As designers, we're often asked, “Are antiques still in?” The answer isn't quite that simple, because we don't tend to think in terms of what's 'in' or 'out.' Instead, we focus on our clients' stories and the narrative we want to create through the design of their home or cottage. It's about understanding what matters to them, what they want their surroundings to say and how each piece contributes to that bigger picture. An antique may be the perfect addition to one project and entirely out of place in another. Ultimately, it's not about following a trend; it's about creating a home that feels personal, considered and true to the people who live in it.
An antique washstand takes centre stage in this entryway of our Balsam Lake project. Paired with artwork and sconces, it creates a distinctive vignette and a thoughtful contrast as you enter the great room, with views extending out to South Bay.
What's old can always feel new again when it's given the right context, particularly when a piece holds personal meaning, history or heritage. We're often asked to incorporate clients' family heirlooms into a design, and when they align with the homeowner's vision and preferred style, they can become the starting point for an entire room. We also love introducing antiques into our projects, using their character, craftsmanship and individuality to bring a sense of history and personality to a space.
This nook on Balsam Lake features a Morris era chair and a vintage ladder for quilts and throws. The grouping was an opportunity to showcase some of the cottage owner’s personal family heirlooms.
Designer Jenis Kempt sits in an antique Morris chair flanked by an antique ladder that was in the cottage owner’s original cottage before being replaced with the new. An antique creamery can was modernized with a cut out design and adds interest in a large great room overlooking South Bay.
Why we love them
We especially enjoy working character pieces like antiques into design because they help break up a look and a style. They help to infuse history, a story and charm into a room design. Often an antique will stand out and guests will ask about the piece providing an emotional connection to not only the home owner but to their environment.
We also appreciate the visual interest that antiques can bring to a modern space. Contrasting old and weathered wood against sleek, white walls makes for an interesting and contemporary method to prevent a room from feeling too minimalist and clinical.
Antiques often offer a level of craftsmanship that has stood the test of time. Never has the saying “they don't make them like they used to” rung truer than when we're talking about some of the antiques we've selected for our clients' homes and cottages.
Antique furniture like dressers, coffee tables and desks, can be staples that work as a neutral in the right setting. These are pieces you decorate around for years to come. Crafted generally from solid hardwoods, antiques present as durable, solid everyday pieces that can withstand wear and tear. Antique armoires are a great example in an entryway.
This antique coffee table in our Corn Cob project on Sturgeon Lake helps add to the overall cottage feel. Even with a modern leather sectional, antiques can help anchor the past with the new.
Collectibles can be a fun way to decorate end tables and coffee tables. Antique books and cameras can be used throughout a space to add layering and levels.
Antique paddles lean in a corner of this new modern guest house. The antique rug also adds a dot of colour to the plywood interior.
How we use them
Often, we are refurbishing and restoring historical cottages in the Kawarthas. Just as these heritage cottages place-shaped the area, the contents inside signal “place authenticity.” This means they represent the era in which we are restoring and it helps to celebrate local roots. We find there is a quiet luxury with certain antique furnishings and this type of “collected” aesthetic creates curated and authentic individuality.
This antique wooden pew bench in an entryway adds contrast against white walls and yet is a functional piece at the same time.
Press back chairs in this historical Sturgeon Point cottage were fitting for the kitchen restoration that we did.
Antique fishing accessories provide a fun vignette in the entry of our Balsam Lake build design project.
The role they can play
Antique dressers and armoires are great for storage. They can take a lot of usage if built well, and housing winter clothing in an entryway in an old dresser can be both functional and stylish. Dressers provide room to store games, books and other contents that otherwise take up valuable closet space. Also, instead of storage becoming utilitarian with bins and boxes, antiques provide opportunity for a rich focal point that also works to conceal clutter. When furniture can serve a dual-purpose while being a primary piece in a room you have created the ultimate in functionality. Think steamer trunks for blankets and doubling as a coffee table, the armoire can become a hidden bar or a media centre. Draper’s tables and haberdashery cabinets can become kitchen islands and old drawers become desktop or vanity organizers.
This antique dresser houses puzzles, and games while adding interest to the room. It also looks like it belongs to the cottage.
This antique dresser in an Additional Residential Unit (ARU) we completed in Fenelon Falls is used for storage. It brings an elegant and sophisticated feel to a small space.
An antique trunk offers practical storage for extra bedding, while an Arts and Crafts chair, thoughtfully reupholstered, complements the guest room's understated neutral palette.
Antiques in this urban setting, meant we could explore how to bring character into each room. The antique typewriter takes up residence in the built-in and other family heirloom pieces are featured throughout the room.
The kitchen view allows for a wing back chair and ottoman to add warmth, and an antique bread bowl finds its place on a wall. Antiques can be worked into any type of setting if edited and displayed to scale.
How we do it
It does take a careful eye to avoid putting too many antiques together in one room. We strategically place pieces so the room can still breathe. It’s also important that cabinets remain visually cohesive. Historical pieces are better when the contents are curated so that it looks intentional vs messy. Scale is also important. Modern scale is much different than 19th century large antiques. Low ceilings and narrow hallways are often a challenge we run into, and when it comes to antiques, accommodating larger pieces needs to be done in a way that still leaves adequate clearance so it doesn’t disrupt flow.
Antique collectibles are curated and organized in a shelving unit for our Sandy Point project. Old books, knick-knacks and items that may have been with a cottage over time, can still add value and unique character to a room.
A designer eye can help translate how antiques are positioned, and displayed. We restored this historical cottage at Sturgeon Point so we wanted to work in a lot of the cottage owner’s original pieces. It created an atmosphere of belonging for the cottage, and allowed heirlooms to take centre stage.
Antique prints and artwork are another way to infuse a room with history and character. When hung in the right place and context, it becomes an effective way to tell the story of your home or cottage.
Keeping the antique table and chair on this back porch kept the historical integrity of the cottage especially when used with the banquette.
Antique rugs can easily be dispersed throughout a new space. They add colour and drama to both floors and walls if hung.
As you can see, perhaps that's why, as designers, we continue to fall in love with antiques. They bring a sense of history, character and individuality to a space that new furnishings simply can't replicate. I like to say: “There's a story behind every well-loved piece, from the hands that made it to the homes it has called its own. Whether it's an heirloom passed down through generations, a flea-market discovery or a carefully chosen statement piece, antiques add depth and a little unexpected magic to a room.” Antiques remind us that good design isn't always about having the newest or most perfect things, but about knowing what deserves a place in our homes. And sometimes, the most interesting thing in a room is the one that's been around the longest.
One of our favourite places to shop in the Kawarthas for antiques is Red Rock Antiques between Bobcaygeon and Fenelon Falls.
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