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Modern Makeover in an Ontario Home

Modern Makeover in an Ontario Home


modern farmhouse Ontario home with neutral color scheme in living room

An inherited 1960s Ontario home in Canada receives needed updates while maintaining rustic farmhouse charm.

Stark whites, black accents, and an open concept are three of the mainstays in this newly renovated modern farmhouse style Ontario home in suburban Newmarket. “We definitely wanted to rebuild this home in a more modern, or transitional modern, way,” homeowner and designer Amanda Shields says. The neutral color scheme and sleek lines paired with natural accents bring to life the well-loved modern farmhouse style in this Ontario home. 

For Amanda and her husband, Gordon, this renovation was sentimental as the house was where Gordon had grown up. When the couple inherited the home, they knew right away that it needed some TLC. The home hadn’t had any work done since the 80s and was in bad shape. It became clear early on the extensive amount of work that would need to be done. 

high ceiling and wall of windows in Ontario home living room

“We knew we wanted to make it our own, and that meant we needed to start fresh,” Amanda says. “We took it right down to the studs and then built it back up.” Virtually the only thing the couple kept from the original house was its floor plan. By starting with essentially a new build, Amanda had a lot of creative freedom in bringing her modern farmhouse vision to life.

black island and hutch in renovated Ontario kitchen
True to Amanda’s desire to be close to nature, one side of her kitchen consists of a large 24-foot glass slider door that opens up completely to the backyard. “The idea was for there to be an easy flow from the inside to the outside for when we are entertaining,” Amanda says, “I love the outdoors and wanted it to feel like we were seamlessly connected to the outside.”

Natural Inspo in this Ontario Home

When creating her home design from the ground up, Amanda took inspiration from the surrounding neighborhood, in particular, the many mature trees that envelop the property. “We really wanted to bring the outdoors in; that was a huge element for me,” Amanda says. Not only is this apparent with much of her indoor decor but also with the many large windows throughout the entirety of the home.

A neutral color scheme and sleek lines paired with natural accents bring to life the well-loved modern farmhouse style in this Ontario home. 

 In every space there is a view of the beautiful, tree-abundant neighborhood. Amanda tapped into her love of nature to incorporate elements in the home that brought warmth and texture, which softened many of the home’s modern features. She chose materials like white oak and walnut, cozy rugs, unique tile patterns, and added greenery in most areas of the home. She balanced these rustic farmhouse elements with more modern touches like light, neutral colors, sharp lines, and some pops of black for grounding. 

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Wood floor around a white fireplace and antique tile

Making Modern

While the home’s prominent windows and use of natural elements tie into a rustic farmhouse style, its open floor plan utilizes a lot of sharp lines and contrasts, paired with sleek light fixtures and black accents, to capitalize on modern aesthetics. “Inside, we kept the lines very clean and the color palette fairly neutral,” Amanda says. Many of Amanda’s design accents used burnished metals like bronze lamps, knobs, and gold bathroom fixtures. These sleek features pop against her neutral color palette. 


Love the modern farmhouse vibe and neutral color scheme in this Ontario home? Don’t miss this Scandinavian Inspired Ontario Home for even more ideas. Of course, don’t forget to follow us on InstagramFacebook, and Pinterest to get your daily dose of farmhouse inspiration! 

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