Small But Mighty: Designing a Cottage That Feels Bigger Than It Is
Our clients came to us with a family cottage they adored the location of, but not the building itself. They had one clear request: make it feel generous, layered, and completely finished, without adding a single square foot. We took that as a challenge, in the best way. A small footprint means every decision counts, so there was no room for filler furniture, safe colour choices, or "we'll figure it out later." Every piece had to earn its place. We started calling the project Small But Mighty, and the name stuck because it became our approach to the whole design, not just a description of the space.
The Challenge
Cottages are lived in differently than city homes. They need to host more gatherings than they have seating for, must be ready to go the moment you walk in for a weekend, and somehow still feel calm at the end of a long day. This cottage had all the bones of a great one — a stunning view, boat access right off the property — but it was dated and wasn't yet working as hard as it needed to.
Our job wasn't to make the footprint bigger. It was to make the rooms behave bigger.
How We Approached It
Layering over adding. Instead of filling the space with more furniture, we focused on layering: texture on texture, pattern used with intention, and finishes that do double duty. Wallpaper became a way to add depth to a small room without shrinking it visually. Blinds were chosen not just for function but to soften hard architectural lines.
Every piece multi-tasking. In a space this size, nothing gets to be purely decorative. Furniture had to flex — for extra guests, for rainy days, for the difference between a quiet Tuesday and a full house on a long weekend.
Colour and material doing the heavy lifting. With less square footage to work with, we leaned harder on the details that don't take up floor space: textiles, wallcoverings, and finishes that give a room richness without visual clutter.
Where We're At Now
The project is wrapping up with, blinds, wallpaper, furniture, and trades all coming together at once, which is always the most chaotic and most exciting part of a project. It's the stage where a space stops being a plan and starts being a place.
We'll be sharing the final reveal soon. In the meantime, if you're working with a smaller footprint and wondering how to make it feel like more, this is exactly the kind of project we love sinking our teeth into.
Have a space that needs to work harder for you? Get in touch — we'd love to hear about it.
