Earlier this month, we stayed at beautiful Sproat Lake on Vancouver Island. We rented an adorable townhome owned by dear friends of ours, Leigh and Carolyn. Here is a shot of the complex from the gorgeous dock. FYI, this home is listed on Air BNB and I will link the details below if you are looking for a fun getaway!
We have our own little cabin on Big Lake in Washington State, but because of the pandemic, we have been unable to go there this summer, which was a big disappointment for us. We were so grateful to our friends for letting us rent their lakefront getaway and we had a super fun week exploring Sproat Lake, the local town of Port Alberni and even squeezed in a day trip to gorgeous Tofino.
My friend Carolyn is a nurse by profession but also has an amazing eye for design and has done some decorating as a side hustle. We share a similar style and a love for vintage and antique items and I was so excited to see how she had decorated this townhome. As soon as I arrived last weekend, I knew that I wanted to share this home here on my blog. Carolyn has graciously allowed me to give you all a tour so grab a cup of coffee and take a tour of this lakefront townhome!
This is a 2 level, 2 bedroom unit with beautiful views of the Lake.
It is a new build, but Carolyn has injected so much character and personality into the space with carefully selected antiques and accessories, it feels like a rustic cottage that's been here forever! I wanted to highlight some of my favorite design elements in this home, so lets dive in!
Shiplap
Carolyn's husband Leigh ( my husband's close friend since childhood) is very handy and he installed two shiplap accent walls in the home. This is one of the design elements that gives the new build a rustic vibe and makes it feel like a historic cabin. Here is the living room on the main floor.
The master bedroom also has a shiplap accent wall providing a simple and understated focal point in the room. We will explore that space a little more below.
Wall decor
In addition to some fun lake themed word art and Vancouver Island prints like this one...
Carolyn used some antique and vintage items as wall decor and it gives this home so much character and charm! Here is a wide shot of the Living Room:
On the shiplapped accent wall there is a large vintage map and above that, an antique fishing rod. The fishing rod actually belonged to Leigh's great-grandfather, I love when you can incorporate personal items into your space.
And on the other wall, I love the vintage window frame and hanging basket. So simple but visually interesting!
There is lots of eye candy in the master bedroom as well, and you have already seen the shiplap accent wall.
Carolyn has this awesome vintage water ski with hooks on the wall, and this is what I call functional decor.
In my opinion, you can never have too many hooks in a cabin or cottage, they are so great for getting those wet towels and suits off the floor!
I also love how she mounted two twin size headboards on the wall to create a headboard for the king-sized bed...genius!
These vintage looking wall sconces from World Market were also a standout feature for me. The black is such a great contrast against the white shiplap!
Vintage decor
Carolyn shares my love of antique and vintage pieces and she has an amazing collection of treasures that she has artfully displayed in vignettes around the house. In the kitchen she has some open shelves with a fun arrangement of vintage thermoses and a lunch box. Carolyn told me that the shelves themselves are actually repurposed dock boards from a friend's dock on Sproat Lake...love that!
The bookcase in the living room is home to a few fun vintage items mixed in with books, board games, puzzles and magazines. It's the perfect spot to cozy up with a good book or play a board game...we may have had a few spirited rounds of Yahtzee during our stay!
Throw pillows
Throw pillows are my favorite way to add style, pattern and color to any space and Carolyn's collection does not disappoint! She has some fun ones that are outdoor/lake themed...
Then there are these adorable ones with the quilted pieces on them, love!
Perhaps our family fave, are these handmade ones with badges sewn onto them. Carolyn made these pillows out of a scout blanket she found at a thrift store, how cool is that?
Dining area built-ins
One of the many clever decorating/design choices Carolyn made was to create built-in seating under the window in the small dining nook.
Not only can you squeeze so many more people around the table with this kind of seating, but there is also tons of storage, some open like the first aid kit, and some hidden in the bench seats.
White with pops of color
This is my go-to way to style my own home and I am a big fan of how Carolyn has used this in her Lake house decor as well. For example in the living room, she went with a white sofa (a brave choice I might add, lol) and white walls but then added colorful throw pillows and blankets.
Same goes for the master bedroom, the walls and bedding are white, and then there are fun pops of color like this quilt at the end of the bed, the curtains and the throw pillows.
Well, I hope you enjoyed this little photo tour, and thank you so much to Carolyn for letting me share this space here on my blog. As I mentioned, this Lakefront townhome is actually listed on Air bnb and has some limited availability - I highly recommend checking out this gorgeous spot on Sproat Lake!
Travel not an option this summer? If you are looking for some outdoor inspiration, you can read about how we are making the most of our small, urban backyard by clicking here.
Thanks so much for reading!
xo, Kerri
