Indholdsfortegnelse for Winter 2022 i Cottage Life

Follow us on: Listen up, cottagers! Join editor Michelle Kelly for a podcast that explores everything from real estate and design to the environment and nature. You’ll hear interviews with cottage experts, discover cherished essays, and get readers’ most-loved tips. Check out all three seasons on your favourite podcast platform. So, you think you’re funny? Readers of The Great Outdoors newsletter have been having a laugh with our caption contest. Find new photos in each deployment, sent every other week. Don’t subscribe yet? Head to cottagelife.com/newsletters to sign up, and check out our picks on Instagram! Tune in to Cottage Life TV Looking for a show to hibernate with? Watch new episodes of Merchants of the Wild—where six Indigenous adventurers spend 25 days on the land on the journey of…

I GREW UP playing a lot of games with family and friends at the cottage; so did my girlfriend. One day last winter at her cabin on East Barriere Lake, B.C., we looked outside and saw about two-and-a-half feet of fresh snow blanketing the deck. Since the snow was almost table height, we thought, wouldn’t it be fun to play Beer Pong—but make it winterized? Some loose science went into the creation of the snow table; eyeball measurements of an actual table translated to markings in the snow with a shovel to make a rectangle. From there, we cleared all the excess snow off the deck. It was harder than regular Beer Pong. Turns out, it’s tough to accurately throw ping pong balls at -35°C. And there were no rebound…

THREE OF A KIND Yes, it’s expensive, but these cottagers each swear by it. (No, seriously. Dyson didn’t pay anybody to recommend vacuums.) This was my first summer with a cottage, and I get it: you’re not supposed to care about things like dog hair whilst there. But it drove me nuts! So given the number of times I wished I had my Dyson Ball Animal 3 there, I’m putting one on my list! Don’t judge: they just released a new model, so obviously I need it (they’re made for pet hair). I’ll keep it at home and my current one can come up north. I’ll try to pick it up on sale (not that you can put a price on my sanity). Especially at the cottage. $750 —AUBRAY BOYD,…

CHOOSING A CORDLESS tool brand used to be a lot like monogamy: once you locked into one platform, you were committed. The batteries kept you faithful; when you own several tools of the same brand, you own several batteries you can use before recharging. Why might you want to explore other tool brands? Maybe there’s a cordless tool outside your usual type that’s on sale, or you want to mix the top-quality tools you use every weekend with a couple of inexpensive tools you use rarely. Some brands are quick to launch new tools; others have only a small stable. For adventurous cottagers, there is a way to mix and match cordless tool brands: aftermarket battery adapters. These simple attachments slip between one brand of tool and another brand of…

PART OF THE charm of a cottage lies in its prized collections: retro VHS tapes, classic board games, or warm blankets. But finding room for these treasures—not to mention more practical considerations such as extra towels for guests—is no easy feat. This is a lesson that Todd McMillan of Burlington-based Ben Homes took to heart while working with his wife, Kristen, to envision their family’s shipping container cottage on the Muskoka River. “Especially if you live in a small space, you want to keep it tidy—and that takes storage,” he says. “It’s about maximizing every square inch.” His advice? “Figure out what you’ll need space for, then plan around that.” Sure enough, the shelving and drawers that he and Kristen integrated into their cabin’s ingenious bunk bed setup (p. 53,…

Eric Mutrie Journalist Eric Mutrie found a love for writing while at school studying architecture. “I got involved with the student newspaper,” says Eric. “I had a natural interest in architecture and design, but I wanted to focus on writing.” So he combined the two. Eric wrote “Just Built Different” (p. 49) about storage solutions at the cottage. “I love modern architecture because I need the sense of order that comes from clean lines,” he says. “But I especially love it when it’s mixed with older art or antique accents for texture and warmth.” He pulls inspiration from restaurants and visits design fairs around the world. “I’m always thinking about how I can bring the little touches I see and love back into my space.” Eric is the senior editor…

CASHING IN This fall—and for the first time ever—the Federation of Ontario Cottagers’ Associations released a report that shows how cottage owners impact the province’s economy. It’s in a good way (yay, us!). “On behalf of the entire waterfront community in this province, we commissioned this report to substantiate the significant contribution made by waterfront property owners,” said Ian Crawford, FOCA’s president, in a press release. “This is important context for decision makers at all levels, particularly our municipal partners.” The report—based on data from sources including the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation and Statistics Canada—concluded that the 248,763 Ontario “waterfront property households” spent $11.44 billion in 2021, which helped to generate 150,000 jobs. That’s about six jobs for every 10 properties, with five of those being in cottage country. BUZZ…

