Happy New Year!

2016 was a busy one for Black Fox Construction, and 2017 looks just as exciting with many of our most ambitious projects still underway.

Rustic Touches: Barnwood

No matter the scale, a cabin should always feel like a rustic retreat. Many details can add a rugged edge to your lakeside cottage, but few can add the age and authenticity of barnwood.

Digital Mockups: Margaritaville II

Need some help envisioning your new cabin with a little more depth than a set of blueprints? With the previsualizations done by our friends at the Boreal Design Studio, you'll be able to take a virtual tour of your house before a single brick has been laid.

Winter Is Coming: The Beauty of Four Season Cabins

With summer in the rear view and fresh snow on the ground, many cabin goers have closed up their cottages until next spring. However, with a four season cabin, your weekend escape can be a year round oasis.

Fall Foundation: The Boulder Beach House

With winter just around the corner, we're going full steam ahead on the the foundation pour for the Boulder Beach House- our very last spec cabin on the Black Sturgeon Lake development.

New Build: Margaritaville II

Named after our client's current, much loved cabin, our Margaritaville II build is being designed to entertain, with equal parts fun and function.

Clearing a Path to the Boulder Beach House

Looking for a cabin in the Lake of the Woods area? Come check out the progress on our very last spec cabin in our Black Sturgeon Lake development, the Boulder Beach House.

Paradise on the Point Update #6: Dockside Details

With year's end creeping up on us, our crew is hustling to finish up on the Storm Bay build to have it ready for the holidays.

Paradise on the Point Update #5: Ceilings and Steady Progress

November is nearly upon us, and our big build on Storm Bay is already starting to show glimmers of the fantastic home it will be by year's end. There's still a lot of work to be done, but even the little details are starting to make a big difference.

Only One Lot Left!

Beautiful, serene, and only minutes from Lake of the Woods, it's no wonder that we're down to the very last in our friendly, south-facing Black Sturgeon Lake development. Click below for more details on our beautiful new build while you still can!

Paradise on the Point Update #4: Boathouse Progress

As the ambitious, versatile boathouse on Storm Bay rapidly comes together, it gets easier to see where everyone is going to be spending their time next year from May Long to the end of September.

Looking Back: Summer 2016

With fall officially upon us, it's time to start taking out your docks and spending a little more time in flannel around the fire pit. It was a busy summer for us at Black Fox- here are a few of our favorite projects from the past few months.

Paradise on the Point Update #3

Summer is coming to a close, but we're working as hard as ever on our Paradise on the Point property in Lake of the Woods's Storm Bay. This month we dealt with a unique building challenge on the cabin's impressive boathouse.

Building Basics: Timber Frame Cabins

There are many top-of-the-line methods for building a cabin, and all of them offer their distinct advantages and draw backs. Today we're looking at the beautiful, versatile timber frame cabin.

Building Basics: The Log Home

There are many top-of-the-line methods for building a cabin, and all of them offer their distinct advantages and draw backs. Today we're focusing on the rustic, timeless log cabin.

Site Planning 101: Island or Mainland

When imagining your dream cabin on Lake of the Woods, some details may seem more important than others. While being on an island or the mainland may seem less important initially, it's a complicated trade-off that requires a lot of thought.

Fire Pit Update: Cowboy Cookout

In an earlier post, we talked about the essential and affordable nature of a good fire pit. Early this month we field tested another unforgettable experience that's only a little bit of light landscaping away.

Paradise on the Point Update #2

Summer might be in full swing, but the Black Fox crew is still hard at work on our most recent Lake of the Woods dream home.

Cabin Construction: Timber Frames

Among the countless questions every would be homeowner must asks themselves, one of the first and most essential questions is about style and material. This is especially true when building a timber frame or log cabin.

Building A Cottage Against The Clock

Summer is in full swing, and that means a lot of prospective buyers who want to be on the lake ASAP. With the right builder however, your dream of lounging on the lake may not be as distant as it seems.

Site Planning 101: Finding Your Footprint

Although the view from a lakeside lot might be what sells you on your dream property, maximizing your favorite asset might not be so simple. Before you get swept up in your new vista, it's important to envision exactly where you cabin will (or can) go.

Canada Day 2016

Happy Canada Day! To celebrate the summer's first long weekend, we're revisiting some of our favorite features for maximizing your cabin or cottage relaxation time.

Rain or Shine: Paradise on the Point Update

Although it might not have been the best week to spend on the water, nothing changed for our crew, who was hard at work on the Paradise on the Point luxury boathouse.

Smoking Hot Additions

Even after principal construction is done, your cabin will continue to grow along with you and your family. In this case, long after we completed construction on this Lake of the Woods cabin, the homeowners thought of an inspired addition- a full on charcoal smoker.

Lakeside Landscaping: Walking The Trails

When putting together your dream home, not every detail has to be a bank breaker. Although it may not be flashy, focusing on the spaces between your favorite places at the cottage is just as valuable an any expensive additions. 

