Returning Home

Designer Kim Majure kept upholstery restrained in the living room with clean lines and a neutral palette. Sam Moore chairs in nubby gray pinstripes swivel to view both the lake and fireplace.

The alcove with floor-to-ceiling windows was specifically designed to house a pair of inviting chaises by Taylor King for napping and reading.

“Lake Burton feels as though you’ve been transported to a distant, remote locale, yet it’s only a short drive from home.” —Kim Majure 

The entry forms a dogtrot-like breezeway that connects bedrooms on the right to living spaces on the left and provides views and direct access to the lake. Pennsylvania bluestone floors bring the outside in, iron pendants from Troy Lighting add vintage nautical style and the fence-inspired railings lend a pastoral feel.

Countertops in leathered American black granite mimic soapstone but offer greater durability. Large lamps from Currey & Company provide warm, soft light in the early mornings and late evenings. 

The large elm dining table from Scott Antique Markets is a hub for family dinners. Generous-size pendant lights by Troy Lighting and a workbench from Historic Roswell Antiques and Interiors bring character to the room.

Upstairs in a guest bedroom, a vintage textile print screen from Queen of Hearts Antiques and Interiors hangs between metal beds topped with pillows covered in Thibaut fabric.

In the son’s room, an old-school plaid wallpaper by August Grove extends across the ceiling, making the space feel more modern.

The design team, along with builder Jerry Kyle of Kyle Construction, paid special attention to the home’s passages, creating interest by crafting intimate nooks and employing rugged materials.

A bucolic scene hangs above a cabinet from French Antiques Renaissance in front of the first-floor main bath window, providing both dimension and privacy. The shower was designed to feel like an outdoor shower with an open-air top and curtained entry. 

Botanical pillows in the guest bedroom are covered in Thibaut fabric through Acquisitions.

Walls painted in Sherwin-Williams’ Iron Ore give eyes a rest from the home’s otherwise white walls. “The color feels comforting and restful”, says Majure. She purchased the botanical-inspired art piece by Adele Sypesteyn at the Nashville Garden and Antiques Show before ground was broken, and it became the inspiration for the room.

When they’re not on the water or in the boat house, the family’s prime hangout is the porch, where a Lane Venture sofa and chairs and a daybed made by Majure’s father, husband and son beckon. The porch was intended to be screened, but upon move-in, the Majures decided to keep it airy to preserve the view.

The home grants easy access from the walk-out basement to the flat grass yard, a rarity on a mountain lake.

A boathouse and firepit give the family plenty of outdoor space to inhabit. “During the day we’re primarily at the boathouse,” says Majure. “In the evening we migrate to the porch or have fires in the firepit with s’mores and bourbon.”

Interior designer Kim Majure vividly remembers the allure of her grandmother’s Jersey Shore beach cottage. “She had this quaint old house, and I have such nostalgic memories of it,” she says. “It had all these nooks and crannies, and as a little kid it felt so magical.”

Those feelings stayed with Majure as she and husband Patrick searched for their own waterfront getaway on Lake Burton in North Georgia, where their family had been vacationing for years. “Lake Burton feels as though you’ve been transported to a distant, remote locale, yet it’s only a short drive from home,” says Majure.

While they agreed on location, the couple had different notions about the home itself. “I longed for an old and vintage cabin while Patrick wanted the low maintenance and reliability of new plumbing and electrical,” says Majure.

After property-hunting for five years, they found a “unicorn”—a gently sloping lot on a deep cove lapped by cobalt waters, dotted with mature hardwoods and blue hydrangeas, with a front row to sweeping views.

With architect Garrett Daniel of Garrett Daniel Architecture in Atlanta, the couple set to work on designing a new home that felt like it had been on the lake for decades. The team studied images of old area cabins and hotels to stay true to the historic architecture and building materials. “We would often have my drawings laid out on Kim’s big design table, four or five books open at one time, photos and trace-paper sketches,” says Daniel of the deliberate and collaborative process.

Majure imagined tucked-away nooks to cozy up in after a day on the water, materials that felt rugged but not overly rustic and a sense of comfort and welcome throughout. Design choices were made to evoke the idea of a small cabin that was added on to over the years. In the foyer and upstairs hall, the fireplace is exposed as though it was once an exterior wall. The kitchen was designed to feel like a renovated porch with a surround of windows.

Second floor rooms were carved from the eaves as though an attic was converted into bedrooms and a bunk room was modeled after her family’s shared room at the shore. Alcoves were created to house vintage furniture, versus relying on contemporary built-in cabinetry. A mix of antiques, hand-me-downs and new objects make for interiors that feel personal and balanced.

“My young nephew recently came to visit and was delighted to run around discovering ‘secret’ rooms,” says Majure. “It was exactly the feeling I’d had at my grandmother’s old cottage—where the closet under the stairs became my own secret world—just the emotion I hoped to evoke in our new ‘old’ home.”

INTERIOR DESIGN Kim Majure, Kim Majure Interiors; kimmajureinteriors.com
ARCHITECT Garret Daniel, Garrett Daniel Architecture, (404) 441-6495; garrettdanielarchitecture.com
BUILDER Jerry Kyle, Kyle Construction; (706) 947-0211