This Ontario Farmhouse is Like Living in a Christmas Snow Globe

Angela forages cedar and pine clippings from trees on their farm to make swags of garlands throughout her house. “We have endless amounts of pine trees,” she says. “Sometimes we’ll have friends over for garland- and wreath-making parties.” Angela also designed the entry’s console table out of reclaimed pine the couple had leftover in their woodshop. “I knew what I wanted there but I couldn’t find it, so I made it myself,” she says.

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Although the house architecturally is simple, Angela made open spaces seem more intimate with gestures like the arched entry to the den. When the couple bought the farm, they planted some 11,000 seedlings as part of a government-subsidized program. Every December, the family heads into their woods in search of that year’s perfect spruce, which they lovingly decorate with handmade ornaments Josh and the kids make from the property’s walnut trees and adorn with family photos. “There’s always a little ‘Charlie Brown’ happening, with one or two sides a little spare,” says Angela.

Friendly faces and familiar landscapes are captured in the gallery of vintage paintings, most of which Angela scored at country auctions, save for the top left portrait of an older man. “I grew up with him,” Angela says of the portrait her parents picked up in Germany while her father was in the military. Beyond, a small walk-in pantry offers an out-of-sight spot to stow away kitchen essentials. “I try to keep my sight lines clean so there aren’t small appliances that are distracting,” she says.

Even hard-working spaces exude charm, like the utility room that Angela outfitted with a 1940s concrete laundry sink she found online for just $50. A simple marble backsplash and $50 industrial faucet pop against the board-and-batten wainscoting coated in forest green. More of Angela’s foraged farm clippings bring in a touch of holiday, like her rustic wreaths and less-is-more approach to layering branches in a basket.

Get the Look:
Wainscotting Paint Color: Backwoods by Benjamin Moore

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Inspired by English country houses, in the next door mudroom Angela cleverly positioned two rows of pegboards, one low enough for the kiddos to reach. Above the wainscotting, she reframed a set of farm scenes and game hunting illustrations she picked up from an auction.

A pair of 1970s armchairs Josh found (one was a roadside cast-off; the other he picked up at a charity shop) flanks the porch table. Even though they’re upholstered, Angela doesn’t worry about them being exposed to the elements because they are repurposed.

Angela Weaver and Josh Malcolm’s canvas-topped “prospector’s tent” is outfitted with a bed and wool blankets so the kids (Aiden, Jessie, Stella Jane, and Will) can transition from snow angels to snuggles. Josh built the hut with a canvas tent propped on logs culled from their 75 acres. It sits on a trailer so it can be easily moved around the farm as needed for snow days or as guest quarters when the house overflows with visiting friends and family.