Years ago, a man and his business partner purchased an old lakeside home at an auction. The two eventually had the home torn down and split the property into two lots, about three-quarters of an acre each. The man and his wife, whose families have owned Michigan cottages since the 1920s, waited several years before building their dream home on the idyllic Devils Lake — the largest lake in Lenawee County, with a maximum depth of 63 feet.
Interior designer Tiffany Birch embraced the opportunity to work with the couple, as she grew up on the same lake, where she spent many fun-filled days at her family’s cottage. “I got to know them well when the husband hired me to do interior design work for the Devils Lake Yacht Club,” says Birch, who runs Ann Arbor-based Birch Design Associates. She partnered with architect Greg Richard of Illinois-based Remington Architecture on both the yacht club and the home.
They set out to create a living space where the couple’s three grown daughters could gather and make memories with their families and pets. They achieved that goal with a near-10,000-square-foot, shaker-style home with modern farmhouse details. It’s especially popular in the summer, thanks to its four decks and sleeping porch.
Here, Birch shares her recommendations and insights on durable materials that can handle wet shoes and swimsuits while looking as fresh as a dive in the lake.
Snap to it: The walk-out lower area has a kitchen, family room, and dining nook (one of Birch’s favorite home elements), as well as a banquette that showcases the designer’s signature must-have — a snappy, navy-and-white-striped, upholstered, built-in bench with beadboard appeal.
“Stripes are very nautical,” Birch says. She made a point to avoid overdoing the beadboard’s look. “We mixed it with other types of wood around the house, and we don’t have everything going vertically or horizontally.”
All hands on deck: Birch went with synthetic, low-maintenance flooring for the deck (Trex) and luxury vinyl plank flooring for the interior, both of which can handle water, water, and more water.
Jump in!: The lower area features a charming room where family and friends can keep bathing suits and sunbathing essentials. A large sign reads, “Go Jump in the Lake!”
Barn again: Many of the ceilings utilize old barn beams. “A barn fell at their farmhouse, and the homeowner had that wood cut, hewn, and stained,” Birch says. “We’ve also incorporated a console table, located in the great room, which was made from that wood.”
Painterly pop: The porch ceiling is painted in Waterscape by Sherwin-Williams, which is very close to haint blue — a pale shade of blue-green that mimics sky and water tones. The hue, thought to ward off ghosts or evil spirits, traditionally colors porch ceilings in the South and is frequently found on Mackinac Island homes.
Porch panache: The main-floor porch is a popular spot, where comfortable, weatherproof furnishings from Arhaus and custom pillows by Schumacher (Michigan Design Center) invite one to stay awhile and soak up the waterfront views. The family loves Mackinac and wanted the home to feel “Mackinac-ish,” with a white wood shake exterior (Snowbound, Sherwin-Williams), wooden garage doors, and custom rails.
Fab fabrics: “Most of the fabrics are indoor-outdoor, so no one has to worry about getting water on, say, the sofas, which have performance fabrics,” Birch says.
Creation station: What’s a dream home without a space to create? The first-floor craft room has “a desk, seating, and extra-deep drawers that pull out of a custom-built island to hold a lot of the wife’s sewing projects,” Birch notes. There’s also an organized area for wrapping gifts — a practical spot to prepare for birthdays and other celebrations.
This story originally appeared in the August 2026 issue of Hour Detroit magazine. To read more, pick up a copy of Hour Detroit at a local retail outlet. Click here to get our digital edition.
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