February 3, 2015

Lake House Update & A Home for "The Beef"

We were able to stop by my dad’s lake house project last week on a trip back from High Point and I’m so excited about how it’s feeling over there!!!  I’m not quite sure why, but there’s something I love about the “almost there” phase of construction… when the walls and raw floors, doors and woodwork are in but it’s hasn’t been put back together yet…  When the cabinets are laid out without the countertops and empty electrical boxes are waiting for light fixtures.  I love the smell of all of the wood and being able to see everything take shape, envisioning exactly how things will feel when it’s finished and getting excited because you’re only a month or so away.  That feeling of anticipation….  (My husband finds my love of this phase ridiculous and much prefers it a month from now 😉

Anyway, for those of you who enjoy this Pavlov’s dog phase of construction as much as I do, today I’m sharing a bunch of photos and updates.

Starting at the top of the house, is one of the (3) master bedrooms.  (There’s a master on each floor of the house… a very “vacation home” like set up that’s great for multiple families staying there at one time.)  This is the bedroom Dave & I plan on staying in when we visit:

 

We’ve added shiplap in every bedroom of the house…  It’s made such a difference, adding character, age, and a coastal feel to the house.

We added a skylight to the windowless master bath -and a high window in the shower is also going in this week- for natural light while maintaining privacy.  It’s hard to tell scale from the photo below but the shower is approx 4′ feet deep to give you an idea:

What we call “the catwalk”- which overlooks the great room- is upstairs just outside the master.  We added the doors to replace three differently-sized windows.  The balconies will be here soon!!

The master bedroom on the main level will be my dad’s:

It has a fireplace and walks out onto a covered porch.  Here’s my plan  (please excuse my sad drawing skills!!) for the new fireplace stone:

 

The main floor master is down a small hall from the great room: 

I can’t wait to see how it looks with the new railings!!  The floors will be oiled in “natural” woca oil, and the doors and windows will be black to accentuate the views.  Walls and trim will be in Benjamin Moore’s “Swiss coffee,” an ivory.  This house will be a bit cooler feeling than our house, with crisp blues, whites and grays.

My FAVORITE thing happening in this house was something we added on last week.  (I’d been mulling it over for a while, first deciding to do nothing but when we visited, couldn’t help going there.) In the photo below, you can see that there is a sort of platform above the closet/ refrigerator wall between the entry and the kitchen.  This wall was always there but it was angled and I squared it off so the kitchen would be symmetrical from the LR, and widened it to add the entry closet.  Well, I can’t help looking at it and feeling like it looks odd/ unfinished… and like it would be the perfect place for a little crow’s nest.  With views through the doors on the catwalk to the lake, I think it will make the perfect little hangout/ reading (more likely, nerf-gun shooting) spot.  We’re adding a railing and a removable ladder leading up to it and there will be a narrow bookshelf on the wall.  Maybe a chair or two and/or floor pillows.  I love little spots like this and think the kids will flip.  It was a HUGE point of contention between me and my dad – he doesn’t want the house to look like a “fun house”- but he’s on board now.  Hope he likes it!!

The new kitchen cabinets and sink are in place.  Appliances will go in this week.  I’m bringing in a couple of small antique “island” options to try out.  I decided to keep the walls of the kitchen bare of shelves (except the area with open shelving by the refrigerator) because we have enough storage throughout and because it was just feeling awkward to me (in my mind) when I pictures shelves planking the windows.   Plate and glass racks will be set into the lower drawers.  I plan on hanging utilitarian pieces like cutting/bread/cheese boards (I think we have at least 8 propped on our countertops at home so hanging them will be great for us) and possibly pots and pans if we have room.  (The countertops will be bluestone and the backsplash will be a 16″ high bluestone slab so there isn’t a huge amount of space for hanging above them.)

Here’s a little peek at some of my favorite vintage pieces that are going to the house:

{Cream leather. rattan rocker…. SOOOOOO comfy!!}

{Rattan nailhead dining chairs.. also really comfortable with lots of patina!!}

Moving onto the basement…  The basement was really dark before…  It had ten foot ceilings  (and almost 10- foot ceilings in areas) and a lot of potential.  With soon-to-be-four kids, the basement was extremely important to us because we know we’ll be spending lots of time down there.  The TV will be in the basement family room and it walks out onto a patio under the deck and right down a little boardwalk to the water.

The room is actually massive but it’s hard to tell because of the door size.  (I think it’s almost 18-20 feet wide??)  We removed the old doors and replaced with  8′ high doors.  It’s so sunny now!!

We took a tiny office and opened up a large closet under the stairs to create a bunk room for the boys:

The basement master has been completely transformed… It was SO dark before with two small windows…  We added more 8′ doors across the entire back wall and added three smaller windows on another wall:

It now feels like a room of glass.  You can see right down to the water and it’s so light & airy with its soaring ceiling!!

We install all of the furnishings/ art/ accessories in early March- it feels so far away but I know time will fly like usual.  I CAN’T WAIT!!!  This place is going to be so special for our family… So much quality time and fun.  My grandparents in Chicago used to bring the family out to their lake house every weekend in the Summertime, starting when my dad was a little kid and until they passed away.

I remember hot summer nights with all of the cousins crammed into rooms and staying up late at night talking with the AC window units blaring.  I remember my dad sneaking out early in the mornings to fish with my uncle and older cousins.  I remember picking flowers, vegetables and fruit with my Grandma Maestranzi at the cottage when the big kids went out boating.  My grandma & I used to put flowers around the house for Mary and it was one of my favorite things to do.  I remember very loud meals and the most delicious homemade minestroni and garden fresh salata ever.  And always beef.  (In our family “the beef” is like another person.  It’s always talked about, thought about, and prepared with care. No Sunday at the lake house was complete without it.)

