EARLY SPRING 19
2/20/19
2:49 PM
Page 30
True PERSONALITY
W
hen you see this inviting home perched on the shore of Bostwick Lake, it appears to exist seamlessly as though it simply belongs there. Built in the late 1990s, that wasn’t always the case. It took the visionary skills of Mary Burns of Gallery Interiors and Rockford Kitchen Design Studio to bring out its true personality, and Ryan Whitmore of Whitmore Custom Homes to execute the details of this New England charmer. Michigan has 11,037 inland lakes and no point in Michigan is more than six miles from an inland lake. Burns’s firm is based in picturesque Rockford and specializes in lakefront design. “The lake is the most important part of the home’s landscape and my number one goal is to capture a view of the lake from every possible room of the house. Unobstructed views out of large pieces of glass is the focus,” explained Burns. Bostwick Lake is a private 217-acre lake and the largest body of water in Cannon Township. Connected to the headwaters of Bear Creek, it is one of Michigan’s cleanest lakes and its sandy bottom makes it great for recreational activities. This home had served its occupants well over decades of child-rearing and working-to-live, but it was time for the home to embrace its beautiful lake setting and become more functional for empty-nesters who were looking to age in place. Unless you’ve built a custom home, you might be unaware that behind that fresh façade is hours of imagination, meticulous design, and in this case, over a year of batting around ideas before the ground was broken.
TEXT BY LYNN BAKEMAN INTERIOR IMAGES BY ASHLEY AVILA EXTERIOR IMAGES BY MICHAEL BUCK