A Lakeside Family Retreat: The Nottely Lake Home

A Modern Mountain Cabin Blairsville, GA

Front exterior view of a two-story modern rustic lake house featuring dark blue vertical siding, warm wood shake accents, and crisp white trim. The home has a welcoming covered front porch with timber posts on natural stone bases, a wood front door, decorative timber trusses in the roof gables, and large dark-framed windows, set against a tranquil wooded background. Reynard Architectural Designs.

Modern Rustic Lakehouse Exterior: Nottely Lake Front Porch

Front exterior view of a two-story modern rustic lake house featuring dark blue vertical siding.

Modern Rustic Lakehouse: Multi-Level Rear Exterior & Screened Porches

1/4

"Unparalleled Custom Lake Home Design"

Situated on the lakeside of Blairsville, Georgia, this custom single-family vacation home represents the perfect harmony between nostalgic charm and modern luxury.

When a family of four approached us to replace their aging lake property, they brought a clear vision: a new, multi-level haven that celebrated the natural beauty of the water while comfortably accommodating their family getaways.

Delivering on this dream required an unparalleled Nottely Lake custom home design that honored the property’s cherished history.

Stylized architectural site plan showing two adjacent lakefront lots. The left lot features a gravel drive leading to an existing log home. The right lot displays a proposed residence with a deck and porch, situated within marked minimum and lakefront setback lines.

Project Overview

Site Size: Approximately 1.54 acres total (1.473-acre main lot + 0.064-acre lakeside tract) situated directly on Lake Nottely.
Levels: 3 (Lower Terrace, Main, and Upper).
Estimated Square Footage: ~3,000+ sq. ft. of conditioned interior space, complemented by extensive, multi-tiered outdoor living spaces.
Total Bed/Bath: 5 Bedrooms / 4 Bathrooms.

Stop Dreaming

Start Designing

It's time to turn your ideas into reality.

Let's design your DREAM HOME together.

A hand-drawn, isometric architectural illustration showing the rear and side exterior of a multi-story rustic lakehouse. The rendering details a sloping property with an exposed soil cutaway, a gravel driveway with a car, and expansive, multi-level covered and screened porches supported by tall timber posts.

Layout & Level Breakdown

Main Level (The Gathering Hub)
Core Living: Open-concept living room featuring a striking double-sided fireplace, flowing seamlessly into a chef's kitchen with a large center island and a dedicated walk-in pantry/storeroom.
Bedrooms: Primary Suite featuring a large walk-in closet and 5-piece en-suite bath, plus an additional guest bedroom and full hall bath.
Outdoor Living: Expansive wrap-around outdoor spaces designed for entertaining, including a Covered Deck, Screened Deck, and a dedicated Grill Deck.
Upper Level (The Private Quarters)
Core Living: A secluded, spacious office area.
Bedrooms: One private guest bedroom with access to a full bathroom.
Architectural Detail: Features large interior "voids" overlooking the main level, accommodating the soaring vaulted ceilings from the floor below.
Lower Level (The Family/Recreation Zone)
Core Living: A massive secondary living room or recreation space, ideal for family activities after a day on the lake.
Bedrooms: Two generously sized bedrooms sharing a full, multi-access bathroom.
Utility & Outdoor: A single-car garage/storage room for lake toys and mechanicals, opening up to a massive covered patio that sits directly under the main level decks, leading out to the water.

Basement level floor plan showing garage with parked car, two bedrooms and living space for custom home designed by architect James Knight built in Blairsville, GA

Main floor plan with bedroom, kitchen, bathroom and front entryway. Designed by architect James Knight. Reynard Architectural Designs.

Top floor level floor plan of custom home designed by architect James Knight of Reynard Architectural Designs.

Front elevation in color and featuring the front porch and straight on angle to see custom home in Blairsville, GA Lake Nottely designed by architect James Knight of Reynard Architectural Designs.

Wide front exterior view of a two-story modern rustic lakehouse featuring dark vertical siding, white trim, and warm wood shake accents in the gables. The home has a covered front porch with natural stone column bases and heavy timber posts. It is nestled among bare trees at the end of a driveway, with the waters of a lake visible in the background on both sides of the property.

Scenic view looking through the rust-colored autumn leaves of two tall trees out over a calm, blue lake. A multi-level boat dock with a blue roof, an upper sun deck, and a walkway sits on the water below, housing a boat and kayaks, with a forested shoreline visible in the distance. Reynard Architectural Designs

Side exterior view of a multi-level modern rustic lake house featuring a natural stone foundation, dark blue vertical siding, and warm timber accents in the roof gables. A prominent wooden staircase descends alongside the home toward a waterfront deck, with the calm blue waters of the lake and a boat dock visible in the background against a clear sky. Reynard Architectural Designs

Nottely Lake custom home designed by architect James Knight of Reynard Custom Homes photo by Kalyn Kight custom home architecture design and build. North Georgia architect Blairsville, GA

View from outside looking into a timber-framed screened porch of a custom lake home. Inside, dark rocking chairs rest on a wooden deck, while the warm, golden sunlight of sunset filters through the screen, reflecting off a calm lake and silhouetting trees in the background. Reynard Architectural Designs.