CABIN FOR SALE: The Family Timberframe

Although most of the cabins posted to this blog are already spoken for, every once in a while one of our beautiful dream homes finds its way back to the market. Below are a few snapshots of the one-of-a-kind Family Timberframe, currently for sale on Black Sturgeon Lake.

Paradise On The Point Update

We've been keeping you up to date while we fought against the thaw building the ambitious, multipurpose boathouse at Paradise on the Point. However, our crew has been working just as hard on the main cabin as spring rolls around, and things are coming along swimmingly.

The Bigger, Brighter Cabin

Years after taking on one of our most ambitious and beautiful projects, construction on the Bigger, Brighter Cabin is coming to a close, and we couldn't be more proud. Check out photos of the (nearly) final product below.

Springtime Hustle: Building A Luxury Boathouse

Spring is here, and while you might be daydreaming about May Long campfires and night caps, the crew at Black Fox has been hustling to finish up our most ambitious boathouse build ever.

Build Update: Paradise On The Point

Spring is upon us, but unlike the rest of cabin country, we've been on the lake all winter long. Thanks to a strong season on a beautiful cabin-to-be, Paradise on the Point promises to be one of our most beautiful builds yet.

Lighting Up The Bigger, Brighter Cabin

If the word "cabin" brings to mind a warm, inviting space, there are a number of elements that need to come together just right so that vision can become a reality. One of the most over-looked, and most essential, is picking the right lighting scheme.

Design Concept: Open Concept Kitchen

Whether you're at home in the city or lounging in your cabin on the lake. odds are the kitchen will be one of the most popular spots for family and friends to congregate.

Love At First Sight: Foyers And Front Entries #2

When considering buying or building your dream cabin, it's important to consider the impression it makes on you- both inside the home and out.

Movin' On Up: Custom Spiral Staircase

We've made it no secret on this blog that staircases can be one of your cabin's biggest and best features. At the Bigger, Brighter Cabin we've built a staircase so unique it'll stop your guests in their tracks.

Timbers And Tech: Beautiful Boathouses

We've explored cutting edge cabin pre-visualizations before, but there's a good chance none of them will capture your imagination like this dream boathouse from our Storm Bay Build.

Weekend Wildlife

It's no secret that the Canadian Shield brings in admirers of it's rugged terrain and beautiful lakes, however the landscape surrounding Kenora is far from its only unique feature- it's also home to an incredibly diverse, and eye-catching, cast of creatures.

Lighting: Creating An Electric Exterior

There are few things in a cabin more important and more consistently overlooked than lighting. However, as important as your indoor fixtures are, the ones on your exterior deserve just as much consideration.

Checking Into The Viewtiful Cliff Cabin

With only one property left, our small, secluded bay on Black Sturgeon Lake is starting to make waves. One of our favorite properties is the Viewtiful Cliff Cabin that was built on spec and sold even before its completion. Now, six months later, we have a look inside the completed cottage.

Design ideas: Working Around Your Windows

As we've talked about before, there are few things more rewarding than taking in your cabin's sweeping view. However, the importance of your cottage windows boils down to much more than just what they let you see.

Helicopter Hot Tub: Install Complete

2015 was a busy year over at our Viewtiful Cliff Cabin- not only did the cabin sell, but the new owners made a special request to have a hot tub airlifted onto their sweeping deck. Now fully completed, this hot tub is a one-of-a-kind feature with a million dollar view.

Lot For Sale: Beauty In The Bay

With views like this, it's no wonder that the serene southern bay of our Black Sturgeon Lake development only has one lot left. 

Video: Framing On Storm Bay

Although it may seem like a daunting process, we've got cabin framing down to a science. Check out this time lapse video of the BC timber frame below!

Storm Bay Build #3: Framing Up

Cabin season may be over, but our work is still in full swing. With our Storm Bay build well under way, the framing process has finally begun!

Timbers And Tech: Kitchens

Whether it's a cabin on the lake or your house in the city, the kitchen invariably ends up being the heart of every home. With these cutting edge previsualizations, you'll be able to explore your cabin inside and out before construction even begins.

A kitchen is a lot more than a place to prepare meals. No matter the season, rain or shine, it often takes precedent over the great room as your cottage's social hub. Making a snack, keeping the chef company before dinner, or pouring a drink for happy hour are all daily activities that mean your kitchen should be built for comfort as well as practicality.

When building such an important room, it's essential to see it from all angles before any building begins. With these 3D previsualizations from Boreal Design Studio, you not only get to see the layout of your cabin's most important space, but also how the rest of the cabin flows into it.

Have questions about Kenora builders, contractors, or interior cottage design? Please contact Bill Scurfield at bscurf@mymts.net or visit our website http://blackfoxconstruction.com/. 

Winter Wonderland

When you think dream cabin on Lake of the Woods, odds are you picture a lazy summer weekend on the dock. With an all seasons cottage however, the winter brings an entirely new facet to your lakeside retreat.