The House that Cedar Fixed

Cottage Country Makeover You Won’t Want to Miss – Episode 3: “Adding a Screened-in Porch”

Thinking of adding a screened-in porch? Follow Colin & Justin in this exclusive Real Cedar web series. The dynamic design duo are transforming a dated 1980s, Ontario cabin into a luxury lakeside wilderness lodge. In order to add value to their property and enhance their cabin-living experience, they’re incorporating inspired applications of Western Red Cedar into their renovations, which include a revamped interior as well as the addition of a wraparound cedar deck, space-defining pergolas and a funky Bunkie. They also built a sunroom. See how they’re doing it:

Adding a Screened-in Porch

As part of their vision for a luxury lakeside getaway, Colin & Justin wanted to maximize their connection to the surrounding nature as well as accommodate visitors throughout the year. Their solution was a screened in porch. This will create a beautiful transition space between indoor and outdoor. It will also just creates more space in general. A well-built sunroom also serves some very practical purposes.

“Sunrooms are absolutely essential if you’re creating your own rustic escape” explains Colin. “It gives you a wonderful screened room, you can be close to nature, close to the lake but of course you don’t have to worry about any mosquitos or any black flies.”

Designing Warm Spaces

For this project, they relied heavily on the versatility of Western Red Cedar paneling to create a style that is distinctly theirs.

“Real Cedar really makes a difference to your interior design,” says Colin. “Let’s just look at the room recipe here. We got Real Cedar giving us strength and a connection with nature, glazing panels so we let all the light shine in. We can also see the incredible view and then a simple palette of warm timber, stone and leather all coming together to create a sunroom that is very Colin and Justin.”

“To use this incredible lumber in the structure of this room has really brought it to life” adds Justin. “The aroma and the integrity of the wood as a building medium has given us a room to be proud of.”

The Ultimate Indoor Outdoor Room

When it came to specifying, they opted for a beautiful knotty grade of cedar, which added warmth and texture to the project. It’s also a cost-effective choice for creating warm spaces.

“It’s great to look at it,” says Justin, adding, “It’s actually really smooth to touch, but the knots make it look extra layered.”

See what grade of cedar is right for your next project