Stereotypes can be dangerous things. Just ask anyone who’s ever found themselves trapped in a veritable seashell museum while visiting a relative’s house down the shore. Or recall your L.A. friend’s unhealthy obsession with macramé plant hangers and potted cacti. So it was by design that lake house clichés were thankfully left out of the conversation in a five-bedroom, 16,000-square-foot family home on Lake Michigan, which was recently masterminded by Chicago interior designer Kara Mann alongside local firm Northworks Architecture.
Despite the setting, there are no anchors or nautical references floated throughout the spaces—no walls clad with arrangements of aged rowing oars. “Ashley has amazing taste and is mainly drawn to ethereal, romantic European properties,” says Mann of her client Ashley Quicksilver, who owns the Winnetka, Illinois, ready-to-wear women’s clothing boutique Athene; husband Jeffrey is a private-equity executive. “We started with a classic French aesthetic and landed on something a little more toned down and restrained.”
An 18th-century mantel and mirror lend timeworn patina in the new-build living room. Custom sofas upholstered in washed linen surround a vintage marble cocktail table by Angelo Mangiarotti.
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Here that meant sumptuous plaster walls, Belgian oak planked floors, and a sophisticated enfilade that puts the current trend of shared living room, dining area, and kitchen concepts to shame. “I am so over open floor plan living,” says Mann, citing that each room is a room in the traditional sense: an oak-paneled music room gives way to a white-walled living room, but each maintains a distinct character and enjoys the kind of privacy that today feels like a luxury. “There’s a beautiful formality to the house,” says Mann. “It’s new construction but it feels like it’s been there forever.”
Perhaps nowhere is that more apparent than in the kitchen, where custom cabinetry was installed flush with crisp white walls to conceal the storage and create the look of an elegant paneled room rather than an überfunctional cook space. Color and texture come by way of two dramatic slabs of Paonazzo marble on the countertop and backsplash. “It’s got these really earthy green and gray tones that call to mind the lake on stormy days,” Mann says. “Together with the bronze island legs, it lends warmth that complements the walnut finish on the floors and embrasure doors.” The dining room is similarly sophisticated with hand-painted plaster walls in a subtle shade of pink that Mann describes as “there but not there.”
Oak plank flooring recalls those found in French residences and adds warmth against the crisp white walls. Rose Uniacke pendants hang in a hallway where a vintage Pierre Jeanneret bench sits beneath artwork by Cy Twombly.
Adding to the refined atmosphere is a mix of vintage and contemporary furnishings that display a subtlety of shape and form. A Chinese Art Deco rug in the music room pulls together midcentury Karpen of California lounge chairs, a Werkstätte cocktail table by Carl Auböck, and a modern chandelier by Michael Anastassiades. In the dining room, the angularity of vintage Pierre Jeanneret Chandigarh chairs plays off the fluted details of a glass-and-steel buffet by Christophe Côme.
All this in a Georgian-style home on the outskirts of Chicago. “It’s a very special house with a really unique feel that’s not at all trendy or of-the-moment,” says Mann. Like its European inspirations, the property will stand the test of time—and shatter suburban lake house stereotypes for years to come.
The Chicago Lake House That Breaks the Mold
For her clients’ house on Lake Michigan, Chicago interior designer Kara Mann reinvented the traditional mudroom with an elevated aesthetic established by a Petersen Antiques console, a Moroccan rug from Oscar Isberian, ceiling pendants by Remains Lighting, and a bench by Oscar Maschera. The table lamp is by Dmitriy & Co.
“The goal here was to create a beautifully paneled room first and a functional kitchen second,” says Mann of the sophisticated kitchen space. Paonazzo marble on the countertop and backsplash add drama, while leather-clad stools by Mark Albrecht impart warmth. The pendants are by Rose Uniacke.
In the dining room with hand-painted and custom-tinted plaster walls, an Iranian rug from Oscar Isberian anchors an antique oak table and Pierre Jeanneret’s Chandigarh chairs. The fluted details of a glass-and-steel buffet by Christophe Côme complement similar forms in the Rose Uniacke pendant lamps.
In the living room, vintage El Rey chairs by Mats Theselius flank a lacquered cocktail table by Karl Springer. Maison Jansen accent tables bookend a custom sofa by Jonas Upholstery and are topped with vintage ceramic lamps by Bergboms.
An 18th-century mantel and mirror lend timeworn patina in the other side of the new-build living room. Custom sofas upholstered in washed linen surround a vintage marble cocktail table by Angelo Mangiarotti.
A Chinese Art Deco rug in the oak-paneled music room pulls together midcentury Karpen of California lounge chairs, a Werkstätte cocktail table by Carl Auböck, and a modern chandelier by Michael Anastassiades.
“His aesthetic is a little more modern, so this was our chance to create a more contemporary look,” says Mann of the dark-stained ceiling in Jeffrey Quicksilver’s office. Black hair-on-hide upholstery on the Pierre Jeanneret chairs picks up on the dark tones in the leather, wool, and suede rug by Toyine Sellers.
A classic enfilade architectural element affords views from the music room, living room, dining room, kitchen, and stairwell while maintaining privacy. The Belgian oak flooring is from Exquisite Surfaces, and the plaster finishes are by Chicago Ornamental Plaster.
A Maxalto sectional sofa upholstered in a Rogers & Goffigon fabric creates a base for a travertine side table by Vincent Dupont-Rougier for the Delcourt Collection, a rug by Mitchell Denberg, and a custom ottoman covered in a Pierre Frey glazed linen.
The linearity and depth of a sculptural pendant by Jérôme Pereira via Galerie Philia creates contrast in a curvaceous stairwell.
“We felt like we needed a room that felt cozy and inviting,” says Mann of the guest quarters. Phillip Jeffries grasscloth creates a cocooning effect for a Maxalto bed and chairs topped with pillows covered in a vintage tapestry. The lamps are from RH, while the alabaster pendant was sourced from Eileen Lane Antiques.
The Quicksilvers’ daughter’s room features a bed clad in linen from Leo’s Upholstery and topped in custom bedding by Muse (look closely and you’ll also see welting by Liberty of London), as well as wool drapery sourced from Coraggio and a braided jute rug by Stark. An antique writing desk, a Jean Prouvé chair, and a chandelier by Ingo Maurer complete the scene.
Honed Arabescato Corchia marble in the walk-in shower breaks up the monochromatic white of the master bath’s paneled walls. A tub by Waterworks overlooks Lake Michigan through windows dressed in Roman shades made with De La Cuona cashmere.
Oak-plank flooring recalls those found in French residences and add warmth against the crisp white walls. Rose Uniacke pendants hang in a hallway where a vintage Pierre Jeanneret bench sits beneath artwork by Cy Twombly.
Mann worked with Northworks Architects over the span of three years to imbue a 16,000-square-foot Georgian-style residence on the shores of Lake Michigan with European-inspired elegance. Shutters were kept monochrome and windows feature steel mullions to add contemporary flair.
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