We’re slowing down any work to the cottage for the rest of the summer. Last year we worked all summer, and even this year we’ve done quite a bit to get the cottage a little more live able for our guests. It was getting a bit silly having the mattresses on the ground so we got some IKEA box springs with oak legs to bring them off the floor.

We installed some Muuto oak dots on the wall to hang clothes and towels.

We replaced the old ugly and broken sconces with AJ wall lights. It made a ridiculous difference and added a bit more modernism to the cottage.

We finally found a place to put our 50s yacht photograph (very George Nelson’s office in the 50s) and hung our MayDay light by Konstantin Grcic.

One of best things we found this summer was this beautiful sideboard by Peter Hvidt & Orla M.Nielsen. It’s one of the only cabinets I’ve seen to be made out of solid teak, and will hold all of our dishes and any other miscellaneous things we have that are filling our kitchen cabinets. The legs and tambour sliding doors are really unique, I still can’t believe it’s sitting in our cottage it looks fantastic.

The big apple print is by Italian mid century designer Enzo Mari.

We got the sideboard at the Queen West Antique Centre, which is where we got a lot of the vintage cottage pieces.

Still enjoying the cedar slats. We thought we were going to get a cloudy rainy day but it turned out gorgeous. Lounging, swimming and mass magazine reading.

Juli: I have been wearing the same bikinis since I was in my early 20s. Something had to give, they really are too small. SO, I finally headed over to Sandpiper’s in Yorkville as it’s the only bathing suit store I know of in the city (Bikini Village does not count for even one moment). I fell in love with two retro style suits, one full, one bikini and all I wanted to do was sit around in it all day. Love it. Feels so much better than squeezing into a teeny tiny itty bitty two-piece.

Medium rare steak served over a bed of arugula and Parmesan, drizzled with olive oil.

We were in a pocket of stars and sky while all around us raged thunderstorm war.

In the morning I was cooking bacon with tin foil on the barbecue for breakfast (yes it works and it’s not messy) and our old screen door didn’t close all the way when I went inside to grab my barbecue tongs. I came outside to find Isha trotting around cottage grounds with her feet walking on sandy soil and head moving everywhere trying to take in this big outside world. Luckily when I came to approach her she didn’t take off. I scooped her up and sat down on a chair and let her have a stare fest with the world until she got a bit squirmy, then I brought her inside.

She had a big day, and slept the whole car ride home.

There was something missing in the living room at the cottage. We needed a coffee table, but we didn’t want anything covering our rug, and we didn’t think that a glass table was that appropriate for a cottage.

The solution?

The Castor table designed by Hans Sandgren Jacoben for Askman. The two trays are reversible (white or black) and they are removable so you can bring them in the kitchen with you to easily carry a snack back to the sofa while watching Mad Men.

Isha is passed out in the background. So. Hot.

I think it needs a few books on the bottom…

Better.

We installed some birch shelves by Alvar Aalto on either side of the fireplace. They are looking fantastic!

Vintage Moomin character dolls.

Savoy vase with wild daises.

We installed a Bilberry pendant light aimed at the wall to the left of our fireplace. We don’t really have much lighting in the cottage and at night it can be really dark around here so the extra spotlight is a welcomed addition. Plus the light is so cool! It almost has its own face.

The concrete Sailor we purchased from Johan Pergenius made his long trip from Sweden to Canada. It arrived last week and we brought him to the cottage.

Thanks Johan!

Juli and I must be putterers because we always seem to come up with more projects to do while we’re at the cottage. One thing that always bugged us was the entrance way. It’s the first thing you walk into when you enter the cottage and you’re greeted with yellow knotty pine, a terrible light fixture, and an exposed coat rack.

The first thing I did was paint everything white and replace the ugly glass ceiling fixture (which seems to make an appearance in every apartment in Toronto) with a simple ceramic fitting.

Note to self: We really need to replace that old brown metal door!

Juli has been taking Japanese dress making classes and now she has a lot of confidence with the sewing machine. She made this great gingham curtain to hide our jackets and shoes.

Another quick fix was this simple doormat and cast iron door stop by Makoto Koizumi.

It looks just like a river stone.

We put up a little coat rack behind the door for another place to hang stuff. You can never have too many hangers!

Here is a picture of how the entryway looked before. Even with the sunlight coming in, it was still really dark.