{A view from one of the balconies}

I hope that one day soon my dad’s new lake house can be something like that.  It won’t be the same without my grandma & Nanoo, but we’ve got a new generation of cousins, and my dad is now “Nanoo” to my kids.   

It’s time for new fishing stories, fresh little skiers, long lazy days, chatty summer nights,  loud family meals, and of course, “the beef.”   

Subscribe
Notify of

562 Comments
Oldest
Newest
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Guest

bimatoprost purchase canada https://carepro1st.com/

Guest
4 years ago
Guest
4 years ago

canadian pharmacies
canadian pharmacy

Guest
JamesTeask
4 years ago

viagra cheap generic viagra canadian pharmacy viagra

Guest
JamesTeask
4 years ago

viagra from india buy cheap viagra viagra price

Guest
4 years ago

kamagra 100mg oral jelly review
https://kamagrarex.com/
kamagra rendelГ©s budapest

Guest
4 years ago

best viagra soft pills
viagra pornhub
viagra and cialis best price

Guest

kamagra shop deutschland erfahrungen
kamagra oral jelly cost in india
kamagra oral jelly india

Guest
4 years ago

cost of generic viagra from teva canada
price comparison with cialis and viagra
viagra vs cialis vs levitra price comparison

Guest
4 years ago

kamagra usa next day shipping
https://kamagradt.com/
kamagra oral jelly ohne wirkung

Guest

kamagra forum hr
kamagra oral jelly in thailand
kamagra reviews users

Guest
4 years ago

reviews of viagra professional user
what is generic viagra professional
viagra feminino ja chegou no brasil

Guest
4 years ago

kamagra jelly usa
kamagra 100mg
kamagra oral jelly for sale in usa

Guest
4 years ago

cialis price comparison walmart
levitra cialis viagra price comparison
viagra cialis levitra genericos

Guest

super kamagra kaufen
kamagra gold 100mg reviews
kamagra oral jelly india online

Guest
4 years ago

kamagra 100mg side effects
https://kamagraltd.com/
kamagra oral jelly wirkungsdauer

Guest

kamagra oral jelly cvs
kamagra oral jelly amazon
kamagra jelly usa

Guest
4 years ago

cialis vs viagra vs levitra
viagra generic name funny
viagra dose and the elderly

Guest
4 years ago

cost of generic viagra from teva
viagra tablets
viagra side effects for men heart condition

Guest
4 years ago

I was wondering if you ever considered changing the
structure of your website? Its very well written; I love what youve
got to say. But maybe you could a little more in the way of content so people could connect with it
better. Youve got an awful lot of text for only having
one or two images. Maybe you could space it out better?

Guest

prices of viagra cialis and levitra
viagra ad actress cuddle up
viagra brand 100mg uk price

Guest
4 years ago

best prices for generic cialis
cialis v viagra comparison
best price cialis canadian pharmacy

Guest
4 years ago

cialis price vs viagra cost comparison
https://cialgen.com/
cialis tab 20mg x 8

Guest
4 years ago

walmart pharmacy cialis 20mg price
cialis coupon walmart
cost viagra versus cialis

Guest
4 years ago

kamagra store filagra
kamagra 100mg reviews
kamagra 100mg tablets for sale uk

Guest

kamagra 100mg oral jelly amazon
kamagra 100mg tablets china
kamagra oral jelly wirkung

Guest
what does viagra do
4 years ago

viagra and cialis dosage and costs
name of generic for viagra
woman in blue dress in new viagra commercial

Guest
4 years ago

the medical supply store kamagra
kamagra in usa kaufen
kamagra store gutschein

Guest
4 years ago

kamagra 100mg amazon
kamagra forum 2014
kamagra jelly india for sell

Guest

kamagra 100mg
kamagra 100mg tablets indian
kamagra oral jelly review

Guest
4 years ago

kamagra store in ny
https://kamagradt.com/
kamagra gold jelly

Guest
viagra online cheap
4 years ago

viagra generico in italia senza ricetta
buy generic viagra dapoxetine online
female viagra review

Guest
4 years ago

viagra and cialis dosage strength comparison
cheapest viagra
generic viagra professional 100 mg

Guest
4 years ago

Brand
cialis for daily use cialis crush cialis

Guest
4 years ago

viagra natural sin receta
generic viagra sell at walmart pharmacy
viagra prices cvs pharmacy

Guest
4 years ago

local physicians near me channel a doctor
kamagra jelly
kamagra

Guest
4 years ago

when is viagra contraindicated sildenafil buy online is it safe to take a double dose of viagra how old do you have to be to buy viagra how many psychiatrists write prescriptions for viagra

Guest
4 years ago

generic viagra best online caffe e viagra can u take viagra with food

Guest
4 years ago

college essay 500 words or less research paper writing published research papers

Guest
3 years ago

cialisblack howard stern commercial cialis cialis supplier uk

Guest
3 years ago

Aigjjyx ngg66m cialis without a doctor prescription. oregon health plan what to do with a stroke victim.

Guest
3 years ago

buy viagra paypal cialis viagra gr how much does viagra cost australia

Guest
3 years ago

can the mother of my child be on my health insurance in tennessee what is the difference between acute rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease. online pharmacy Oknk32q bjod33

Guest
3 years ago

Ebcjbws zorviga online pharmacies. find a medi cal doctor how to get free stop smoking aids patches.

Guest
3 years ago
Guest
3 years ago
Guest
3 years ago
Guest
3 years ago

best drugstore eyeshadow best drugstore lipstick best drug store foundation

Guest
3 years ago

canadian pharmacy reviews pharmacy rx world online pharmacies

Guest
3 years ago

longs drug store pharmacy cheap drug store near me

Join Our Newsletter

Sign up to receive design inspo, exclusive content, shopping guides, and more.