Houzz Tour: Canadian Cottage Coziness in 600 Square Feet
A mix of traditional farm and modern elements transforms a dilapidated house into a family gathering spot
Before. “This homeowner loves projects,” says interior designer Cat Hackman. Clearly you’d have to love a project to take on this cottage, which was falling apart and uninhabitable. Though this was a complete renovation, the designer and the owners wanted to keep the architecture and spirit of the little house intact. The only place they changed the footprint was in the entry vestibule, to make space for muddy and snowy shoes and winter gear. They also raised the dropped ceiling and added new windows and doors.
Style. The style is simple cottage furnished with readily available furniture and accessories from places like Ikea, Pottery Barn, Restoration Hardware and Crate & Barrel, as well as with personal touches and a few special finds from around the property.
Entry. Expanding the vestibule just a few feet was worth the investment. Now there’s room for a bench, hooks, cubbies and a coat closet. She designed the cubbies to fit baskets from Ikea for shoes and winter gear.
Rug: Pottery Barn; closet system: Pax, Ikea; light: Restoration Hardware; cushion and built-ins: custom
Entry. Expanding the vestibule just a few feet was worth the investment. Now there’s room for a bench, hooks, cubbies and a coat closet. She designed the cubbies to fit baskets from Ikea for shoes and winter gear.
Rug: Pottery Barn; closet system: Pax, Ikea; light: Restoration Hardware; cushion and built-ins: custom
Living room. The most dramatic change was removing the dropped ceiling and vaulting it all the way to the roof. They also took down walls that had formed two bedrooms to reconfigure the space into a one-bedroom. Hackman added the French doors and large windows overhead on this south-facing wall to take in the view of the fields (you can spy one of the barns through the doors here) and to bring in the light.
Floor lamp: Pottery Barn
Floor lamp: Pottery Barn
Trusses and tongue-and-groove paneling add architectural character to the dramatic ceiling and help bring it down to human scale.
The furniture is a mix of classic and modern. “He absolutely had to have a recliner,” Hackman says of one of the homeowners, so she got him a streamlined one. Lamps next to the recliner and the sofa provide good reading light so the couple can curl up with good books on cold winter nights.
“We tried to salvage whatever we could from around the property,” she says. The stump table next to the recliner is from the property, and they found the side table in one of the barns. A wood-burning stove was a must-have for the family.
The furniture is a mix of classic and modern. “He absolutely had to have a recliner,” Hackman says of one of the homeowners, so she got him a streamlined one. Lamps next to the recliner and the sofa provide good reading light so the couple can curl up with good books on cold winter nights.
“We tried to salvage whatever we could from around the property,” she says. The stump table next to the recliner is from the property, and they found the side table in one of the barns. A wood-burning stove was a must-have for the family.
The horse artwork next to the French doors is a childhood piece from one of the homeowners.
Sofa: Crate & Barrel; ceramic lamp: West Elm; browse more transitional sofas
Sofa: Crate & Barrel; ceramic lamp: West Elm; browse more transitional sofas
Flooring. The vinyl-plank flooring used throughout the house was the first element Hackman helped her client select. The grain and finish fit in well with the farm, while the durability is great for muddy boots.
Kitchen. “I love a white kitchen but wanted to give this one a different color,” Hackman says. “The gray picks up on the barns and the flooring.”
The kitchen layout includes an appliance wall, which keeps the more modern components mostly off to one side and out of view from the living room. She placed the sink underneath the windows, which provide a view across the property to the main house. The stainless steel vent hood and black fixtures add a few modern elements to the room, while the rest has more traditional cottage style.
Cabinets, hardware and sink: Ikea; chairs: Crate & Barrel
The kitchen layout includes an appliance wall, which keeps the more modern components mostly off to one side and out of view from the living room. She placed the sink underneath the windows, which provide a view across the property to the main house. The stainless steel vent hood and black fixtures add a few modern elements to the room, while the rest has more traditional cottage style.
