A home on the lake is a special place—a place to enjoy gorgeous views, breathe fresh air, spend days on the water, get away from the city, and spend time with family and friends. Whether your lake house is your primary home, a rental property, the place you’ll retire one day, or a vacation spot that’s been in your family for generations, the interior design of your lake house is an important aspect of creating that magical feeling that helps you forget all your worries and relax in nature.
Lake house design is different from traditional home interior design in several ways. Whether you’re building a lake house and designing from scratch, furnishing and decorating your new lake house, or it’s time for a lake house makeover, these lake house design tips will help you swim, not sink.
There are two main things to keep in mind when designing a lake house: 1) functionality 2) complementing natural surroundings. Now that we’ve dipped our toes in, let’s dive into strategies for designing your perfect lake house.
Highlighting the Lakeside Views
Regardless of how amazing the house is, the lake is still the star of the show. When decorating a lake house, you should be careful not to overshadow or obstruct any views of the lake. If you’re not lakefront, this rule still applies. Immerse yourself and your guests in nature by highlighting views of the mountains, forest, or even a garden. So, what can you do inside to highlight what’s outside?
Take Advantage of your Windows of Opportunity
Avoid putting heavy curtains or blinds on windows that have a clear view of the lake. Natural light is mostly a wonderful thing, but if overwhelming sunlight is an issue, install blinds that can be moved up and down easily (automatic blinds are ideal). If curtains are more your style, install a long enough rod that they can be moved completely out of the way. It’s also wise to choose a neutral color or a color that complements the colors outside (we will discuss lake house color choices more later).
Blur the Line Between Inside and Outside with Screens
If you love the smell of a dewy morning, breathing fresh air, and the sound of birds chirping, but would prefer to keep bugs and outdoor debris from blowing into your home, screens are your solution. You don’t have to have a screened in porch to enjoy the hybrid inside/outside atmosphere. Installing screens on windows and doors allows you to experience the enjoyable parts of nature in the comfort of your home while keeping the dirt and critters where they belong—outside.
Bring Focus to the View
The way that the furniture and décor is arranged in a room directs the focus of every person who walks into it. Arrange your furniture in a way that encourages people to look outside and enjoy the view.
These days it is common to organize your living room furniture towards a TV, and there’s nothing wrong with that. However, if you’re on the lake or even near the lake, there’s probably something more interesting to look at than a TV. Arrange your lake house living room furniture toward a window if possible. Position bar seating, porch furniture, and even beds to face the view.
Interior Design Inspired by the Outdoors
Emphasize and complement the natural beauty that surrounds your lake house by incorporating elements of the outdoors. We aren’t saying you should build a log cabin, these tips can be useful for homes of every style. Follow these design tactics to create a cohesive look that blends the indoors and outdoors seamlessly.
Choose a Natural Color Palette
Blues, greens, browns, tans, grays, and white, colors pulled from nature, are the most popular colors to use in lake house interior design. Pops of reds, pinks, oranges, metallics, and other colors that aren’t found in the lake landscape can be incorporated as accents. However, it is wise to stick to the natural color palette for furniture, paint colors, curtains, rugs, and bedding because colors that have a strong contrast from the lake backdrop can distract from it and tend to look awkward and out of place.
Wooden Furniture
Wood is one of the most beautiful materials found in nature. Wooden furniture is a lake house staple because of its durability and wide style range. If you’re going for a rustic design, live edge wooden furniture is a great choice. For a more modern look, look for simple pieces such as wood framed couches and simple tables.
Functional Lake House Design
Sure, the aesthetic of your lake house is important, but it also needs to be functional. These tips will help you furnish and design a lake house that is not only stylish but practical.
Durable Furniture and Fabrics
Wet bathing suits, muddy feet, big groups, wild kids, and maybe even dirty pets are all part of having fun at the lake, but they can create quite a mess. Invest in high-quality furniture that can withstand water, heavy use, and can be cleaned easily. We recommend choosing furniture made from high quality wood, leather, or performance fabric.
Make the Most of Outdoor Spaces
Lake life is all about enjoying the great outdoors. While a lot of your time outside will be spent swimming, skiing, boating, and floating, sometimes you’ll just want to sit back and relax. Quality outdoor furniture is a lake house necessity. Porch swings, outdoor dining tables, outdoor couches and chairs, and fire pit tables will help you make the most of your time at the lake by providing a comfortable place to enjoy the sunrise/sunset, socialize, and share a meal.
Accommodate Guests
The more the merrier. If your lake house is a vacation home or a place that your family and friends love to visit, you should consider the number of guests you’ll need to accommodate when furnishing your lake house.
For dining, an extendable dining table is a great way to increase the number of seats without taking up too much room on a day-to-day basis. Additionally, adding a secondary dining space, like an outdoor dining table, bar seating, or a kids’ table will enable you to have more guests, bigger cookouts, and space for different groups to hang out.
It’s important to remember that there are design choices that make sense for a lake house that you probably wouldn’t see in a traditional home. If you expect to have more guests than bedrooms, consider bunk beds, especially if you have children, or kids visit often. Don’t be afraid to put multiple beds in one room, and they don’t have to be twin beds. Putting two queen-size or full-size beds in one bedroom will maximize the number of adult guests you can accommodate without sacrificing comfort.
Furnish your Lake House with Amish Elegance
Amish Elegance has everything you need to furnish and decorate the lake house of your dreams—high quality bedroom, dining, living, and outdoor furniture as well as nature inspired décor. Our furniture is handmade using high quality wood, leather, and performance fabrics. Every piece is built to last a lifetime.
If you have a specific vision for your lake house, our design team can make it a reality. At Amish Elegance you have the freedom to create one-of-a-kind custom furniture. Meet with our design team and choose from a massive selection of woods, fabrics, leathers, stains, and finishes; find style inspiration in our catalog or we can create a completely unique style just for you.
Let’s jump right in! Visit our showroom or contact us today.