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Vacation homes often hold treasured memories: late-night bonfires, sunny days on the water, and special meals with friends and family. But over the years, the family dynamic changes. A home that might once have been suitable for a family with young children may no longer be suitable in 20 years, when those children are adults themselves. The rooms become too small, the bathrooms are dilapidated and suddenly the space no longer functions as it used to.

That’s exactly what happened to one Chicago family after a few decades of owning their Lake Michigan vacation home. “They now have two grown children and were ready to build what we called the ‘legacy lake house’ — the house that would be there for their children and grandchildren,” says Rachel Alcorn, owner and lead designer of Two-handed interiors.

Tasked with expanding this family’s summer cottage into a modern living space that could accommodate friends and family for years to come, Alcorn began the renovation processkeeping a nautical theme in mind. Think shades of blue, coastal decor and wood accents.

Enter the coastal-inspired great room.

We all know the saying: “You never know how many friends you have until you have a beach house.” » Or in this case, a lake house. Alcorn ensured that the kitchen, dining and living areas were suitable for entertaining. It was important to the owners to accommodate many guests without worrying too much about breakage or damage.

“This family is all about entertaining friends and family. We want the kitchen to be very efficient for large groups of people: lots of island space, lots of chairs at the table to play games and eat meals,” says Alcorn. “We don’t want anything too precious.”

Sit on the island or relax in the veranda.

If the seats at the kitchen island are all occupied, this is not a problem. A few steps to the right is a stunning veranda with even more seating. Because who doesn’t love a dining area?

“You can see the dune in the background through the windows and it’s a very private place in the house,” Alcorn says. “The family could sit there without needing window treatments.” They have a view of the changing seasons.

Embrace the nautical life at the house bar.

Incorporating meaningful artwork was important to this family, especially pieces that contributed to the coastal feel of the space. Fortunately, this family’s parents’ husband was a sport fisherman in Florida, and his mother actually caught the marlin photographed above the home bar in the 1970s.

“It hung in his parents’ house for a long time,” Alcorn says. “And now they were saying, ‘We have to hook the marlin somewhere, but where?’ We said, “Let’s look into it, you know? How cool is that?

Head outside from either entrance.

Whether it’s sand seeping in or wet water shoes and dripping swimsuits going in and out at a moment’s notice, lake homes can get messy pretty quickly, which brings us to our next stop, the entrance and locker room. On the left is the front door, the walls decorated with Panel wallpaper Orissa Schumacher. The space features large cabinets, or what Alcorn likes to call an “overflow pantry.”

To the right is the downstairs entry locker room, where owners and guests can enter after spending time on the lake. “It’s supposed to be a super functional locker room. There is a laundry room there. That’s where they go to wash all the beach towels and all the gear is stored,” Alcorn explains.

Bundle up with friends in this open-air bedroom.

How many college-age boys can you sleep comfortably in one bedroom? That was the million-dollar question, according to Alcorn. With three beds and two sofa bedsturns out it’s up to 10. To go along with the layered-style atmosphere, Alcorn opted for a camp, woodsy theme for the space, adorning the walls with flannel wallpaper.

“This room is at the front of the house, which faces more of the woods than the beach. We leaned into this green palette, sort of boy scout kitsch, there,” Alcorn explains.

Head upstairs and relax in the reading nook.

There’s no better way to bring lake vibes indoors than with goldfish accents on the wall, yacht cables along the staircase, and a giant hanging rope light fixture. on the ceiling. “It’s a very large staircase and it’s such an important feature in the house,” says Alcorn. “It looks fabulous.”

The best part? Homeowners can enjoy all of this while relaxing comfortably in their reading nook.

Fall asleep to cool blues.

Keeping with the nautical theme, Alcorn used shades of blue in these two bedrooms, incorporating more of the family history into the home. “The cool thing about this room (left) is that these flags were flying on the woman’s father’s sailboat,” Alcorn says. “These are family heirloom flags that we had framed and installed in the room.”

With a slightly more saturated shade of blue, Alcorn took care of the second bedroom. “We liked the idea of ​​the shiplap in this room, as it is one of the smaller bedrooms. And so sometimes when a space is smaller, we want to make it comfortable,” says Alcorn.

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