Serving Muskoka
Built for
Muskoka
cottage country
Muskoka cottages carry generations of memories — the goal is never to erase that, it’s to build on it. Most of what we do here is renovation: bringing an older, summer-only cottage up to four-season standard without losing the stone fireplace or the knotty pine that makes it feel like this cottage.
What we build in Muskoka
Custom cottages
Four-season cabins, bunkies and boathouses built for the way a family actually uses the lake — and detailed so they still look right in thirty years.
Custom carpentry
Built-ins, staircases, mantels and site-built millwork — the details that separate a house from a home, made to fit the space exactly.
Renovations & restoration
From a single accent wall to a whole-floor rework. Old houses get repaired properly rather than papered over.
Building & renovating in Muskoka
What actually matters here
Built for summer, being asked to do winter
Older Muskoka cottages were built for July and August, not January — thin walls, minimal insulation, small windows. Bringing one to real four-season comfort touches almost every system, not just the finishes.
Rock, and decades of additions
Many Muskoka properties are built on rock, with additions layered on over the years by different builders. A structural assessment before any renovation starts is essential — what looks simple can turn out to depend entirely on what a previous addition can actually support.
The details people won’t let you touch
A stone fireplace a grandfather built, original panelling, a particular view from the porch — the best Muskoka renovation listens to what actually matters to the family before reaching for a sledgehammer.
Read more in the journal: Renovating a Muskoka Cottage: Honouring the Past While Building for the Future
Have a project in Muskoka?
Sketch it in the Design Studio for a planning range priced for Muskoka, or just tell us what you’re picturing.
Henry Design Build also builds and renovates in Tobermory, Grand Bend and London.