Cabinets, hardware and sink: Ikea; chairs: Crate & Barrel
While she gave her client the option of today’s popular kitchen islands, they all agreed that an old-fashioned kitchen table was a cozier and more cottage-y option for a family than bar-like seating. The homeowner found this table himself. The base is from an old industrial piece and the top is wood. It was made by a local furniture maker and refurbisher.
Splurges versus saves. Elements from Ikea were economical and left some room in the budget to wow with upscale lighting. Library lights provide transition between the backsplash, which continues up over the windows, and the vaulted ceiling.
Lights: Restoration Hardware; browse more swing-arm lights
Splurges versus saves. Elements from Ikea were economical and left some room in the budget to wow with upscale lighting. Library lights provide transition between the backsplash, which continues up over the windows, and the vaulted ceiling.
Lights: Restoration Hardware; browse more swing-arm lights
The stacked brick tile is traditional, while the proportions, color and polished finish are unexpected.
Bedroom. These beautiful sliding barn doors separate the bedroom from the living room. The wood is from one of the barns on the property. They add a big rustic touch to both rooms. Because the bedroom is snug, the homeowners can open it wide to the living room to make it feel more spacious.
New French doors in the bedroom provide more big views across the fields to the barn. Hackman saved a lot of money by buying inexpensive Ikea drapery panels, then having them lined and adding grommets.
The artwork is meaningful and was inexpensive. The designer took photos her clients had of the property from their iPhones, blew them up, used an antiqued black-and-white filter to make them look older and to compensate for the low resolution, then had them framed.
The artwork is meaningful and was inexpensive. The designer took photos her clients had of the property from their iPhones, blew them up, used an antiqued black-and-white filter to make them look older and to compensate for the low resolution, then had them framed.
To save space, Hackman chose a thin, upholstered headboard and hung pendant lights over the nightstands. The rope cord covers bring in another farm touch. The Ikea nightstands are custom-painted to bring some color into the room.
Lights: Restoration Hardware Baby & Child
Lights: Restoration Hardware Baby & Child
The chair was another barn find, spruced up and modernized with black paint. The table is a mix of a metal frame and two shelves, one wood and one glass. The sculpture nods to the horse farm surroundings.
Console: Crate & Barrel
Console: Crate & Barrel
Bathroom. If you look out the window, you’ll see how beautifully the bathroom’s color palette plays off the white birch trees. Here wood salvaged from the barn appears again, on the mirror frame and vanity. Hackman had chosen a similar vanity from Restoration Hardware, but it wasn’t the right size. She was happy to be able to salvage more wood from the barns to have a vanity custom made with it.
“We tiled all the way to the ceiling. It gives the room a nice, clean look and finishes it off nicely,” Hackman says. You can catch a glimpse of the clear shower stall on the left side of this photo.
“We tiled all the way to the ceiling. It gives the room a nice, clean look and finishes it off nicely,” Hackman says. You can catch a glimpse of the clear shower stall on the left side of this photo.
Here’s a closer look at the patina on the barn-wood mirror frame. Hackman had it framed in black metal and used a matte black faucet.
“The cottage turned out really cozy,” Hackman says. “When you walk in you think ‘I could stay here for quite a while.’”
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“The cottage turned out really cozy,” Hackman says. “When you walk in you think ‘I could stay here for quite a while.’”
More home tours: Apartments | Small Homes | Colorful Homes | Contemporary Homes | Eclectic Homes | Farmhouses | Midcentury Homes | Modern Homes | Ranch Homes | Traditional Homes | Transitional Homes | All
House at a Glance
Who uses it: This is a second home for a couple with adult children and grandchildren
Location: Horse country outside Calgary, Alberta
Size: 600 square feet (58 square meters); one bedroom, one bathroom
Designer: Cat Hackman
This farm property about a 30-minute drive from Calgary, Alberta, includes this cottage, a main house, a log cabin and several barns. The residential buildings all were in derelict condition, and this little cottage was the first one the couple fixed up to use for family gatherings. Down the line they plan to restore the main house, and they are currently working on an old log cabin on the property.
Exterior. New James Hardie siding, double-glazed windows and doors and composite roof shingle that looks like cedar transform the exterior and stand up to the elements.