This Lakehouse Makeover Will Make You Wish You Owned a Vacation Home

To get the Minnesota classic farmhouse-cottage look, Fries went with board and batten siding painted with Benjamin Moore Simply White. Black metal roofs and barn lights add to the vernacular farmhouse feel, and a low porch wraps around the house. “The porch offers shade and interesting transitions to the interior,” she says. Classic red brick is used on the chimney and fireplace.

The couple designed a house that can accommodate visits from family and friends. The green Dutch door on the right is the entrance to a separate one-bedroom, one-bathroom space with a small kitchen. “We needed to contain the guest quarters under the same roof as the cabin but chose not to connect the two sides through the interior,” Fries says. “Instead, each side of the cabin is entered through exterior doors for added privacy.” This also means they can shut off the heat and air conditioning in the guest area when it is not in use.

Fries’ extended family has a strong connection to the lake. “Every Fourth of July my uncle Donny throws a big party on his beach for family and friends to watch the huge fireworks display put on by the town of Crosslake. Over a hundred boats pull into the bay in front of his cabin to see the show,” she says. And while she loves spending time with her family up here, her friends get a turn as well. “I’d have to say one of my favorite traditions is my college girlfriends’ weekend. We do one in the winter and one in the summer. Lots of laughing and dancing and good wine and food,” she says.

“Small private nooks are found throughout the house,” Fries says. The built-in bench seat next to the fireplace takes advantage of one such nook and provides storage underneath for audio-visual equipment. The designer switches out pillows and blankets to create different looks through the seasons.

Another way she changes things up is with slipcovers. “While living in Shanghai several years ago, I had the dining room chairs made with a variety of slipcovers to create different looks,” she says. She commissioned the same artist who made the gate to make this dining room table, which can expand to seat 12.

The kitchen is a balance of rustic and refined. Wood mullions, a butcher-block counter, board and batten siding, a farmhouse sink and iron-cup drawer pulls bring in the farmhouse style, while honed Carrara marble countertops, amber glass knobs and the snazzy range add sophistication.

“The lounging porch is probably everyone’s favorite part of our cabin,” Fries says. “Family and friends usually grab a drink on their way through the house and head straight to these chairs to watch the kids fishing off the dock or pontoons driving by.” On hot, buggy nights, ceiling fans provide a breeze and keep the insects away. She dresses the chairs with Minnesota’s Faribault Woolen Mill Co. blankets on chilly nights.

The second lower-level bedroom has an all-American design mostly in white with punches of navy and red.

Inside, the boathouse has a sauna, changing room and water toy storage room. “It was pulled together using a mix of leftover barn wood from other projects,” Fries says. The structure is a cozy space right on the water.

When the lake becomes a skating rink during the winter, the boathouse becomes the warming house. The couple strings holiday lights over the area so everyone can enjoy the winter wonderland at night.“There are never enough days in the summer in Minnesota. We feel really lucky that when we go to the cabin, we get to be with extended family. In fact, we see them far more ‘Up North’ than we do when we are home throughout the rest of the year,” Fries says. “I get to go to that place that is so nostalgic for me and experience it again and again with my kids.”