Firefly at Dead Lake

On the wooded North Shore of Dead Lake, formerly known as White Haven Resort, Firefly’s gated, community-style cabin living was the perfect style for the Curated Home owners and designer, Trever Hill and Jesse Masterson. The couple’s captivating retreat is one of 16 small-footprint lake homes sharing 10 acres and 1,200 feet of shoreline, doubling as your next Airbnb getaway. See inside the couple’s well-”curated” quarters – a lofted two-story design that captures the view and elevates low-maintenance lake living.

BY Tracy Nicholson
PHOTOGRAPHY BY Micah J. Zimmerman, Amdak Productions

Trever Hill, of Trever Hill Design and his spouse Jesse Masterson (not shown) are 50/50 owners of the cabin with friend and investor, Jessica Knutson (not shown)

SMALL-SCALE LAKE LIFE
Located near Dent, MN, Firefly’s concept was originally developed in 2020 by Fargo’s Jade Nielsen, who worked with both Strom Architecture and Halvor Design Studio to envision a lakeside neighborhood of one- and two-bedroom cabins. The big draw of the small-scale concept was making lake life more attainable, creating a common interest community that could vacation maintenance-free and share the shoreline year-round.

Hill and Masterson are busy business owners who love to travel, so committing to a high-maintenance and high-cost lake property wasn’t ideal. Still longing for an occasional weekend retreat, the couple entered a 50/50 partnership with long-time friend, Jessica Knutson, as an investor. This partnership shares the cost and the revenue, utilizing the cabin as a year-round Airbnb when Hill and Masterson aren’t able to be there.

COZY & COMPACT
Their two-bedroom floorplan was thoughtfully designed to live big, harvesting two stories of natural light from large windows that frame the view through the trees to crystal-clear waters. The cabin features low-maintenance, polished concrete flooring, a 24-foot vaulted ceiling in knotty pine, an upstairs laundry room, bedroom, and lofted lounge, along with a main-floor bath, primary bedroom, living room, and full galley kitchen. The cabin is also energy-efficient, with in-floor heat and smart technology, allowing all three to check on their property remotely.

Shifting the interest upward, Hill and Masterson illuminated the vaulted ceiling with an artisanal LED fixture, a repurposed focal point from Masterson’s former Curated Mens by JM store.

LAKESIDE LIVING
“When Jade was doing this development, they had three different floorplans, but we chose this 958-square-foot plan because it was wide open above the living area,” said Hill. “The lofted upstairs gives the illusion of a larger, less confined space.” In true designer fashion, Hill also implemented custom layout changes to the original plan, shifting the laundry to the upstairs and creating a more expansive main-floor bath.

In the main-floor living space, the focus settles into the view, accented by vintage-inspired artwork, a reclaimed wood mantel from Dakota Timber, and furnishings from Curated Home by THD. With limited wall space, they chose a Samsung Frame TV that allows entertainment to transition to artwork on a whim. Beyond the few true vintage pieces brought from home, Hill and Masterson found the majority of the cabin’s artwork and lamps at HomeGoods.

“I love the one-of-a-kind, vintage rugs in here. I commonly hear concern from people about investing in rugs like this, especially for use in a rental property, but we’re not at all worried,” said Hill. “If an old, vintage rug has already survived centuries of use, it can absolutely survive a few friends and Airbnb guests.”

Woven into the main floor flow is a beachy white kitchen with pine ceilings, vintage brass hardware, and black Samsung appliances for high contrast against the white Corian perimeter, subway tile, and island stone.

GUEST RETREAT
In the main floor’s guest room, the couple balanced the warmth of pine ceilings with elegant neutral contrast, displaying a Tulum-inspired natural raffia and stone wall hanging from High Point Market.

ELEVATED LOFT
Just up the stairs, off the loft’s lounge and laundry room, is the primary bedroom, where Hill and Masterson repeat the clean, neutral palette with a soft, beachy vibe and vintage half-painted artwork from downtown Fargo’s Handpicked Goods. In both bedrooms, the couple purchased multiple sets of the same bedding, simplifying the task of swapping out fresh linens for each Airbnb arrival.

In the open loft, the couple created space for storage, sleeping, and seating with a handwoven rattan and teak wood wardrobe, mod club chair, and cozy chaise lounge. With one flip, the chaise lounge quickly transitions to a queen bed, making the two-bedroom cabin capable of sleeping six.

In the lofted laundry, Hill selected a quartzite remnant stone from Northern Stone in Fargo. “When I’m designing for smaller spaces like this one, I love using remnants, it’s a really cost-effective way to add in high-quality materials,” added Hill.

NO WORK, ALL PLAY
Hill, Masterson, and Knutson’s ownership in Firefly includes a Home Owner’s Association with a low monthly fee that takes care of outdoor maintenance, including yard care, dock service, broadband internet to each cabin, firewood, road repairs, trash and snow removal, septic flushing, and more.

Each cabin comes with a 10x10 storage unit and a designated dock space. Cabins are assigned a unique parcel ID and community members purchase the land under the cabin and 1/16 of the common areas.

Firefly’s common areas include green spaces, a shared fire pit, a playground, and a community room and wet bar for large gatherings. “I love the sense of community and calmness when I am at the cabin,” said Masterson. “Trever and I even use the community fire pits rather than our own sometimes just to be around other owners and get to know them!”

DESIGN DETAILS

Interior Design: Trever Hill & Jesse Masterson - Trever Hill Design
Architect: Halvor Design Studio
Firefly Developer: Jade Nielsen
Furnishings & Accent Pillows: Curated Home by THD
Cabinetry: Klearvue Cabinets
Living Room Lamp & Art: HomeGoods
Raffia Wall Hanging: High Point Market
Bedroom Vintage Half-Painted Art: Handpicked Goods
Bedding: Amazon
Countertops: Northern Stone
Fireplace Mantel: Dakota Timber
Abstract LED Pendant: Wayfair

Trever Hill Design
701.388.6687
TreverHillDesign@gmail.com
treverhilldesign.com
@treverhilldesign

Curated Home by THD
2633 55th St. S. Suite 120, Fargo
701.715.3077
curatedbythd.com
@curatedhomebyth

Halvor Design
Taylor Dahl - Fargo/Moorhead
701.541.2029
halvordesign@gmail.com
www.halvorcompanies.com
@halvordesignstudio