Inside a Country Retreat

When Anna Bolt-Jackson began renovating the dilapidated cabin on her family’s land, she knew she wanted to cultivate the feelings she had as a child on the property, spending slow days on the farm. “My grandparents’ farm had tons of chickens, goats, horses and a rambunctious mule, rabbits and a barn full of cats and even a cow my grandpa milked every morning and night,” says Bolt-Jackson. “I lived with them off and on during a difficult childhood, and when I was there everything slowed down and it gave me such peace.” 

While reimagining what to do with the space, it took Bolt-Jackson a while to really figure out what was right. She knew she wanted it to be open, with lots of natural light and little distraction. With the help of her two daughters, she found a wallpaper that she used for the upstairs, which helped set the scene for renovating the rest of the cabin.

Bolt-Jackson also knew she wanted to use a lot of natural materials, and she loves simple Japanese and Scandinavian design. She left a lot of raw wood throughout the house and tried to focus on using quality materials with little waste, designing for the purpose of each space. This is a nod to her mother’s “hippie” sensibilities. She was the first to begin building the cabin in the late ’70s and early ’80s. 

Bolt-Jackson named the cabin after her grandmother, Lillian. “My grandma was Polish and very old-school with a long skirt, apron and a scarf around her hair if we went into town,” she says. “She had a goat named Tulip who would follow her around and always a calico cat named Sweetie.” Bolt-Jackson has worked hard to keep the memories of her grandmother alive in the cabin. She still has a couple of her grandma’s old aprons, as well as several paintings she created of her grandma and grandpa on the farm. Her parents are featured in the home too, in a wedding photo of the two of them by the spring located on the property.

An important part of the cabin rebuilding process was leaving the land just as it was. They kept the wild blackberries and persimmon trees that were already growing on the land, and they’ve been planting all kinds of native plants.

Appreciating every little element is what Bolt-Jackson is all about. Even the hour-long drive to the cabin is something she enjoys, with its scenic curves through the Ozark Mountains and stunning views.

When she isn’t using the cabin, she hosts it on Airbnb. “I want my guests to appreciate the silence and be still for a moment,” she says. “Lie in bed as long as you want, then make coffee and sit outside on the front deck taking it all in.”

Evenings at Lillian’s blackberry cabin are nothing short of magical, with crisp breezes flowing through the trees and sunset views from the deck. She loves relaxing while her husband, Shawn, starts dinner on their outdoor griddle. They eat outside, listen to the frogs on the pond, sit around the fire or talk for hours until the stars come out.

The couple also uses the cabin to entertain family and friends, and Bolt-Jackson appreciates a beautifully set table with cloth napkins and real plates. “I used to beg my grandma to get out her good China for holidays, and she would reluctantly let me,” she says.

Bolt-Jackson doesn’t take herself too seriously when hosting guests at the cabin—a good host is someone who is really enjoying themselves, she says. “I enjoy decorating and making the event beautiful but hate cooking, so my parties usually have a beautiful setup with candles and flowers and real napkins but a lot of finger foods and easy snack type foods,” she says. Her grandmother was quite the cook though, and she gifted her first cookbook filled with hand-written recipes including Polish donuts called pączki. Still, hosting family and friends and relishing the time together is at the core of Bolt-Jackson’s heart. Dining outdoors with views of longhorn cattle in the field and little groundhogs who live under the deck makes you feel a part of something much bigger.