A Fresh Take on Lake Oconee Living: Cheerful Charm Meets New England Cottage Style

A pair of green-and-white stripe spindle chairs were the only furniture in the living room when designer Sande Beck came onboard to help outfit the home. The art above the mantel is from Anne Irwin Fine Art.

The home is perched on the upper edge of a cove, offering extended views of the lake and creating the effect of being wrapped by water, which can be seen straight through from the front door.

The sideboard, mirror, and bench were corralled on Beck and the client’s initial shopping trip to Acquisitions. The pecky cypress ceiling and Julie Neill sconces add warmth.

In the kitchen, a quartet of vegan leather barstools make for an inviting resting place below brass-wrapped pendants from Visual Comfort & Co.

Custom cabinetry, a powder blue La Cornue range, and a Moattar runner are stars of the kitchen.

The scullery is outfitted with a wine fridge, two freezer drawers, and multiple sinks. The iron accordion windows open to a side porch.

Breakfast room chairs are upholstered in an easy-to-clean vegan leather and backed with a blue-and-green starburst fabric. The tiered floral chandelier by Julie Neill is one of Beck’s all-time favorites.

The family’s pups have a dedicated space that’s as functional as it is beautiful, with built-in food and water stations, kennels, and a bathing station.

A pair of blue club chairs are a perfect perch for lake watching in the primary sitting room. The arched door in the console opens to the adjoining porch so the family’s dogs can come and go as they please.

Solid blue curtains with tassel trim, informed by the Thibaut botanical print, add height and softness.

he primary bathroom continues the home’s dedication to custom cabinetry and elegant paneling.

Beck balanced the black soaking tub and dark wood brackets with sumptuous curtains and an Oushak rug.

The bunkroom ceiling is swathed in Serena & Lily wallpaper, with scalloped comforters at the foot of each bed to match.

The homeowner purchased a whimsical mirror without knowing where it would land, and it found its home in a vaulted bedroom. The table lamps sport printed shades from Edgar-Reeves.

Stone archways, wood corbels, and a charming gate amplify the home’s allure. The landscape design is by Noles Landscapes.

The pool boasts an infinity edge for maximum getaway vibes.

When most people envision a lake house, dark interiors decked out in wood paneling and meet-me-at-the-lake decor might come to mind. For the homeowners of this new build by the water, the style directive was just about the complete opposite.

“The homeowner said, ‘I don’t want it to look like a typical lake house—I want it to be happy, cheery, and welcoming, with no taxidermy on the wall,’” jokes interior designer Sande Beck of Sande Beck Design.

The clients—a husband and wife whose primary residence is in Atlanta—owned a house off the water in the same neighborhood and purchased this lakefront lot with the vision of building their dream home, an inviting retreat that would maximize the sparkling water views and comfortably host a houseful of family and friends.

With a desire for a New England-style retreat (shake siding and roof were nonnegotiables), the homeowners partnered with McKenzie Custom Home Design and Hatfield Custom Homes to craft a large-scale cottage wrapped in white shake siding replete with a selection of first-rate trims guided by the wife, who is a graphic designer and artist.

Inside, they sought bright, energetic prints that would impart a relaxed and happy vibe. The home is filled with charming details, seen in custom cabinetry by Custom Wood Interiors, Inc., with decorative cutouts in the laundry room and glass-front uppers with starburst muntins in the kitchen; marble floors in herringbone, checker, and geometric patterns; feminine light fixtures; and a delightful collection of canine-friendly considerations. A dog-washing station, built-in crates and beds, and even a secret doggy door that is cleverly concealed in a console honor the couple’s cherished pups.

The wife’s dream of a light blue La Cornue range sparked the lake-blue color palette that ripples throughout the home in varying tones, a move that might feel risky in a primary residence but feels right at home by the water, says Beck.

And after admiring Beck’s talents at a then-recent showhouse, the homeowners enlisted her help to bring the home to life with serene furnishings and textiles that would hold up to life at the lake. “As soon as we saw the house, we understood the clients’ goals,” says Beck. “The view of the lake when you first walk in is stunning. The home was welcoming, light and airy, and balanced with warm wood floors and shiplap ceilings.”

With guests coming to visit soon, Beck and the wife embarked upon what Beck calls an instant-gratification shopping trip. “We took a piece of the family room curtain fabric to Acquisitions and purchased club chairs, barstools, sofas, dining chairs, and a floor lamp. It was a lucky, fortuitous, miracle kind of day,” she says.

Beck and her team infused texture, depth, and history into the collection of new furnishings by layering antiques and natural materials, shown in arrangements of blue and white porcelain vases and a trio of oyster sticks in the foyer.

With a wealth of spaces that encourage camaraderie, there are nearly as many in which to unwind or focus, with an office for the husband and an art studio for the wife above the garage. Five bedrooms, including a primary suite on both the main and second level, are relaxed but elegant and energized with color. In the bunkroom, large throw pillows crafted of old scarves add a vivid punch, and in the daughter’s lavender escape, a Suzani-inspired floral print reigns on curtains, pillows, and as framed art. The primary bedroom and adjacent lake-view sitting room are enveloped in soothing neutrals accented with a large-scale green and blue botanical print that perfectly pulls in nature’s palette from outside.

As for entertaining those incoming visitors, the property is primed for hosting and ready for fun that will last all summer and beyond.

INTERIOR DESIGNER Sande Beck, Sande Beck Design, (404) 808-0557; sandebeckdesign.com ARCHITECT McKenzie Custom Home Design; mckenziedrafting.com BUILDER Hatfield Custom Homes, (706) 817-2773; hatfieldcustomhomesga.com LANDSCAPE CONTRACTOR Noles Irrigation & Landscapes, (706) 224-8880; noleslandscapes.com