Cottages
10 Cottage Great Rooms With A View
Published on August 12, 2024
Soaring ceilings, impressive fireplaces, wood-panelling and long lake views — these are some of the hallmarks of a cottage great room. From classic cabins to contemporary lakehouses, these country living rooms pull inspiration from their natural surroundings while offering a communal hang out spot to relax, entertain and take in the view. Keep scrolling to see the best cottage great rooms from the House & Home archives.
In this great room, the palette’s jumping-off point was the water, nearby Lac-Supérieur. In the main living space, designer Jean Stéphane Beauchamp countered the warmth of the oak ceilings, walls and floors with lake colors, settling on a dark grey-blue for the chimney breast and a lighter glacier blue to highlight the dining niche. Pendants resemble pieces of ice and don’t obscure the mountain view.
The furniture and art in this Muskoka great room are in neutral tones to avoid drawing attention away from the forest views. “I focus on neutral, earthy fabrics with lots of texture to bring the outside in, so you’re figuratively living in the woods,” says designer Jaime Drohan of Muskoka Living Interiors.
The homeowner of this Muskoka cottage describes the great room as “the heart of the home.” The room has soaring two-storey windows and a floor-to-ceiling stone fireplace. “It’s roomy enough to entertain a large gathering, yet it feels intimate and warm,” says designer Lisa Worth. The huge fireplace was created with natural local stone in cool hues.
“Our palette is taken from nature,” says designer Lucy Penfield. “We used the color of basalt grey from the rocky shore in the granite, fireplace, counters and floors.” The great room’s fireplace is clad in Cambrian ledgestone.
A massive wood-burning fireplace crafted from local stone is the focal point in this open-plan living room. “On a dark and stormy night, surrounded by the sky, cocooned and cosy, fire going, it’s really quite exciting,” says designer Carrie McCarthy.
In this serene Muskoka cottage, a soft palette of natural materials brings a carefree elegance to the great room, while symmetrical seating and lighting feels grandiose.
A granite fireplace mimics the natural rocks outside the window of this Georgian Bay cottage. A pair of plaid sofas create a cozy aesthetic while black and rattan armchairs in the corner offer a separate zone for card games or cocktails.
In this ultramodern summer home, the homeowners chose to extend the ceiling beyond the interior to create one long great room that stretches from indoors to out, so you never have to choose between the two.
A visit to Japan inspired the design of this B.C. cottage on Halfmoon Bay. “The natural materials created a unity with their environment, a soothing counterpoint that felt very restorative,” says homeowner and architect Patrick Warren. The contemporary great room is minimally decorated and extends effortlessly into an outdoor patio that overlooks the Georgia Strait.
Vaulted ceilings with timbers beams add warmth to the streamlined furniture and lighting in this modern farmhouse. “My favorite place is the great room; it’s very calming. We don’t have a television — we listen to music and have martinis,” says the homeowner. “With the old-school wood-burning fireplace and the light coming in from the huge windows, it’s gorgeous — it’s the perfect combination of elements.”