Photos by Corey Gaffer
When the lots on both sides of their house went up for sale, a couple who had originally been planning to build a new home on the same site as their current one decided to pivot—taking advantage of the opportunity to expand on their vision and increase the footprint of their future abode. The couple, west Michigan natives with two young children and a shared love of sailing, began their design journey with a local architect, but couldn’t seem to reach the point where they felt truly excited about the project. “We just kept feeling like we were going to end up settling on something, and that’s not what we were setting out to do,” explains the homeowner.
After his wife saw an ad for Wayzata-based architecture company Charles R. Stinson Architecture + Design, the two were intrigued. They quickly set up a meeting with Stinson and hit it off right away. “The first time he came out to the site, he had three pencil sketches and basically nailed it,” says the owner. “He modified the design a bit after seeing the site from the water, but essentially, the initial layout he came up with without even having been there was what we moved forward with.”
However, one of the challenges the design team needed to consider was how to situate the house on the long, combined lot and diagonal coastline so it would be oriented toward the water while preserving the functionality of the garage on the other side. “It was a real puzzle to organize the geometry of the house on a very irregularly shaped property,” says Stinson, who led the architecture process with designer Benjamin Bower. “But the challenge is what made it unique—you couldn’t build this house on just any site. You had to really embrace it.”
The stairstep style of the three-level house was designed to take full advantage of the sweeping views, Stinson explains, so that each room would have two views of the water: one directly in front and one off to the side. “As you walk through the house from one end to the other, you see water the entire way, even though you’re going around angles and corners,” he says. “From inside, your eye doesn’t see the ground—you see the lake, the sky, and the horizon. The first level is actually 15 feet above basement-grade, so you really feel like you’re on a boat, peering out over the water.”
The exterior is characterized by horizontal floating planes that make up the roof and floor levels, intersected with long vertical forms of natural Fond du Lac limestone. A drive-under canopy helps define the main entrance, while living green roofs installed by Midwestern company Hortech Inc. add an organic touch and help soften the sharp lines of the rectilinear architecture.
The interior, designed by the owners themselves and inspired in part by their time spent living in Tokyo, is clean, minimalist, and modern—exhibiting timeless colors and a commitment to intentionally designed spaces with plenty of places to hide clutter. “We really fell in love with the concepts of the Japanese architecture style; how it’s simple and elegant, yet practical with no wasted space. That impacted a lot of our thinking for the interior design of this house,” says the owner. “We wanted it to look cool, of course, but we also needed to live in it, so it was about finding that balance between form and function. But if we had to pick between the two, functionality would always win the day!”
This focus on functionality is perhaps best exemplified in the main kitchen area, where the family spends the majority of their time together cooking, eating, and watching TV. Dual waterfall islands and a roomy pantry provide plenty of space to cook and prep food, while a corner breakfast nook with custom banquette seating offers some of the best lake views in the house. Nearby, a gray sectional and pair of swiveling blue armchairs are arranged in front of a fireplace wall, creating a cozy seating area ideal for lazy afternoons.
Meanwhile, the adjoining living room was designed for more formal entertaining, featuring a bar and larger dining and seating areas. An enormous fireplace takes center stage, providing a subtle backdrop for a serene painting of Buddhist monks by Vietnamese artist Nguyen Minh Phuoc. “We had our eye on this painting for years and finally bought it before we broke ground on the house, knowing the wall above the fireplace would be its eventual home,” says the owner.
High ceilings, expansive Loewen windows, wide overhangs, and a series of walkout decks and verandas were designed to open up the house, flood the interiors with natural light, and create an outward flow to engage with the water. “The main spaces all face an outdoor deck,” Stinson says. “In fact, the entire house opens up like arms to embrace the lake views.” Located off the living room and accessible through a pair of large sliding glass doors, the main porch is outfitted with fans, heaters, a skylight, and drop-down screens that make it perfect for use during buggy summer evenings or cooler autumn days.
The owners’ suite and offices are located on the main level as well—a purposeful choice to allow for future aging-in-place accessibility—while the children’s bedrooms are located on the upper level, along with separate bathrooms, a shared deck, and their own laundry space. “We wanted to create their own little zone for them to do their thing, and we taught them early on how to do their own laundry. So, their laundry never comes downstairs!” the owner says, chuckling.
The lower level is a prime spot for casual entertaining, featuring a bar, couch and TV area, an exercise room, and an indoor pool and hot tub—a fun challenge for Stinson, as it was one of the first indoor pools he designed and the only one located beneath a main-level living area. “That actually required a lot of coordination because you have to create a different mechanical system and airlock with two sets of glass doors that stop the air from the pool getting in the rest of the house,” he explains. Another pair of glass doors opens out to the walkout patio and outdoor kitchen space (complete with a bar, grilling station, and fireplace) and leads down to the lake, where neighbors can stop by on their boats for a visit.
A two-bedroom guest house is the perfect addition when it comes to hosting extended family and friends. Since local building codes would not allow for a fully detached guest house, Stinson incorporated an attached version that would still allow visitors their own personal experience, situating access points away from the main driveway and entrance and adding a private car port. “We wanted to be able to give guests privacy, tremendous views of the lake, and the ability to come and go without distractions,” he says.
The final result? A warm, welcoming modern home to be enjoyed by all for generations to come. “Working with Charles was fantastic—he was very collaborative, and we had a great experience with him and his team from start to finish,” says the owner, before adding, “We did not settle, that’s for sure!”
