Styling by JoNae Villeneuve. Photos: Spacecrafting
The local full-service architecture and interior design firm brings a historic Dellwood home back to life.
When Dellwood residents Anna and Jens Shroyer drove up to their future home on White Bear Lake on December 27, 2020, it was love at first sight. All dressed up for Christmas, the 1889 lakefront house in the woods made a grand impression. “It’s one of those houses that, as you drive up, you just kind of gasp … I had never seen anything quite like it,” Anna says.
-
- The historic summer home was originally oriented toward the lake, where its first residents, the family of former U.S. Secretary of State Frank Kellogg, arrived by ferry. (F. Scott Fitzgerald is rumored to have played tennis on the property.) Blue Pencil Collective reoriented the home, and bi-fold windows in the dining room now open to a new facade.
-
- The team also adjusted the home’s footprint to accommodate a new lakeside kitchen and living space with an expansion on the second level to ensure each of the five Shroyer kids has their own bedroom.
They could’ve (and some say should’ve) torn it down, but the thought never crossed their minds. “We really wanted to continue the legacy of the house,” Anna says. But as time passed, the old home’s needs became apparent. “As I would drive up, I would see all of these reminders of things that needed to be done,” Anna says.
Throughout the renovation process, Blue Pencil Collective (BPC) respected and complemented the home’s existing, historic elements. The original staircases and fireplaces were restored for beautiful and functional results. In the parlor, the team sandblasted paint to expose the original river rock of the grand fireplace and added character with a dozen unique moldings. “With a historical home, it didn’t make sense to do all new, even if it was custom-designed to make it look old. We wanted to have all of those elements to really create that whole story,” says Regan Nix, BPC co-founder.
Inside, poor insulation made the bedrooms frosty in the winter and unbearably hot in the summer. Outside, the home’s exterior finishes were in desperate need of repair. For two years, the Shroyers made changes as needed to keep their home livable. “And then we realized, ‘OK. We have to just do it all,” Anna says.
-
- To highlight the view of White Bear Lake from indoor spaces, the originally tucked-away kitchen was moved lakeside, becoming an oasis of light that allows Anna Shroyer to keep tabs on the yard and lake. And the sink is not the only place with a view; windows line the entire kitchen, even behind the range. The room is one of her favorite places to watch the sunset. “We get the most amazing sunsets … it never gets old,” Anna says.
-
![The formerly enclosed lakeside porch was torn down and replaced with an expansive outdoor entertaining area, featuring a hot tub and fire pit overlooking the lake. “We do a big Fourth of July party every year, and [the outdoor space] was so much more functional this year,” homeowner Anna Shroyer says. One of her favorite new additions is a serving countertop that extends from the kitchen. “We can open the kitchen windows and actually just serve food right onto the countertop outside,” she says.](https://whitebearlakemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/AHT_BPC-Dellwood-Love_129_Moody.jpg)
- The formerly enclosed lakeside porch was torn down and replaced with an expansive outdoor entertaining area, featuring a hot tub and fire pit overlooking the lake. “We do a big Fourth of July party every year, and [the outdoor space] was so much more functional this year,” homeowner Anna Shroyer says. One of her favorite new additions is a serving countertop that extends from the kitchen. “We can open the kitchen windows and actually just serve food right onto the countertop outside,” she says.
They entrusted Blue Pencil Collective (BPC), a local full-service architecture and interior design agency, to bring their vision to life. “We were just so excited about them because what they were doing, we felt, was different than everybody else, and their attention to detail was so obvious,” Anna says. BPC founders Kasey Johnson and Regan Nix worked closely with the Shroyers and Robey Construction to create a work of art perfectly suited to the family who calls it home.
-
- Blue Pencil Collective’s curatorial skill is on full display in the kitchen. With walnut cabinets, ornamental molding and a brick fireplace, the space is rooted in the traditional style—yet each contemporary touch contributes to a feeling of timelessness. “We really tried not to do anything that was going to be really obviously 2025 … nothing that’s going to be trendy,” Anna Shroyer says. “I wanted it to be unclear when it was redone.”
-
- Blue Pencil Collective worked to preserve and foster a distinctive experience in each room. Custom details, carried through each space, bring comfort and warmth to the 6,650-square-foot home. Scalloped and rounded edges feature prominently from pendant lights and ceiling trim to rugs and furnishings. Patterns and textures are repeated in the wallpaper and curtains. In the library, pictured here, the scalloped rug, sourced in Italy, blends beautifully with an Art Deco lighting fixture and deep blue built-ins.
Alongside their children, Lucy, 17, Clara, 15, Oscar, 13, Gus, 11 and Sylvia, 7, Anna and Jens are building a love story for the ages in their dream house. “It feels like a huge weight lifted,” Anna says. “Every time I drive up to the house, I just take a big … sigh of relief. It’s just so beautiful, and I’m still not desensitized to that. I still just drive up every day, like, I can’t believe I actually get to live here.”
The photo gallery above one of the home’s original staircases was a surprise from Blue Pencil Collective (BPC). Regan Nix, BPC co-founder, recalls watching homeowner Anna Shroyer walk up the stairs with tears in her eyes, taking in the wall and memories made tangible. “Our blended family has been together for five years now, so even feeling like our new blended family has history was really cool,” Anna says.
Blue Pencil Collective
Instagram: @bluepencilcollective
Robey Construction
Facebook: Robey Construction
