking court. The pool is bordered by a variety of keystone patios and outdoor living spaces, including a covered loggia off of the living room. The loggia, too, has columns and arches that complement the rest of the home's architecture. It also has an original Mizner chandelier and a coral Keystone floor. 

For information about 640 S. Ocean Blvd., call listing agents Jim McCann at (561) 296-8720 or Geoffrey Thomas at (561) 252-3860.