Tour a Midcentury-Modern Wisconsin Lake House With a Fabric-Wrapped Fridge
A half hour outside Milwaukee, tucked away in the leafy green woods of the bucolic village of Chenequa, sits a midcentury-modern home surrounded by oak trees. As a native of the area, designer Jessica Jubelirer knew that she wanted to craft a retreat for her young family in the picturesque sleepy village she likens to the inside of a Grandma Moses painting. When hunting for a house in Wisconsin, the New American Voices designer, who is currently based in Palm Beach, Florida, stumbled upon the property by chance.
At the time, it was a far cry from the crisp and eclectic space it is today. “I’m always absorbing beauty from wherever I am,” says Jubelirer. “I try to bring a personal approach to the work that we do for our clients, because I think homes are the most special reflection of their owners. So I approached our family home in the same way.”
Overrun with moss, mice, and covered in a very ’70s-looking peach-colored vinyl siding, it was clearly a house that needed a lot of love. But Jubelirer—whose personal motto is “Why not?”—saw infinite potential.
“The condition of the cottage was really rough around the edges, and some might have called it a teardown,” she says. “The challenge and the fun of it for me was how to capture the spirit of the midcentury-modern house while enabling it to act as a backdrop for the layers and the artistry that I bring to my work.”
The family took some time getting to know the structure and how they wanted to live in it before the real work began. All the while, Jubelirer was collecting items from antique markets and vintage stores, taking pictures for inspiration, and taking stock of what would work best in the space.
Jubelirer started working on the home during the peak of supply chain issues. When she couldn’t get a new refrigerator for the kitchen, she wrapped the one already there in a hand-blocked English fabric that played nicely with the reclaimed Portuguese tile on the wall. (In her professional projects, whatever Jubelirer can’t find for a space, she and her team craft from scratch. Her personal project was no different.)
Despite its challenging layout, the kitchen became the heart of the home and one of Jubelirer’s favorite spots. “The home is a reflection of modern living. It’s very practical. It’s the calm within the storm, but it’s also beautiful because it’s full of life,” she says. “When you stand at the kitchen sink, you’re looking out at the distance and [you might see] a hawk swooping between the trees and a pink reflection of the sunset on the lake…but you turn around and everything that you could need is at your fingertips.”
At 3,000 square feet, the retreat is the perfect fit for a family of four. In order to layer her unique finds, curated textiles, and custom pieces, Jubelirer kept the walls of the common space white, which not only balances the design but also highlights the architectural purity of the building itself. In the primary bedroom, the walls give off a warm golden hue, which Jubelirer describes as the “the color of candlelight.”
Overall, Jubelirer approached the design of her summer cottage with an eye toward balancing beauty and functionality, while celebrating the outdoors. For a professional who approaches all her projects with an artist’s eye and a deep passion, this lake cottage offered Jubelirer the opportunity to craft a highly personal respite away from the hectic pace of modern life. On the lake, she can surround her family with nature thanks to a home that is uniquely, and distinctly, their own.
1/15The cottage is a far cry from the rundown vinyl-clad state Jubelirer found it in. A variety of planters carry the eclectic style of the interior to the outdoors.
2/15Interior designer Jessica Jubelirer.
3/15The dining area is located just inside the home. Vintage (circa 1940s) Swedish flatweave from FJ Hakimian.
4/15In the dining area, vintage Thonet dining chairs covered in Raf Simons fabric flank the large table.
5/15In front of the original brick fireplace, where Jubelirer’s husband David can often be found tending to the fire on chilly evenings, are two Gregorius Pineo hand-forged iron and rattan benches. A Vintage midcentury Swedish rope chair sits just off to the right with an antique American quilt thrown over the back.
6/15Jubelirer’s cottage is full of vintage finds and custom touches. A skirted Scalamandré sofa upholstered in Clarence House fabric with custom bullion fringe anchors a wall in the living room. A vintage cork-topped table and vintage French rattan lounge chairs with horsehair pillows fill out the rest of the space.
7/15The Lacanche range, custom pink cabinets, and Portuguese tile give the kitchen plenty of color, while the Rose Tarlow wool sheers let plenty of light in. Jubelirer covered the refrigerator with fabric, adding another layer of visual interest to the kitchen.
8/15“I literally said, paint the whole thing,” the designer recalls of the project. According to her, it was the “perfect instance of our ability to step out of the mainstream of tearing things out, and instead, letting the challenges spark inspiration and creativity.”
9/15A pair of vintage wood pedestals and a view of the oak trees.
10/15The anchor of Jubelirer’s office is a vintage Pierre Jeanneret desk with a Biedermeier chair.
11/15The primary bedroom is covered in grass cloth for a warm glow. The custom headboard is covered in Italian fabric with a Charlotte Perriand midcentury daybed at the foot of the bed.
12/15Waterworks console sink (and all plumbing); Beauvais rug; Rogers and Goffigan shears and a custom Turkish linen shower curtain.
13/15A skirted vanity is just one charming element of yet another floral corner of the home.
14/15Jubelirer carries her penchant for antiques into her daughter’s room with a vintage American pine dresser and Swedish flatweave rug.
15/15Jubelirer and her family on the dock to the lake.