THERE ARE GOOD reasons plastic cutting boards are the preferred choice for commercial food preparation. High-density polyethylene (HDPE) is extremely durable, impervious to liquids, and has a forgiving surface that is kind to knives. These same qualities make HDPE a useful raw material for workshop projects. Cutting boards are readily available at thrift shops and dollar stores—but you’re more likely to find the thicker, better quality ones at a thrift store. The dollar-store ones are thinner and more brittle. There are a bunch of uses for this material, and it can be easily worked with standard tools: • Cut pieces of HDPE to match the footprint of picnic-table or Muskoka-chair legs and attach the plastic feet with screws. These high-density pads protect the ends of the legs from moisture and…

MICHAEL MCADOO HAD never built a guitar in his life. In fact, he only picked up the instrument a year and a half ago. But that didn’t stand in the way of his ambition to make a guitar with species native to the Frontenac Arch, the massive biosphere that runs from Algonquin Provincial Park down to the Adirondack Mountains. The Frontenac Arch is also home to his cottage on Charleston Lake, near Gananoque, Ont. Michael, an experienced woodworker, enrolled in a five-week guitar making course with Ted Brown, the owner of Blackwood Guitar in Mallorytown, Ont. He also researched native woods that would function well in a finely tuned instrument. “I kept thinking to myself ‘What if these trees could sing?’” he says. In the end, he combined six woods—hophornbeam,…

Dude Ranch Salad Every February, we try to honour the spirit of the month in one of two ways: with a Valentine’s Day lovey/heart-health awareness salad or with a decadent throw-caution-and-health-to-the-wind Superbowl kind of salad. This salad might be the second type. Dorito-coated popcorn chicken bites with a ranch dressing? Pass the jalapeño poppers and the remote. Note to Doritos fans: we taste-tested Cool Ranch flavour versus Nacho Cheese flavour for the popcorn chicken recipe and were as surprised as you are that Nacho Cheese was a far superior coating for the chicken. The Cool Ranch was simply too overpowering and tangy and just didn’t work. But pound for pound, they’re still the best flavor of Doritos, if you ask us. SERVES 1 3 cups chopped romaine lettuce1 cup chopped…

WHEN I’M ON social media, it’s not uncommon to read that somebody has declared something or someone as their spirit animal. It seems that the term has been adopted to mean something (say, pizza) or somebody (Harry Styles) who represents your feelings or qualities. Or that you just like. The widespread use of the phrase, whether in a tweet or on a shirt or in a meme, puts it on the same level as any other form of cultural appropriation. Here’s the thing, though. I don’t know of a single Indigenous culture that uses the term “spirit animal.” A few years ago, my wife, kids, and I were headed toward the cottage we were staying at when we saw a line of cars parked beside the highway. We quickly discovered…

PRO A vendor take-back mortgage will only intrigue those sellers who can afford to get their money over time. They will get extra income, but may not want the spectre of their borrower potentially defaulting. CON For the buyer, it is typically more costly; the interest rate and repayment schedule are up to the people who are willing to back you. (I got 6 per cent over 20 years.) But if done correctly, a VTB is really no different than a bank mortgage. PRO You hold the deed, and the deal can be structured so that you can pay out the lender at any time, without penalty.…

A traditional tool in many cultures, crook knives are great for hollowing concave shapes, sculpting organic forms, and texturing surfaces in wood. I have a pine stump that I’m carving into an address marker; I want to try a crook knife instead of spoon gouges. $37, Lee Valley—SEAN LEDOUX I want 3M’s Bluetooth-enabled earmuffs, with 24dB noise reduction rating and high-fidelity speakers. Sanding is boring, but with these, I could listen to podcasts or a playlist. $95, 3M Canada—FIONA MCGLYNN Instead of switching constantly between safety and reading glasses, bifocal safety glasses with an integral magnifying lower lens are a game-changer! The flow is back in my woodworking now. $18, Mark’s Work Wearhouse—S.L. MetMo Grip is a British-made adjustable wrench that copies an innovative design not manufactured since 1930. Stainless…

Hophornbeam Also known as ironwood, hophornbeam is one of the hardest woods in the Algonquin region. The lumber is difficult to buy, as the tree is generally too small in girth to be profitable, but its strength makes it perfect for the fretboard. Black walnut The Frontenac Arch is at the northern end of this popular mid-brown hardwood’s range. Michael used black walnut for the bindings on the side of the guitar. Its rich colour contrasts with the cream-coloured soundboard. Red spruce Also known as Adirondack spruce, this creamy softwood grows in Eastern Canada. It’s incredibly resonant, a natural choice for the top of a guitar. Red spruce gives the instrument range and a big, voluminous sound. Maple Michael used maple, a hardwood, for the back and the bridge, which…