Lake Cabin Design Inspo

Midwesterners love their cabins. There’s nothing like a second home where you can toss aside your weekday clothes, ditch the work routine and immerse yourself in swimming, fishing, hiking and simply enjoying the view from the porch.

What makes the getaway lodge so welcoming? The lodge furnishings play a big part! When you step through the front door and see rustic log furniture highlighted with comforting colors and textures, you know that a few days of idyllic living are in store.

Whether you’re furnishing your lake cabin from scratch or adding to the treasures you already own, selecting a few new items is one of the most enjoyable tasks a cabin owner can undertake.

Cabin Design, Cabin Materials

While your workaday home might feature a modern or contemporary style, most lake homes have a countrified rustic feel. Rustic doesn’t mean unstylish or fragile, though! With children running about and adults plopping themselves on any available seat, lodge furniture must be built to stand up against wear. Solid woods like hickory and cedar are sturdy as well as beautiful. Barnwood and artisan woodshop furniture make for chairs, tables and chests that hold up to anything a houseful of happy guests can dish out.

Flexible Furniture

Back in town, dining happens in the dining room, conversation in the living room and sleeping in the bedrooms. At the cabin, those rules go out the window! An impromptu card game might pop up anywhere, or family and friends might snack in any room and need a place to set their plates and drinks. That’s why it’s handy to have plenty of table space. You might choose cedar or hickory end tables or coffee tables, but for the classic rustic flavor, there’s nothing quite like a whiskey barrel table.

With people constantly in and out of doors, you never know when you’ll need a couple more places, so lots of seating is a must. Barnwood chairs and benches, saddle seat stools and possibly a nostalgic wooden rocker give guests a ton of choices when it’s time to pull up a chair.

Sometimes cabin furniture centers around a coordinated dining set, but just as often mix and match is the order of the day. With an assortment of tables and chairs, you’ll be ready for anything from extra guests at the table to a rainy day when the entire houseful is busy with indoor activities.

Where Will Everyone Sleep?

There are times when it’s just you and the kids, but some days the lodge is full of friends and relatives. Whether there are few people or many, they all need a place to sleep. For the pleasantest of lakeside dreams, give them beds with the flavor of the outdoors. These could be cedar bedroom sets with the natural bumps and knots or tasteful bed frames of reclaimed material such as barnwood.

If you occasionally have more visitors than bedroom space, bunk beds are a lifesaver. Choose standard, full or twin bunks, or opt for add-ons such as trundle beds or stairs that contain drawers. If you have a futon, klik klak or sleeper sofa on hand, you’ll be even more prepared for everyone to tuck in at bedtime.

There’s always going to be the person who wants to stretch out for some afternoon Z-time on a quiet sofa, and an extra throw blanket with some pillows of backwoods plaid are just what’s needed for that restful snooze. Keep plenty of these decorative items on hand; they also add a touch of hominess to the wooden frames in the bedrooms.

Textures, Colors and Accents

A great thing about a cabin is that it looks like a cabin. Wood furniture with a homespun appearance is a superb start, but it needs some color to bring it to life. Blankets, pillows and accent chairs are top options to provide that colorful contrast. Indoor hues should reflect the outdoors, be they the blue of the lake and sky, the green of the verdure outside or the autumn-y shades of red and burnt orange.

Don’t underestimate the power of plaid in upholstery, blankets and cushions. Also, colors can come alive in wall art, be it a picture of sunset over the lake or of a boating pair of fisherman backdropped by towering pines. You might also choose candles, vases and bowls to echo your color accents.

A mirror framed in barnwood is a small touch but one that leaves no doubt you’re at the cabin. Top off your scheme with some signs, inside or out, welcoming your friends to the lake and talking about how great life is now that they’re here.

Furnishing your lake lodge is a pleasure and privilege of cabin ownership. As you choose every rustic chair or table, every colorful pillow or blanket, every item of decor that proclaims “lakeshore!” you express your taste and personality in a way that you just can’t do back home. You may not spend most of your days at the cabin, but the right atmosphere makes it a cinch that those days will be the best ones!