Try to imagine the quintessential rural Canadian house and this 110-year-old stone home might come to mind. Its symmetrical design, twin chimneys, pitched roof, and its setting on 18 wooded acres in the Laurentians earn it iconic status. But icon or not, under a blanket of snow it's a welcoming sight, especially to the family of five who treasure it as their country getaway.
When the current owners bought it four years ago, the house had been vacant. "It was left without TLC for 8 years," says the husband, who has a passion for old homes. Roof shingles were missing, the additions flanking the main part of the house were pink and yellow and the wood panelling was either dull or covered by wallpapered drywall. "The beauty was just aching to resurface," says the wife. Her husband saw the potential, too. "It was of the finest materials, and would have been beyond luxury at the time," he says, citing details like the brass screws used to fix the bowing living-room floors. "These gorgeous eight-inch planks had brass accents," he says. Like jewellery in the floors, even if they were "buried under eight inches of dust," as his wife recalls. And indeed, this diamond in the rough captured both of their hearts.
Their list of projects was long, from refinishing the woodwork - floors, doors and panelling-to updating the mechanicals. The kitchen renovation, in particular, yielded remarkable results. They knocked down a wall to turn a butler's pantry into an eating area, and removed a fireplace and more walls to create a large sun-drenched space. The husband searched out ‘new' 150-year-old hand-hewn rafters, as well as 120-year-old barnboard for the unique countertop. "It's not convenient in some ways, but it was more important to preserve the look and keep the integrity of the style," he maintains. The cabinets are new pine that's been distressed and painted, and matching knobs further the illusion of pioneer kitchen furnishings. Visitors wonder what's original and what isn't. But there's no doubting the state-of-the-art Wolfe ranges, a detail the couple included since they love to cook up feasts. The contrast works: old and rustic versus sleek and high-tech.
Contrast plays a role in the decorating throughout, where there's visual tension between refinement and rusticity. The original builders used their humble materials in elegant ways, like the graceful wood doors opening into the living room. The current owners' choices play on the same tension, like the patterned wallpaper in the foyer that's a foil to the rugged stone floor. Here and elsewhere, pattern and colour repeatedly introduce a pretty, almost feminine lightness.
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