Cottages

Lisa Worth Puts A Fresh Spin On Timeless Muskoka Style For A Couple In Port Carling, Ont.

Author: Alice Lawlor

Published on August 2, 2024

With its charcoal-stained clapboard siding and gently swooping rooflines, this classic Muskoka cottage looks like it’s been part of the landscape for decades. But, in reality, the 4,800-square-foot house was built from the ground up just two years ago. Toronto interior designer Lisa Worth and local building firm PattyMac joined forces to create a bespoke cottage for their clients, Evelyn Bailey and Peter Langeman. “Evelyn and Peter wanted a home that would stand the test of time,” says Lisa, who also worked with the couple on their former Markham, Ont., house and New York apartment. “They wanted it to blend in to the landscape and nestle into the surrounding trees.”

Peter, an entrepreneur and passionate cook, and Evelyn, a global senior executive in the IT industry, weren’t even looking for a summer place but, in 2016, when a friend told Peter about a property on Lake Muskoka, they snapped it up. The couple spent two years living in the original circa-1946 cottage, making plans for a four-season new-build that would become their permanent home. “Living there gave us a sense of where we spent our time at different times of day and where we gathered,” says Evelyn.

Since moving to the cottage full time in 2022, Evelyn and Peter have retired in their “happy place.” Surrounded by windswept pines, 100-year old white oaks and the peaceful lapping of the lake, they’ve begun to think of the cottage as more than just a place to live. “It’s a generational keepsake,” says Evelyn. “It’s a dream we had that’s now a reality.”

Scroll down for a look inside this classic Muskoka cottage!

Photographer:

Stephani Buchman

Source:

House & Home

Designer:

Lisa Worth