HAPPY HOMEOWNERS: ROBIN & NELSON’S DREAM COTTAGE GETAWAY

Ontario’s Tiny Township has long been the destination for camping and cottaging due to its prime location on the shores of Georgian Bay, filled with pristine natural landscapes and charming local communities. When Quality Homes’ very own Site Team member, Robin, and her partner Nelson decided to purchase a new cottage, they fell in love with Tiny right away. Deciding to buy a cottage comes with many questions, but as a Quality Homes employee, Robin had the inside scoop on the most important one of all—to buy, or to build?

“We were drawn to Quality Homes because they are quality built homes manufactured in a state-of-the-art facility with climate-controlled conditions and no weather-related setbacks.”

After finding the perfect lot—a beautiful tree-lined property close enough to neighbours for a sense of community, but separate enough for privacy—Robin and Nelson connected with the Quality Homes Team to find the cottage design that worked best for their needs. It was a difficult choice, torn between several designs on matters of aesthetics and functionality, but Quality Homes is an expert at custom building! The solution was simple: a custom Haliburton model with an attached garage, with a unique exterior modified to reflect the Summerside.

1,471 sq. ft. | 3 Bedrooms | 2 Bathrooms | Attached two-car garage

A HALIBURTON HYBRID

The Haliburton is a beautiful 1,471 sq.ft. cottage design that offers the ideal setup for homeowners and their guests to share. An open concept kitchen, living room, and dining room bring everyone together, with the option of a cozy fireplace and beautiful breakfast bar. With a main floor Primary Suite, Robin and Nelson will be able to enjoy the comfort and privacy of their own beautiful main floor bathroom.

Upstairs, two more bedrooms share a bathroom of their own, so guests have their own space up above! Hidden away under the A-line roof are two full-length attic spaces, providing plenty of storage for extra gear.

To add to the character and uniqueness of their new cottage, Robin and Nelson decided to add brick detailing to the front of the design inspired by the distinguished stone and brick of the Summerside.

THE COTTAGE BUILD COMMENCES

Once they dotted their i’s and crossed the t’s, plans for the custom Haliburton went straight to our factory! While our talented craftspeople got to work, Robin and Nelson had their Personal Selection Day at our Design Studio in Kenilworth, ON.

It’s always an exciting experience to help a member of our own team find the finishes that reflect their tastes, and it was no different with Robin. Together, she and Nelson chose a striking selection of modern black accents to their white kitchen cabinets, a beautiful light flooring, and a rich dark wood for their island. But let’s take a closer look at their choices!

A FOUNDATION TO BUILD ON

Finishes chosen and construction underway, it came down to the foundation. Digging the foundation in a wet Ontario Spring was soggy work, but our team doesn’t quit! We cleared the lot of debris, dug the foundation out, and poured the walls.

Once the snow had cleared for the season and sitework was completed, it was almost time for delivery day! Scheduled for Summer 2023, we were right on time to have the build completed and shipped up to Tiny to install on their foundation. It was perfect weather for delivery day, and finally their home was in place and ready for us to complete the final stages!

Exterior Finishes:

• Vinyl Siding by Gentek – Sequoia Series – Colour: Iron Ore
• Vinyl Shake Gables – Colour: Rustic Cedar
• Brick Skirting – Colour: Wellington
• Stamped Shaker Garage Door – Colour: Walnut
• Roof Shingles by Owens Corning – Colour: Onyx Black

Kitchen Finishes:

• DuraFusion Vinyl Plank Flooring – Colour: Wood Cliff
• Heritage Style Flat Slab Wall Cabinetry by Woodland Horizon – Colour: White Herron
• Heritage Style Flat Slab Island Cabinetry by Woodland Horizon – Stained: Outback
• Hexagon Honey Glass Mosaic Backsplash – Colour: Black
• White Carrara Style Laminate Countertop
• Align Chrome One-Handle High Arc Pulldown Kitchen Faucet by Moen
• Granite Double Bowl Sink by Kindred
• Cabinetry Hardware by Amerock – Blackrock Series

Bathroom Finishes:

• DuraFusion Vinyl Plank Flooring – Colour: Wood Cliff
• Heritage Style Flat Slab Vanities by Woodland Horizon– Stained: Outback
• White Carrara Style Laminate Countertop
• Voss Chrome One-Handle High Arc Bathroom Faucet by Moen

Now let’s hear a bit from Robin herself about their home building journey!

1. Tell us a bit about yourself and why you chose to build a custom home.

I have been an employee at Quality Homes in the site department for coming on 5 years now. My husband Nelson and I love the outdoors. We enjoy being in the forest and by the water, hiking, biking, skiing, snowshoeing, swimming, kayaking, canoeing, you name it! When we found our lot in Tiny Township near Awenda Provincial Park and just steps away from Georgian Bay, it was our dream location. We wanted to create a vacation home and future home for retirement. We chose a custom home because we wanted to create something that we could modify to meet our needs, wants, and tastes. Something that reflects us, who we are and what we enjoy.

