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The Lake View

The enclosed Porch

The cottage stretches for more than 110 feet, with a Muskoka room, or screened-in porch, at the northwestern end.

Large south-facing windows by Loewen and a high-efficiency Rais X wood-burning stove help to reduce energy demands.

Vince and Adrienne Murphy’s rural retreat is clad in gray shingles and gray-stained pine. “They wanted the cottage to meld into the woods and be visually quiet,” says architect Kelly Doran, who worked with Portico Timber Frames to build the 2,500-square-foot home.

Floor plan of House on Lake Havelock by SvN Architects, renovated by Kelly Doran

Floor Plan of Hills Beach by Woodhull

Scalar Architecture included a covered deck with tall ceilings and large apertures that enhance the floating sensation.

The cabin’s concept was simple: To create a cabin that is small and sparse yet spatially rich. The 55-square-meter (592-square-foot) cabin, commissioned by a private client and completed in 2016, comprises a large living room, bedroom, ski room, and small annex with a utility room. It functions off the water and electricity grids.

“I suppose you could consider me part of a subculture who lived in various inner-city spaces,” says Simpson, whose previous homes include ad hoc spaces in industrial warehouses, floors of office buildings, and units above shops and bars. In designing his Island Bay home completely from scratch, he retained his experimental spirit: “We wanted a house that responded to our wider social, environmental, and economic concerns rather than something that blindly followed convention,” he says. Unassuming in sight, the home’s corrugated-metal cladding (above) recalls the tin shed, a vernacular housing type in the region.

"The relationship with the clients was the best part of the project,

The new layout feels more open and spacious, thanks in part to strategic open shelving and chicken wire on the cabinet fronts. All of the bowls and boards are by Elsie Green, and the ceramics are from Jenni Kayne.

After staying in a tree house listed on Airbnb, Remo Kommnick and Emi Moore wanted their own getaway in the woods. "It was amazing being up in the trees,

The exterior of the extended yoga studio and primary bedroom wing. The deck is constructed of batu, which was chosen over ipe to keep costs down.

The swimming pool overlooks the river below, which snakes around the home creating a peninsula-shaped plot of land.

Now a gorgeous vanity set-up steals the show, with the sink and taps, both from Rogerseller, mounted on an over-sized mirror layered over wood shelving. The light is the MegaBulb pendant from Great Dane.