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Project Story · Full-Home Remodel
Austin Home Renovation: The Lake Austin Waterfront Remodel
A compartmentalized Spanish-style lakehouse reimagined as one light-filled, open retreat that keeps its original soul.
The owners of this waterfront property on Lake Austin loved their location and the bones of their Spanish-style home, but the interior no longer matched the way they wanted to live. They came to Etch Design Group for an Austin home renovation that would modernize every room while protecting the character of the original architecture. The brief was clear: open the home to its lake views, bring in light, and keep the warmth that made it feel like theirs. This was a whole-home project rather than a single room, so the work touched the kitchen, the living and dining spaces, the owner's suite, and the bathrooms, all of it tied together by one consistent point of view.
The starting point
From the street, the home reads as classic Hill Country Mediterranean, with a red clay tile roof, stone pillars, and an arched iron entry. Inside told a different story. The floor plan was chopped into separate rooms, with heavy tile, dated cabinetry, and a kitchen ceiling mural that anchored the house in another era. Even the great room, which faces some of the best water views on the property, felt closed off behind walls and small openings. The home had genuine quality in its construction, so the goal was never to start over. It was to free up the spaces that the original layout had boxed in.
Before:
The design strategy
Jessica Nelson led the project with one organizing idea: let the lake set the tone for the whole interior. The team opened the kitchen and living spaces into a single connected flow and raised the ceilings so the rooms could breathe. Every window and door was replaced, which pulled the water and the tree canopy into the heart of the home and made the views the constant backdrop they always should have been.
The biggest constraint was respect for the existing structure. The Spanish exterior, with its tile roof, stone columns, and arched iron entry, had to stay intact, so each interior move was planned to modernize the inside without fighting the architecture outside. A double-sided fireplace, wrapped in striking Dekton slabs, became the quiet hinge of the main floor, creating a visual connection between the living room and the breakfast area while reading as one sculptural element from both sides. Where the old plan used heavy stone and dark cabinetry to define rooms, the new one uses light, sightlines, and a restrained material palette to do the same work, so the spaces feel separate without ever feeling closed.
Designed for how the family really lives
The finishes were chosen to feel calm, tactile, and built for daily use. In the kitchen, motorized cabinet doors slide away to reveal appliance garages, so the counters stay clear and the room stays serene, with discreet outlets set right into the backsplash for everyday convenience. The two powder bathrooms show off handcrafted waterfall-edge stone countertops with integrated slab sinks, a sculptural detail that turns a small room into a moment.
The owner's retreat carries the same thinking. A new private courtyard sits just outside, and expansive windows open the primary bathroom to it, inviting the outdoors in. Inside that bath, ombre mosaic wall tile and a custom freestanding waterfall-edge slab bench give the space a spa-like ease. Throughout the home, new furnishings were selected to accentuate the natural backdrop rather than compete with it, so the lake stays the star of every room.
The result
The finished home is a sophisticated, cohesive retreat that marries modern interiors with the home's original Spanish flair. This Lake Austin waterfront remodel now lives the way the owners pictured it: an open floor plan filled with natural light and uninterrupted views, where the kitchen, living, and dining spaces flow together and every finish was chosen with intention. The architecture they loved is still standing proud from the street, and the inside finally keeps up with it. As an Austin home renovation, it shows what is possible when a home with strong bones is opened up rather than torn down, and the payoff is daily life lived against the water instead of behind walls. Morning coffee in the breakfast nook, an evening by the double-sided fireplace, and a quiet hour in the courtyard off the owner's suite all became part of the everyday rather than something to host around.
"They searched for months and did not leave any stone unturned to find me what I wanted. Highly recommend this team with impeccable taste and a great eye for design."Etch Design Group client review
Project Credits
Interior Design: Etch Design Group • Builder: Skelly Home Renovations • Photography: Ryann Ford • Styling: Adam Fortner