F. Todd Warner

When F. Todd Warner says he’s spent his entire life on Lake Minnetonka, he isn’t kidding. Generations of his family have lived there dating back to 1896, and he has no intention of ever leaving. For thirty-one years he’s bought, restored, and sold boats for his twenty-five-employee–company Mahogany Bay, including his baby, POSH, a fifty-five-foot, 1937 commuter boat. So it’s only fitting that his home would include a boathouse, one of the lake’s largest at sixty feet. He had his eye on the 1923 Storybook–style home for years, living three blocks away, but taking ownership of it was completely serendipitous.

“One night at a cocktail party, I heard that the owners were moving to Wyo-ming, and I was on their doorstep the next morning,” he says. They made a deal before the house ever went on the market, and Warner says he will never move.

Posh Living                                                                                         
The boat, designed by John Ludwig Hacker, was restored and renamed POSH, a moniker that will also serve as Mahogany Bay’s new silhouette and logo. The name stands for “Port Over Starboard Home,” and dates back to when early ocean liners traveling from England to India had guests change sides of the cabin on the way home in order to always stay on the sunny side of the boat. View several yachts on display at the Lake Minnetonka Antique & Classic Boat Rendezvous at Maynards in Excelsior, September 9–10. The annual show is run by the local chapter of the Antique & Classic Boat Society, which Warner cofounded thirty-one years ago.

Speakeasy Stories
Legend has it that the basement (lower right) became the place to drink during Prohibition, drawing friends and politicians from Minneapolis. Quiet and underground, the room is filled with paneling and opaque glass, plus there was a buzzer in the cloak closet to let everyone know if someone was at the door. Stories say the Andrews Sisters started their early career singing in this cozy speakeasy. Now the space is outfitted with audio and visual equipment and serves as a man’s room or entertaining area for Halloween, costume, and murder-mystery parties.

Cut a Rug
Warner’s dad collected boats and cars and his mother had an antiques shop in Minneapolis. So it’s no surprise that, on land, Warner’s other hobby has been collecting, trading, and selling rugs for thirty-five years. Some of the rich, colorful textiles that cover the floors, halls, and Furniture in nearly every room come from his travels to Turkey.

Show House
The Storybook style originated in England and got another push in California. Warner’s fantasy home was restored to its original state, including colors and light fixtures. The before and after was featured on HGTV and the home has also appeared in Trends magazine and on Antiques Roadshow.