Enjoy a vacation right on Lake Michigan! Go out the door to the lake and spend the day on your own 200 foot private beach. The house itself has beautiful views of the lake. Enjoy meals on a screened-in porch with still more beautiful views. The house has a unique artist-designed layout with a modest kitchen/living room/ dining area but very large studio rooms. There are three bedrooms on the first floor (two with King beds and one with a full bed). The lower floor has an enormous room with 6 beds for kids, a large TV, Nintendo, games, and more! There are 2 bunk beds (3 full and 1 twin) then 2 trundles (1 full and 1 twin).
A spacious attic / play area has legos and toys. Note: Small children must be supervised.

The property sits on a bluff with an easy private walk down to the water. The house is one of three full size houses owned by the same family. It shares a drive and walk with the next door house where Granny lives. She can be available for easy questions, but her son & daughter-in-law in Grand Rapids can handle your urgent questions or concerns. You can feel free with the use of your house and grounds, it's unlikely you'll see Granny unless you knock. There is an empty lot on the other side of the house. From the porch you cannot see another house or person.

The original house was built in 1935 and has been renovated and improved several times in the past 85 years. The living room has an amazing view of the lake! It also has charm with the same fireplace and knotty pine woodwork from the first construction. The kitchen and dining room although large by 1935 standards are modest by today’s standards but the appliances have all been updated. The dining room seats 8 and the living room has working wood fireplace.

Because an artist has been living here for the past few decades, there are some design choices that are non-traditional. Again, larger studio space was prioritized over family dining space. Also many of the walls are painted in unique and iridescent colors, but sometimes the paint is inconsistent or partially complete. We think it makes the house "interesting" and "fun" but if you are looking for "elegant" or "grandiose" this might not be the right choice.

The house has an eco-friendly water-sourced heat pump for year-round heating and air-conditioning. A modern tankless hot water system has been added so it is impossible to run out of hot water!

A large porch wraps around one and a half sides of the cottage. The lake and forest are visible from the entire porch. There is a lovely screened in section that can seat ten people. The front porch has a barbecue grill and seating overlooking the lake.

The kitchen has a stove, microwave, coffee maker, dish washer, garbage disposal, refrigerator and freezer (with ice maker). Plates, glasses and silverware are fully stocked. Pots, pans, colanders and assorted other kitchen equipment is also stocked. Although the kitchen is not large, it is bright and also overlooks the lake. It is easy to make trays of food and take them to the porch, beach, dining room, or living room.

You can build a wood fire in the fireplace, although we ask you follow our instructions and never leave it unattended. The classic wood file and fireplace is a great place to read a book and turn off cell phones!

You can walk right out any of the lake doors and go down to the beach. The beach is private and wonderful. Property owners own the land “to the water’s edge”. This means you can walk along the beach as far as you want as long as you are close to the water. You may see some beach walkers doing the same but they are not supposed to come up on your beach. The beach sand is clean and white, and the lake is clean freshwater. Depending on the day, the water can be as warm as 75 degrees (typically later in August or early September). See below for Lake Michigan updates.

The house has a large washer and dryer, Wi-Fi throughout, heat, air-conditioning, and even emergency backup power should that be necessary. It is not baby-safe. There are stairs, outlets and there may be choking hazards like Legos. Plan on supervising young children at all times.

Outside, we have sprayed for poison ivy, but it does exist in the woods and everyone should be careful. In summer months, there can also be ticks and mosquitos although these are mostly in the woods too.

We believe you will have a wonderful time at the Artist's Lake House!
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Lake Michigan water levels / beach status - April 21, 2021
We are very encouraged by this spring's water levels. I updated the pictures to show the current levels. There's about 15 feet of beach in front of the sandbags. Last year the water was lapping against the sandbags so this is great!
We also own a second empty-lot property 100 feet south of this property (not the next 100 ft but the 100 after that). Guests are free to use that too which should provide ample room for sunbathing or a beach fire if there's not quite enough in front of the sandbags.

Covid and For-Sale status update March 14, 2021:

This year I am planning on blocking out an extra day between renters to give a more time to air out and disinfect. So the dates you see blocked off should already include this padded time.

For sale: We have had the house for sale for a year now. We don't expect this to affect our renters. We won't ask you to show it during your stay. Even if it does sell, the new owners may keep the rental agreements. And if not, we will give ample notice of a cancellation.

We like to keep open communication. Please feel free to ask if you have questions.
-- Sheryl