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This Lakeside Cabin Has All the Old-School Charm of Summer Camp
Grab a beer from the vintage 7UP cooler, then gather ’round the campfire at this vintage-filled Missouri lake house.
At the end of an old farm road in southwest Missouri, Lakeshore Lodge drips with nostalgia like an ice-cream cone in peak summer heat. There’s the red wall-mount telephone with its curly vinyl cord and a stash of faded board games tucked inside an old toolbox. Even its soundtrack is decidedly throwback: When Katie and Andy Barnes (and kids Squire, 13, and Harper, 11) pull up in the drive after making the four-hour journey from their home in northern Missouri, Katie’s known to cue up “In the Summertime,” an upbeat 1970s hit by Mungo Jerry.
Fittingly enough, the song came out right around the time the 2,200-square-foot property was built. “The house had served as a vacation home for a family from Kansas,” says Katie. “It was in pristine condition—that is, pristine 1970s condition—with dark paneling, orange shag carpet, and yellow appliances. We wanted to maintain the vintage lake feel, but to get the look we wanted, we needed to renovate.”
After remodeling homes in and around their community for more than a decade, Katie and Andy were up to the task, which included adding a metal roof, a screened-in porch, and various old-meets-new amenities. Katie then layered in vintage finds—picnic baskets, badminton racquets, plaid thermoses—that evoke the old-school charm of summer camp. Still, despite the heavy hits of nostalgia, weekends at the lake aren’t about looking back. “The stargazing is incredible out here,” says Katie. “We spend a lot of time looking up.”
Keep reading to see how Katie created that vintage lake feel.
A Welcoming Sign
Nestled on 2 1/2 acres in Shell Knob, Missouri, the Barneses’ cottage—appropriately named Lakeshore Lodge—sits on a quiet lot at Table Rock Lake.
Rustic Red
The couple had the home’s original siding color-matched at the local hardware store.
Get the Look:
Red Paint Color: Rustic Red by Sherwin-Williams
Wicker Accents
The new screened-in porch and swing feel anything but thanks to old-school elements, including a petite green vintage table, woven picnic basket, and chips tin-turned-wildflower vase. “Guests typically migrate to this spot after breakfast,” says Katie, noting it’s a great place to take in views of the wildlife.
Get the Look:
Porch Swing: “Vineyard” porch swing by Polywood
Antique Quilt: Antique Quilts from Stella Rubin Antiques
Tree Pillow: Indoor/Outdoor Mountain Scene from L.L.Bean
Gingham Pillows: Gingham by Heather Taylor Home
RELATED: 80+ Best Front Porch Decorating Tips for Making the Coziest Space Ever
Paint-by-Number Art Collection
An enthusiast of the 1950s art form, Katie collects any and all scenes depicting rivers and lakes and has even been known to swap in snowy scenes come winter. “Andy insists I have to stop buying them,” says Katie, who is seemingly not convinced. An antique cuckoo clock adds chirpy quirk to the assortment. Below it, a tufted navy sofa is outfitted with an antique quilt and pillows made from old camp blankets.
Get the Look:
Sofa: Bradbury Chesterfield from Amazon
Painted Café Sign
An antiques dealer friend of Katie’s scored the handpainted sign during a junking trip years ago. “She took it to a few antiques shows but put a large price on it in the hopes of not selling it,” says Katie. Now, it’s right at home in the Barneses’ colorful, collected kitchen alongside a happy hodgepodge of counter stools and other nostalgic pieces. “I love how antiques spark curiosity,” says Katie. “What was the café like? What did it serve?” And yes, the telephone works. “That was a matter of necessity,” she says. “Cell service out here is pretty spotty.”
Get the Look:
Red Pendant Lights: Hampton Bay Warehouse Pendant from Home Depot
Floor Paint Color: Cypress Vine by Behr
Open-Shelf Eclectic
Two rough-cut cedar shelves invite guests to help themselves to vintage Fiestaware and other kitchen staples. The man who built the house owned an insurance adjustment company in Wichita, Kansas, and his sons left two of his Fire-King mugs with the company logo in the house when the Barneses bought it. "I’ve started collecting similar advertising mugs—they’re harder to find than you’d think!" Katie says.
Collected Seating
In the dining room, a large rough-sawn cedar table handmade by Andy has seen its share of shrimp boils and barbecues. The mismatched chairs are a nod to the casual table seating that outfitted Katie’s childhood summer home. A family friend hand-lettered the Kings River Beach sign above the dreamy window wall (a nod to the stretch of water seen outside their windows). “When we first drove down into our arm of the lake, there was an old metal ‘Kings River Beach’ sign on the ground in the same colors. We knew we wanted to re-create it,” says Katie.
Get the Look:
Floor Paint Color: Cypress Vine by Behr
Old Picnic "Baskets"
A stack of metal and woven picnic baskets topped by old mallets and rackets turns a quiet corner into a fun display.
Vintage Board Games
On the lower level, vintage game boards, such as pinball, Gravitation, and Chinese Checkers, do double duty as wall art. The old wood toolbox-turned-coffee table holds even more games for Harper (left), Squire (right), and visiting friends. Although the original 1970s multicolored carpet is unraveling a bit, it’s staying put until they find something that rivals its retro charm.
Yard Game Equipment
A typical Saturday for the Barneses includes time out on the lake followed by yard games—croquet anyone?—and BBQ hamburgers.
Pieced Quilts
The home’s original red exterior inspired the palette of the mix of graphic quilts seen throughout the home, including those that outfit the many beds in the bunk room, which includes three full-size beds and one twin. “There’s loads of room in here for people to pile in at the end of a full day outside,” says Katie.
Get the Look:
Bunk Bed Paint Color: Submarine Grey by Behr
Floor Paint Color: Cypress Vine by Behr
Striped Pillows: Scout Stripe Pillow by Pendleton
Collected Hats
Rather than piling them on a peg rack, Katie hung her collection of hats as a frame around the vintage dresser in the bedroom.
Porch Picnic
For the Barneses, summertime on the deck means burgers for dinner and fruit pies for dessert.
Time for S'mores
The Barneses like to sit around the campfire and make s’mores while Andy plays bluegrass on the banjo and guitar.
Get the Look:
Adirondack Chairs: Country Living Adirondack Chairs by Polywood
A Petite Playhouse
Andy gave Harper's playhouse a red door in reference to the main house. The lower walls are adorned with wood rounds for a rustic look.
Meet the Family
When Katie and Andy Barnes (with kids Squire, left, and Harper, right) aren’t enjoying Lakeshore Lodge, they rent it out on Airbnb (@lakeshorelodgetrl). “We hope to retire here some day, but in the interim, renting it out has allowed us to add amenities and character,” says Katie.
Tour More Summer Getaways!
We can never get enough fun summer cabins. Take a house tour of these other dreamy retreats from the Country Living archives:
*This Wisconsin Summer Cabin Feels Like Happy Hour
*Welcome to Camp Murph: A Dream Cottage on Minnesota's Lake Pulaski
*This Cozy Georgia Lake Cabin Is Full of Colorful Vintage Finds
*This 1940s Maine Cottage is a Joyful Cannonball Dive into Memories of Summers Past
Rachel Barrett is the Editor-in-Chief of Country Living. She can't pass up a vintage seascape, drives an '89 Woody Wagoneer (that is, when it'll start), and hopes to buy you a lemonade at a future Country Living Fair.
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