At Home by Tim + Chris, we truly are all things to everyone when it comes to design and build style.  With the architectural, planning, and interior design expertise to create any style our integrated approach can accommodate everything from modern to traditional, lakeside cottages to contemporary family homes, all while staying true to the client rather than a predetermined style.

Similar to the moments in life that stay with us, every home should have a moment of its own. It doesn't have to be grand in scale to make a lasting impression. Often, it's a single, carefully designed feature that brings character, creates emotion, and tells the story of the home or cottage.

When you hear the word “nature” in design, you naturally think of bringing the outdoors in. However, in this context we’re talking about our “human nature.” Our natural inclination to move towards what’s comfortable for us. Our tendency to make decisions based on our comfort zone and our own small world of design biases.

Starting a full renovation or new build can feel overwhelming, especially when trying to understand how far your budget will stretch. We work with many clients who take a more considered, phased approach to planning.

I under estimated the power of a designer. You know the old adage: what you don’t know won’t hurt you? Well, it does hurt. In design, it hurts the wallet, it hurts the overall end result and contributes to decision making fatigue. When you don’t work with an interior designer, it’s easy to remain within your comfort zone.

Do you feel like there have been many versions of yourself and your home or cottage? Has life presented you with changing times where you now find yourself needing different lifestyle scenarios?

Dwell Magazine is a well-known publication that I’m sure many of you have flipped through, if not via subscription at least at the check-out line in grocery stores. For years, for me, to have a feature in Dwell Magazine, has been an iconic goal worth striving for.

The colour white. The colour of long, hard winters. The colour of soft, billowy clouds drifting by on a summer afternoon. Much like this contrast in nature, white exists at both ends of the design spectrum.

You trust your friends right?! You trust people who have first-hand experience, who have information who know stuff about stuff! You trust your friend’s recommendations because they come with something no advertisement can offer: experience and honesty.

Therapeutic design is the intentional shaping of spaces to support emotional wellbeing, physical health, and overall quality of life. It recognizes that our environments are not neutral. Our environments actively influence how we think, feel, rest, work, and connect with others.

In Ontario, the family cottage isn’t just a property, it’s part of our cultural DNA. It’s where summers are measured in dock jumps, campfires, canoe rides, and late-night card games with cousins.

As a designer you would think it would be difficult to work with clients who have design taste completely different than my own. I think in past years, you hired a designer based on their signature “look” that you wanted for your home. The designer was truly the hired expert. The look of that particular designer made it easy to envision what your rooms could transform to and certainly made the outcome predictable. But as they say, times have changed. Enter client led design…

Stairs are no longer just a functional necessity but rather have become an opportunity to make a powerful design statement in your home or cottage. When thoughtfully designed, a staircase can act as a sculptural element, setting the tone for the entire space and guiding how you experience it.

Our previous blog received more attention than we expected, so I thought I’d hone in a little more on the concept of “slow design.” We’ve all heard of the “slow food” movement, and we all enjoy carefully selecting our nutritional finds from the local farmer’s market, growing our own or experiencing new and interesting culinary delights through travelling to countries who have better mastered the art of slow food.

Different life stages present opportunities for not only how we use our homes and cottages but also for where we fit into a neighbourhood or our actual structure. What once served us space wise could mean upsizing or downsizing.

I’ve been in the design business a long time. I’ve become friends with clients and I’ve helped friends become clients. And I love reiterating the one thing that remains the same, “a home doesn’t have to be perfect it’s about telling the lifestyle story of the people who live there.” It’s not just about choosing colours or arranging furniture, it’s about understanding how a client moves, works, relaxes, celebrates, and recharges.

Now that you’ve made the exciting decision to build or renovate your home or cottage, it’s time to think about how your space can truly support every part of your lifestyle. In cottage country, the seasons can shift dramatically and your design needs to work across all scenarios.

Holiday greetings from the shore of beautiful Sturgeon Lake! Like most people when the season is upon us, we turn inwards and think about ways to change up our space and prepare for the holidays.

Creating interiors and features in renovations and builds, now requires the skill set of true master craft people to interpret gorgeous, unique designs and integrate top-tier products into exceptional homes and spaces.

Nothing has been in our lives as long as the walkout basement design has been! And nothing makes us wonder more, when it comes to updating and renovating these post-World War II wonders in excavation technology. From homes to cottages walkout design generally features the integration of an exterior door by building on a sloped lot, allowing one side of the basement to be at or above ground level and receive natural light.