Home of the Week: 7 of the Best Homes in Ontario

From Toronto and its many neighbourhoods to Muskoka and Eugenia Lake, here is a roundup of some of the finest homes from the province of Ontario, first featured in our Home of the Week column.

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This Geometric Home Sits Atop One of Ontario’s Most Dramatic Landforms

For one close-knit family, building a forever home that could house multiple generations comfortably under one roof was the order of the day. “They wanted a large, fully accessible house that could host extended gatherings of up to 80 people while still feeling connected from room to room,” explains Natasha Lebel, who authored the design of the 7,500-square-foot home with partner Luc Bouliane. The pair lead Toronto-based Lebel & Bouliane, which has been designing homes in Ontario and beyond since 2010. Lauren Gallow

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Inside a Playful Townhome in Toronto’s Little Portugal Neighbourhood

There’s no mistaking this house for any other in Toronto’s Little Portugal neighbourhood, and that’s just what the owners wanted. “The colour pink came up in our early conversations,” says Reza Nik, a principal at Sheeep, an experimental art and architecture studio based in Toronto. One of the owners “liked the idea of sharing their address with friends and following up with ‘It’s the pink house on the street—you can’t miss it!’ So we took this idea and ran with it,” he says. Beth Hitchcock

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This Net-Zero Lake House Combines High Design With Passive House Technologies

For one Toronto family, Eugenia Lake provided more than a picturesque summer retreat. “They are a family of five who envisioned the house as a year-round retreat—a place to escape the city, spend time together, and host family and friends,” explains Sheree Stuart, principal of Toronto interiors firm Sheree Stuart Design. Working together with Dewson Architects, Stuart crafted a new family vacation home on the lake that embodies a spirit of play and ease. Lauren Gallow

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In Ontario, This Home Seeks to Provide Privacy

One of the drawbacks of having a beautifully designed house or building, for those seeking privacy, is the scores of onlookers who come to view it. When Akb Architects completed a dock and boathouse in Muskoka, just such a situation arose. Curious onlookers would float up to the structure on their boats hoping for a better look at the award-winning structure. Jack Lowe

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In Toronto, a Spaceship-esque Laneway House Finds Its Landing

Designed by Toronto-based firm Weiss Architecture + Urbanism, this otherworldly home was created for a couple and their two young children at the back of their primary residence. The parents, one a travel writer and the other a retired buffalo rancher, had already tasked the firm with designing their principal Toronto home on the same lot. Charlotte Boates

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A Victorian Home in Toronto Gets a Modern Makeover

In Toronto’s east-end neighbourhood of Leslieville, the architecture is a lively mix of old and new. Along with a host of industrial buildings renovated into modern loft apartments, many Victorian-era houses and row houses have been given new life with contemporary updates and amenities. To add to this engaging mix of styles, a family tasked local firm SOCA (Studio of Contemporary Architecture) with helping them bring their aging Victorian into the future. Lauren Gallow

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The Trapezoidal Form of This Ontario Home Allows Light to Filter Through

How do you balance big family energy with the stillness of being in nature? That was the challenge posed to architect Barbora Vokac Taylor by a client who wanted to create a family retreat in the rugged terrain of Ontario’s Muskoka region. “Their brief was about designing a ‘family campus,’” Vokac Taylor explains. “They wanted a place large enough to host friends and multiple generations, yet intimate enough to feel like a cozy lakeside retreat.” Lauren Gallow

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