Designed and Built by Gilbert + Burke | Photography by Daniel Weylie
There are certain emotions just about every cottager can relate to. One of them is that sinking feeling you get when, after a beautiful long weekend by the lake, it’s time to go home. But what if you just … didn’t?
For many, the pandemic threw into stark relief the extent to which we can and can’t work remotely. Cottagers have a special interest here. If life really is better by the lake (and is there any doubt?) and you can largely get your work done there, why do you need to leave?
For one family, the answer to that gradually became crystal clear as they watched their exquisite custom cottage, designed and built by Gilbert + Burke, materialize. A 5,000-plus square-foot executive home on Lake Simcoe, it was originally intended as a seasonal cottage and a place to retire to in years to come. But as the clients watched it come together, they decided the time was right to move there full time—little wonder when you consider the luxury and attention to detail built into every aspect of the home, a finalist in the 2021 CBHA National Awards for Housing Excellence.
Informed by a unique mountain contemporary aesthetic that took into account the clients’ separate preferences for a lakeside look (hers) and contemporary stylings (his), the home’s exterior and interior are a masterclass in creative innovation. For example, while the exterior view retains an overall contemporary, flat-roofed look, inside, a soaring vaulted Douglas fir timber frame great room with stone fi replace and massive lake views provides classic cottage flavour, tempered by the sleek horizontal lines of shiplap walls, compound angles in the timber frame ceiling planes, and neutral tones in the flooring.
A similar harmony is achieved between practicality and luxury. For the former, you have separate home offices and accommodation tailored for multigenerational gatherings, with second-floor guest bedrooms outfitted with their own sitting rooms, a main-floor guest suite with barrier-free shower, and a deluxe primary suite situated on its own for optimal privacy. And built with retirement in mind, the exterior is a virtually maintenance-free combination of Timberthane premium cement-fibre panels, West Coast granite ashlar stone, and Euroshield roofing made from recycled rubber and warrantied for 50 years.
As for luxury, it’s hard to know where to begin. In the category of unique and sublime, there is a lower-level sunken entertainment area accented by starry sky ceiling lighting and installed with plush movie-theatre seats and professional audio-video equipment. Meanwhile, the adjacent home gym takes it to the next level with a premium golf simulator and sauna bathroom with steam shower. On the main level, a perfectly appointed chef’s kitchen with an expansive island overlooks the great room and, beyond it, enjoys uninterrupted views over the lake.
A three-car garage, coach house, and boathouse on the property, along with a pickleball court, stone-tiled terrace, outdoor kitchen, and hot tub are integrated in cohesion with natural gardens and landscaping to achieve the established look of a treasured legacy home while providing boundless opportunities for summer entertaining and long, relaxing days by the lake.
Carrying out a project of this scope requires a spectrum of professional strengths, from meticulous attention to detail to dogged persistence. Construction on the home took approximately two years, but from first meeting with the clients to handing them the key was almost a five-year journey. Owner and co-founder Cathy Burke explains: “This home began with the merging of two properties. We sought the permits for that, worked with the municipality and environmental agencies to determine the location of the buildings and septic field, and negotiated on our clients’ behalf to secure certain things that were invaluable to them, such as keeping as many trees as possible on the property and providing an elevated terrace without railings that interrupt the view of the lake. All that involves a lot of backand- forth communication with all involved parties that had to happen before we could even begin to formalize the design.”
Pulling it off would be daunting for the uninitiated, but is par for the course for a company with Gilbert + Burke’s pedigree. A multiple award-winning design-build firm, G + B is an industry leader in custom home and cottage construction and extensive remodels with a staff that includes an architectural technologist, construction manager, and registered interior designer. Along with a deep background in planning, design, and construction, they bring a focus on energy-smart homes and sustainability to each project—a factor likely to attract even more clients looking to shake off an unnecessary city–cottage commute and make their move to Muskoka more permanent.
“The bottom line is, we can make the cottage your home,” says Brian Gilbert, co-owner and project manager at Gilbert + Burke. “We can take whatever property it is—two lots, three lots, on a cliff , in a field—we can make your dream a reality on that property.”
