Tour This Cozy Industrial Minnesota Lake Home With Dashing DIYs in Every Room

Six months of freezing, Minnesota weather, a global pandemic and two small kids was the recipe that empowered eco-friendly, DIY designer and renovator Kate Chipinski to overhaul her family's lake house. (There also may or may not be a ghost in Kate's basement.)

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March 01, 2023

By: Rachael Jones

Show: HGTV Handmade

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Shop This Look

Photo By: Tremendous Entertainment

When You Wish Upon a DIY

Kate Chipinsiki is a proud mom of two little girls and wife to a handy husband named Mike living in a renovated lake house in Minnesota. The DIYer, eco-friendly designer and home renovator has a knack for upcycling ordinary objects into rustic, industrial works of art. A former co-worker encouraged Kate to start an Instagram featuring her DIY projects, and the rest is handmade history. "I got into DIY design pretty much when we moved into this house," Kate says. "I had been looking for two years for a house on the lake, and I looked at this house and was like, 'This is it.' It was old. It was smelly. But everything I saw looked cosmetic and things that I could easily fix. So we just DIYed our way through the house."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

One Room at a Time

"[The living room] is the first thing that we did when we moved into the house," Kate shares. "It was a red brick, so I painted it white, and that really set the tone for creating all the spaces that are adjacent to it." The space also features one of several hidden design hacks. “We wanted to get an art TV, but it was a little expensive. So I said, ‘We’ll just make a frame, and I can buy a tapestry and cover it up when it’s not in use.'”

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Outside In

"I also love bringing outdoor elements inside," Kate says. "And something that you’ll see scattered throughout my whole house are bowls of moss or dried hydrangeas."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Double-Sided Design

"The other side of the double-sided fireplace goes into the dining room," Kate says. "Another thing that Mike made me recently [is] a frame to hang above the mantel. I wanted it where I could easily interchange artwork. [Now] there is an old [player] piano reel, and I have all of these books displayed here, too."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Turning Pages

Once you see this trick, you'll never unsee it. "I like to put the spines [of books] back because I like the look of it," Kate shares. "People ask me all the time why I display the books this way, and I think it’s pretty. If I need to search for a book, I will literally go and search for that book."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Existing Kitchen Confidence

One of the most upcycled spaces in Kate's home is the most frequented. "The [kitchen] footprint is exactly the same as it was when we moved into the house," Kate says. "All the cabinetry is existing cabinetry. I had a vision of one big shelf in the space with lighting. It’s not supposed to be functional — it’s supposed to be pretty, because we have other functional things in here."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

A Touch of Leather

"I found these rods from Amazon for $10 and they came with the hooks," Kate says of her under-shelf storage in the kitchen. "I had these strips of leather in the house that I just cut up and hole-punched. Then I stuck the hooks through, and it adds warmth to the space."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Nothing To Waste

This piece of wood is a shelf Kate saved after remodeling her daughter’s room. "I didn’t want to waste the shelves," Kate says. "I don’t like to throw things away, so I added some leather straps to it and now it’s a tray for the kitchen. Free!"

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Here Comes the Sunroom

"[The sunroom] is probably one of my favorite rooms of the house," Kate says. "It’s literally walls of windows for you to look at nature. And I get to look out at the lake and see people doing all the fun stuff they do: snowmobile, ice fishing and snowshoeing."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Matte Mood

"[The sunroom] used to be a really, really light wood paneling," Kate says. "It wasn’t necessarily my style. So then I was like, 'I’m going to grab a darker stain, an espresso stain, grab a paintbrush and start painting it on.' It pretty much looks black, but there’s a sheen to it and you can still see the knots in the wood."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Bountiful Built-Ins

Even the hallways get a doting DIY from Kate. "There was a window right here [in the hallway] that looked into the main bedroom," she says. "So we took out the window, cut a doorframe out, put wood paneling on this wall and Mike built these built-ins."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Creative Bedroom Canvas

Step inside Kate's main bedroom overflowing with upcylced DIYs and tons of handmade decor. "We put up some wood paneling as a headboard [using] 8-foot pieces of pine boards that I nailed into the wall and then stained," she explains. "It was super inexpensive. And then we added in an acrylic frame to give it a little modern flair."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Breaking the Mold

"My style is kind of a mix of a lot of different styles," Kate shares. "I like modern design, but I also like vintage. A lot of people say that I have a lot of masculine touches to my spaces."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Beyond Basics

"We also made these nightstands, and I added a little leather element to them as well," Kate says.

