Site & Landscape
Site & Landscape
Hoodstown Cottage is a thoughtfully designed lakeside retreat on Lake Vernon in Huntsville, Ontario. Facing due east toward the water, the home prioritizes breathtaking landscape views through expansive glazing, strategic south-facing living areas, and fluid indoor-outdoor connections via a wraparound deck with multiple seating and dining zones.
The Design
How it looked before the first nail.
The renderings for Hoodstown Cottage were how we sold the client on the 16-foot glass wall — seeing the lake framed from the living room before a single wall was framed made the decision easy. We use visualizations on every project to work through the relationship between the building and the landscape early, when changes are still cheap. On this project, the exterior massing went through several iterations before we landed on the east-facing orientation and the wraparound deck configuration you see in the final build.
Lower Level
Light all the way down.
Downstairs, a bright basement rec room, a compact wine cellar, additional bedrooms, and a tightly organized mechanical room — supported by advanced air barrier sealing — complete the layout. Stairwell windows draw natural light deep into the lower level, extending the home’s connection to the landscape throughout. The project emphasizes energy efficiency, natural light penetration, and comfortable low-maintenance luxury tailored to family and guest use.
Main Floor
Where timber meets the lake.
Key design highlights include a striking timber Y-structure at the entrance that doubles as a sculptural focal point, exposed black steel beams defining the open-plan living, dining, and kitchen areas, and a dramatic Muskoka granite Rumford fireplace with guillotine door. A cedar-clad south-facing sunroom offers a cozy evening retreat, while the primary suite features a Juliet balcony for airflow and an ensuite bath with lake views.
Video
Completed Project Tour
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Gallery
Hoodstown Cottage, Lake Vernon.
Completed in 2019 with photography by Navigator Visuals and Daniel Weylie Photography . Every room in this cottage was designed to face the lake — the gallery shows how that plays out from the entrance timber to the basement rec room.
The Entrance
Our favourite detail on any project.
The timber Y-structure at the entrance to Hoodstown Cottage is, simply put, the detail we’re most proud of on any project we’ve completed. Structurally, it holds the roof — but that’s almost beside the point. The Y splits above head height, frames the sky, and pulls your eye toward the building the moment you step out of the car. We designed it to make the approach feel like an arrival, not just a walk to a door. It’s a little more than the structure strictly requires, which is exactly why it works.
