Stepping into this lakeside home was like entering a cozy retreat in Muskoka. It was a strange experience seeing the home owners working from their home offices and working a full day myself from this lodge, yet feeling like I was on vacation and should be sitting by the fire with a book or taking a canoe on the lake. I’m not sure I’d have the will power to wake up to that view every morning, making my coffee while surrounded so by natural materials (both inside the house and out), and still force myself to sit at my desk and be productive for several hours, especially in a home thoughtfully built with passive house design principles.

Below is some background on the design ideas, the choices that shaped the space, and a few fun details that make this home truly unique, shared by the homeowners themselves.

Interior Design by: VI Design | @vi.design.studio
Photography by: Sonia V Photography | @soniavbranding

The Exterior

“The Walden Lodge, located in Val-des-Monts, Quebec, for consideration. We named it after the Henry David Thoreau classic—an ode to our move from a skyscraper in downtown Toronto to this quiet lakeside retreat in the woods.”

The Living and Dining Room

“The 5,500 sq ft home is a blend of our European heritage and the rugged Canadian landscape. Felix grew up in Germany and brought a deep passion for Passivhaus principles to the project. The home is constructed with ICF walls, generous overhangs, strategic window placement, and significant insulation, allowing it to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer with minimal energy use. Our triple-glazed windows and doors were imported from Austria.”

The Kitchen

“Inside, heated polished-concrete floors anchor the space, while locally sourced white pine timbers and paneling create the home’s most striking architectural feature. Custom cabinetry, crafted by a local artisan, is built from birch plywood.”

The Master En Suite

“To maintain efficiency in our cold climate, the airtight structure is ventilated using a European-made ERV—one of the few systems capable of serving a home of this size in such low temperatures.”

The Basement

“The house is intentionally simple and quiet, designed as a retreat from our busy careers in tech and consulting. Every material choice supports the feeling of stepping into nature, even indoors.”

The Office + Cigar Room

“The home is fully electric and solar-ready, with the large south-facing roof designed to accommodate solar panels for future off-grid capability.”

Sonia V Photography

A project like this takes an immense amount of thought, planning, and execution, from the architectural and design details to the carefully curated styling. It was a privilege to photograph this lakeside retreat for Vanessa of VI Design and her clients, capturing not only the spaces themselves but also the story behind the design choices—from the European-inspired detail, passive house design features, and more. If you’re looking for a photographer who can showcase your projects with the same care and attention you put into them, we’d love to help bring your work to life.