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Mom's Reading Nook

"I love a moody room," Kate says. "I think that adding a dark space to your home gives the room depth and feeling, and I love it. So we created a nice cozy reading space to have mommy time in here."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Neat and Navy

Kate's gorgeous guest room isn't lacking any signature DIYs. Another handmade headboard that features flanking sconces looks great paired with dark dressers that double as nightstands.

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Bonus Basement

"This is the [pandemic] basement," Kate says. "When we first went into lockdown, I was like, 'OK, we have time.' And I wanted this wall to be a huge focal point for the room. So Mike built me these huge built-ins, and he did a phenomenal job with it."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Coordinating Collection

The basement built-ins are filled with more of Kate's hand-picked decor with natural, wooden elements and vintage appeal.

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Leather Continued

"I made these leather pulls for all of the [cabinet] doors," Kate says. "Literally every room that you can walk into, I have made something."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Dried Floral Finish

Kate's decor almost always involves dried florals in vintage vases, trays and jars. The basement is no exception, with a rustic vase centered on a round, wooden coffee table.

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Kids' Corner

"I have two small kids, and they're only allowed to have their toys in a designated room," Kate says. "So I decided to turn a [basement] closet into a secret hideout kids' room. And I made a little kitchenette for the kids to play with."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Starry Nights

"And then we found some LED string lights," Kate continues. "Mike and I drilled holes in the ceiling and then we stapled [the lights] in very carefully so it looks like a night sky."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Secret Room Story

The basement bar is a stylish adult retreat outfitted with leather chairs, a quartz island and gold sink. But this space hides more than meets the design eye. "This is the creepy room," Kate shares. "We left the basement how it was for years, and then one day I said, 'Hey, Mike, can we rip the paneling down?' And then [we found] this cut-out in the drywall. I was like, 'There has to be something behind it — let’s take it out!'"

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Fine Wine Cellar

Kate continues, "So we unscrew the drywall and there was a sheet of plastic. We cut into the plastic and we peeked in and there was hidden room back there. It had this tin red ceiling that was rusted and water had gotten into it, so it had dripped rust on the walls and it looked like blood was coming down. And then I found a bobby-pin on the floor. It was so creepy." But not to worry, Mike and Kate turned the room into a stunning wine cellar with bottles displayed along the walls — as if nothing ever happened.

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Ever-Changing Outlook

"I want people to feel comfortable and relaxed when they’re in my home," Kate says. "I like it to be unique and one-of-a-kind, and I think it provides more meaning. I don’t have an ah-ha vision of any space. I layer different elements one at a time until it all feels right, and I’m always changing things around. My husband says it wouldn’t be a day if I didn’t move something."

Watch the Video: Tour an Organic Modern Minnesota Lake House

Tour This Cozy Industrial Minnesota Lake Home With Dashing DIYs in Every Room

Related To:

Shop This Look

When You Wish Upon a DIY

One Room at a Time

Outside In

Double-Sided Design

Turning Pages

Existing Kitchen Confidence

A Touch of Leather

Nothing To Waste

Here Comes the Sunroom

Matte Mood

Bountiful Built-Ins

Creative Bedroom Canvas

Breaking the Mold

Beyond Basics

Mom's Reading Nook

Neat and Navy

Bonus Basement

Coordinating Collection

Leather Continued

Dried Floral Finish

Kids' Corner

Starry Nights

Secret Room Story

Fine Wine Cellar

Ever-Changing Outlook

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