Exterior view of the front porch with wood columns on top of stacked stone. The home features gabled roofs with wood shake and a verticle blue siding. Nottely Lake in Blairsville, GA. Reynard Architectural Designs

custom home on Nottely lake featuring Close-up of an octagonal exterior accent window featuring intricate stained glass with a central dark-teal floral motif surrounded by textured amber and brown glass. The window is framed by a black inner border and a thick, textured white outer trim against a dark siding background. designed by Reynard Architectural Designs

Reynard Architectural Designs in Blairsville, GA. Custom home with view from outside looking into a timber-framed screened porch of a custom lake home. Inside, dark rocking chairs rest on a wooden deck, while the warm, golden sunlight of sunset filters through the screen, reflecting off a calm lake and silhouetting trees in the background.

A close-up view of a modern rustic home's welcoming front porch, captured in the soft light of golden hour. The porch features sturdy natural stone bases supporting heavy timber columns, dark vertical siding, warm cedar shake accents, and dark-framed windows reflecting the surrounding bare trees. Reynard Architectural Designs.

Alt Text: Interior view of a large, dimly lit screened porch at sunset. The porch is furnished with comfortable outdoor seating, including a sofa and armchairs, facing a stone fireplace on the left. The setting sun casts a warm, golden glow through the screens and bare trees, illuminating the lake and surrounding forest in the background. Blairsville, GA Lake Nottely. Reynard Architectural Designs

Alt Text: Low-angle view looking up at the rear exterior of a multi-story modern rustic lake home. The structure features towering, stacked screened porches framed in rich, warm timber, supported by tall natural stone columns. The home is built on a steep, sloped hill terraced with large natural boulders and bathed in the warm light of a late afternoon sun. Reynard Architectural Designs in Blairsville, GA

Custom Home designed by Reynard Architectural Designs View from a stone lakeside patio featuring a dark Adirondack chair and side table in the foreground. Beyond the rocky shoreline, a calm blue lake stretches out toward a wooded opposite shore showing autumn colors. A multi-level boat dock with an upper sun deck is visible on the water to the right under a clear sky.

View looking past the multi-level, timber-framed screened porches of a lake house toward a tranquil, wooded shoreline. Tall trees on a sloping, leaf-covered bank cast long shadows in the warm afternoon sun, with a calm blue lake and boat docks visible in the background.

The Architectural Design Process for Nottely Lake: A modern mountain lake home in Blairsville, GA

Alt Text: Low-angle rear exterior view of a multi-story modern rustic lakehouse built on a steep slope. The home features expansive, stacked screened porches with rich timber framing, supported by tall natural stone columns. A wooden staircase descends over a rugged retaining wall built from large natural boulders, bathed in warm, late-afternoon sunlight. Reynard Architectural Designs in Blairsville, GA on Lake Nottely. Custom Home.

As a premier custom lakefront home architect in Blairsville, GA, lead designer James Knight (Reynard Architectural Designs ) guided the clients through a highly collaborative design process.

During the initial stages, the architectural focus was placed on maintaining the footprint of the original structure, introducing a fresh perspective on lakeside living while preserving the sentimental charm of the past.

Throughout several collaborative revision cycles, the family requested a stronger emphasis on outdoor immersion and entertainment spaces. In response, architect James Knight adapted the architectural plans to feature expansive, multi-level decks that directly face the breathtaking lake view, ensuring the surrounding beauty could be enjoyed at every hour.

The resulting aesthetic is a brilliant execution of modern rustic mountain home architecture. To bring the family’s vision to life, the home showcases specific architectural elements designed to elevate the lakeside experience. Soaring vaulted ceilings instantly open up the main living areas, while custom timber framing adds a warm, grounding texture that nods to traditional cabin styling.

Expansive, floor-to-ceiling window placements were meticulously calibrated to frame the sparkling water, effortlessly blurring the line between the interior and nature. We utilized a rich palette of robust materials, blending natural stone masonry with organic wood accents to visually anchor the home to its woodland environment.

Our overarching design philosophy for this project focused heavily on balance. The expansive communal areas are designed to host family gatherings, maximizing lake views and encouraging an effortless indoor-outdoor flow onto the outdoor, screened decks.

Conversely, the home features thoughtfully secluded "break out spaces" dedicated to restful solitude. These private quarters allow residents to unplug and recharge away from the excitement of the main gathering spaces.