I bought the farm! After spending years scanning the listings on MLS in search of the perfect hidden gem, I finally uncovered a diamond in the rough.
When looking for a home, be it in the city or country, it’s always wise to have a wish list to help narrow the choices. My first call to the realtor outlined my key criteria for the search. I wanted a century home, in need of a renovation, with little or no improvements done to it, on a private, low-traffic country road, set well back from the access road, preferably with a long tree-lined driveway, encircled by fields, and hopefully with lovely views of the surrounding countryside.
Does this sound like an impossible request?
One might expect to be told that some, but not all of the desired features could be found within my price bracket, yet to my surprise, the agent had a listing that just might fit the bill. Instead of one drive, it offered two, and to add further country charm to an already appealing location, it boasted a small apple orchard in front, and long views north to Georgian Bay. If you caught the adventures of my cottage reno chronicled in Sarah’s Cottage, you’ll know that my soul resides on a tiny island in the open water of the Bay, and finding a farm with the same visual connection would be an out-of-the-ballpark home run hit! Thus began my country adventure, which I will be sharing with you over the next few months.
What better place to set the tone and roll out a proper country welcome than the mudroom?
Prepare to store
If you’re using your property year round in the country, you need space to store everything from rain boots to snowshoes, and sunhats to snowmobile helmets. So be sure to allocate more space than you imagine needing – and then you might just have enough. I took a former living room and turned it into a combination entry hall, mudroom, powder room and broom closet. The room was a bit bigger than really needed, but when you’re working within the room sizes of a century home you’ve got to make the most of what’s available (and if you’ve got a full house of guests and family, with all the winter gear, I guarantee you’ll never regret a mudroom with room to move!).
Add some drama to your doors
There’s no rule that says you have to paint your interior doors the same colour as your trim, so why not break away from convention and make them a bit more exciting? There are four sets of double closet doors in my mudroom, plus a powder room, for a total of nine doors. When I thought about the sports gear and garden tools that would be constantly tossed into these closets, I worried about how they’d show up chips and scratches – not to mention dirty fingerprints – if they were painted white.
Looking out the windows at the orchard, I realized the doors needed to be painted a brilliant apple red. It’s bright and cheery, but also practical. I don’t think a country house should be serious or pretentious, so treat your doors to something more creative than basic white. Of course, when it comes to country-classic hardware, you can never go wrong with white china knobs and black cast iron plates to finish it off in simple yet striking style.
Go rooting for relics
Basements are a treasure trove of possibility. Wonderful things are stored and forgotten about, or neglected and taking up space. I’m not talking about my own basement, but those belonging to my favourite shops. If I don’t see what I need on the showroom floor, I never hesitate to ask if there’s more (because there almost always is). Shop owners often have additional stock that has yet to be refurbished or re-imagined, and is being stored in the basement gathering dust – it just might be the thing you need.
Before I knew it, I’d yelled “sold” to a rusted antique English outdoor lamp for $150. After a visit to my favourite lighting restorer, my bargain basement lantern is a sight to behold. Note: if you’re living in a country locale and count cluster flies as year-round residents, be sure to avoid lanterns with a closed base. Life’s too short to spend vacuuming dead insects out of the light fixtures.