2. What made you choose Quality Homes as your builder?

When Nelson and I decided we were going to build, it was without a doubt we were going to choose Quality Homes, not only because I work here, but because Quality Homes offers beautiful functional design options as well as the ability to modify and create from scratch what you are looking for.

 

The speed and quality of building a modular home is unmatched. The only limitations are your lot restraints and your budget. We did our research and Quality Homes is reasonably priced and the timeframe from start to finish—which in our case was a few weeks to go through the factory and 5 months on site—is astounding. For our home to be set May 29th, sign off August 10th and have final occupancy by September 1st, wow!

 

We were drawn to Quality Homes because they are quality built homes manufactured in a state-of-the-art facility with climate-controlled conditions and no weather-related setbacks, plus the guaranteed occupancy date with a H.U.G.^TM—Homebuyer’s Ultimate Guarantee—date that can be trusted.

 

The speed and precision of a Quality Home cannot be beat!

3. Tell us your thoughts about the process.

It was an extremely exciting process. We very much enjoyed the design/material selection day. We really appreciated the lunch and drinks provided and the expert advice from our Decor Consultants, We loved how flexible the design process was. We were not limited from making changes or adding to the house design. We were able to add a garage to our model, the Haliburton, with ease and it was seamlessly incorporated onto the house by the Quality Homes team and drafting department.

 

One situation that we encountered was the requirement to adjust our foundation height to meet the water table specifications of our building department. Working together with design and drafting we were able to modify our elevation to appease the building department but keep the beautiful curb appeal of our design.

 

Set day was an unforgettable experience and a day of pure excitement that we will remember and cherish for years to come. Throughout this process we were in good hands with the set crew and our construction manager Paul and our exterior and interior finishing crews. From start to finish we can’t thank everyone enough for the care and dedication taken on creating our dream.

 

It was an extremely exciting process; to go from choosing our model, to blackline drawings, to choosing our interior and exterior finishing, to production drawings, to watching our house being built in the plant in modules, to our site work being started, to our foundation being in, to our modules being lifted one by one by a crane and being placed on the foundation, to our garage being built on site, to our house being stitched together and then finished was absolutely an amazing experience.

4. Why did you select the Haliburton design?

We chose the Haliburton because we loved the open concept area of the kitchen, dining and living room, it’s great for entertaining. I love being able to work in the kitchen and stand at the island and still be involved with everyone in the rest of the space.

 

We also loved the option to be able to build a large deck for outdoor entertaining. All the windows and the large sliding glass door along the side and back of the house really incorporates and brings the outside in and makes the space feel even larger.

 

Also, the extra storage space in the upstairs bedroom’s eaves was a real draw for us. It provides for so much extra heated storage space, which is great because we plan on finishing the basement in the future.

 

Another feature that drew us to the Haliburton was the ground floor bedroom, bathroom and laundry. This was a real draw for futureproofing our retirement plans while still having a 3-bedroom two-storey house.

5. What is your favourite part of the home?

It’s very hard to decide what our favourite part of the home is because we love the whole thing! But we would have to say that the kitchen and the garage really do stand out.

 

In the kitchen, we love how the cabinets extend all the way up to the ceiling and are finished with crown molding. And our backsplash is beautiful! The large island with storage is amazing, and the electrical outlet on the side is a nice touch. We added a cutlery drawer and a spice drawer in the island for which I am so happy!

And our garage, we love our garage. Our design allowed for high ceilings in order to tie the garage roofline into the house allowing us so much storage above to hang bikes, sports equipment etc. There is enough space for two cars and a workbench, lawn equipment with the potential for future insulation to create a heated workspace.

 

Another thing that I love about our house is the exterior; it has such curb appeal. I love that we could pick our exterior finish materials to our tastes. With the help of April and Melinda we were able to customize the front of our Haliburton by adding two decorative gables that cover a front porch. We love the curb appeal of this addition.

6. What advice would you give to someone looking to go through the process?

1. Plan ahead

2. Estimate costs for your extras like site clearing, hook-ups, lot grading, landscaping, furniture, etc.

3. Stay on top of calling for and scheduling your utilities (hydro, water, gas, telecom, septic, etc.)

This will make for a seamless process!

Look inside their Quality Home to see for yourself by exploring our virtual tour of Robin and Nelson’s new home!

We’re so grateful to have had the opportunity to help Robin and Nelson create their dream cottage. Every member of the Quality Homes Team is already part of the family, but it means so much more to get to go through the building process together. Thank you so much for sharing your story with us, Robin & Nelson!

CONTACT US:

1. Send us a message online: click here
2. Give us a call: 1-800-265-2648
3. Send us an email: info@qualityhomes.ca