Every small town has their own special charms. Glenn, Michigan, is no exception—right down to its nickname, “The Pancake Town,” bestowed upon it after the community rallied to feed hundreds of motorists stranded during a blizzard in 1937. But its quaint history and waterfront setting have made property scarce. So, when Annie Conway, who spent summers in the area, and her husband, Will Wake, began looking for a place to build, options were limited. They decided on a pristine but potentially problematic lot. Seeing limitations as an opportunity to create thoughtful design, they phoned their trusted architect, Josh Hutchison, who had renovated their 19th-century brickstone in Chicago.
“This was really the last remaining parcel in the area and a pretty challenging site,” Hutchison recalls. Wetlands to one side and a cliff with erosion concerns left only a third of the site buildable. The house needed to be designed as a “readily movable structure,” he explains, meaning that if the bluff became a threat, the residence could be lifted and scooted deeper into the site. “Everyone else had been scared off, but we were both optimistic and motivated,” Annie says. “We really wanted a weekend or summer place where we could host a million cousins and just unplug.” They didn’t want cookie-cutter, either—no log cabin, no Nantucket knockoff. “I really wanted a ‘sexy cabin’ look,” she says, “something more Pacific Northwest in style.”
After walking the site, Hutchison was struck by its vantage point and the vastness of its Lake Michigan vistas. “Nature’s majesty can be kind of intimidating!” he says. He composed a plan that responded to the surroundings: a slightly boomerang-shaped structure that sits against the forest yet still has lake views. “The home comprises three volumes, each of which relates to the contours of the property. There’s nothing arbitrary here,” he adds. And to give the house that “sexy” edge, he used a combination of ipe and a thermally modified wood that mimics the look of charred cedar.
“But because this home is designed for gathering, we treated it with a slightly different program inside,” Hutchison continues, noting the contributions of project designer Jarrett Jespersen in creating the family-centric floor plan. Key to their clients’ needs were a great room that leads outside, a large dining area, a media room/library, en suite bedrooms, a bunk room and a generous mudroom for the couple’s rescue dogs, Ruthie Bader Ginsburg and Cosimo de’ Medici. “The dogs were part of our vision here,” Annie notes. “We wanted to give them a life outside the city where they could run around and chase squirrels.”
Annie, who has a background in product innovation and service design, has a savvy eye and initially began the interiors herself but realized she wanted a “creative partner, someone to push my thinking,” she explains. Bringing on designer Marli Jones proved the solution. “This home is contemporary, a departure from their city residence, so there’s a different materiality here,” Jones says. “Because they have a young son, they didn’t want anything too precious. The design became about durability, warmth and practicality, but we also wanted to have a little fun.”
In the entryway, Jones and design director Amanda Clemente Eby created a “drop zone for muddy shoes,” she says, but one that’s elevated with a large photograph by Jin-Woo Prensena. Walking into the great room reveals a built-in bar area with what she describes as a “wow moment” tile, a dining area that can seat 20 beneath its custom suede-wrapped chandelier, and an airy living area. In the latter, Jones devised a window seat (“Great storage for toys,” she notes) paired with furnishings that lend a midcentury vibe. The kitchen, with its snack pantry and coffee area, connects the great room to the other side of the abode, which houses a sitting room that can be closed off for television, reading or writing, and a bunk room for the kids. Upstairs are the couple’s bedroom and two guest suites. “Their room was about keeping it simple and just enjoying the best view of the lake,” Jones says.
Of course, outdoor living is just as important. Meals can be enjoyed on the alfresco dining area—the perfect place to embrace the town’s nickname and gobble up pancakes on a sunny morning. And with lake levels down, the couple foresees a summer of kayaking. But definite plans of any sort are off the table. “Time here is unstructured,” Annie says. “When we come up the gravel drive, there’s a noticeable difference in how we feel. Every night we say to ourselves, ‘Is this real?’ ”
