PERFECTING ‘BASIC BLACK’
Designer takes a walk on the dark side in St-Henri condo
When Keren Blankrot bought and renovated her St-Henri condo three years ago, she decided to take a walk on the dark side. She indulged her taste for all things black. Black marble in the living room, black tile and cabinets in the kitchen and zebra-striped black granite in one bathroom.
In fact, black is the defining colour in this two-storey home. It is bold and bossy and very “sexy” — the word Blankrot uses. “Black helps create a mood and grounds a space,” she says. “When I first told people I was using black in the kitchen, they said ‘it will be too dark,’ but black doesn’t have to make a space feel sombre. It depends on how you use it.”
Black, in the hands of lesser designers, can overpower a space or come off as cold and stark. So, using Blankrot’s home as the classroom, here is an abbreviated master class in How To Use Black (and get great results).
BALANCE AND TEXTURE
“I had seen Leicht kitchen cabinets at a trade show in New York and I loved them for their long clean lines and soft edges, so I had that esthetic in my head. Then I found this sleek black ceramic for the backdrop. It has penny-sized tiles. I like the hard edges and uneven surface of the tile versus the calm of the cabinets. That was the perfect balance of textures for this space.”
BLACK AND CONTRAST
Just beyond the kitchen is the dining area. There are six profoundly black Tom Dixon chairs featuring hard geometric shapes. The Calligaris dining table, by contrast, is imported from Italy and has a warmer, much softer feel to it, due to the cream-coloured, opaque glass top. “I call this the push and pull of design,” says Blankrot. The chairs are edgy and the table is quietly classic but their extreme contrasts are what make them interesting together."
Black helps create a mood and grounds a space ... Black doesn’t have to make a space feel sombre. It depends on how you use it.
REPEATING MOTIFS
A few steps away is the living room, featuring a wood-burning fireplace and a floor-to-ceiling black and white marble wall that is attention-grabbing without actually dominating the room. There are also two white marble nesting tables. “So room after room you will see things repeated,” Blankrot says. “White marble is also in the bathroom, for example.
“I like to repeat elements throughout the house,” she adds. “You want to weave things together. When something is artfully done, there is an ebb and flow, so some things are repeated, some things aren’t.”
BLACK AND THE BATHROOM
Maybe the last room most people would do in black is a small bathroom. Blankrot went whole hog. Black tile walls, an undulating ceramic backsplash and jaw-dropping zebra-striped granite set the tone: Drama. “This is a very small space and it packs a big punch,” she says. No kidding. Would she propose such a dramatic room to a client?
“Absolutely. Clients who want to work with me want someone who thinks outside the box and will bring them the comfort they want, plus something extra. Good designers bring the personality of the client to the fore, so my job is to understand their personality and bring something visual to the interior that represents their personal esthetic.”
STORAGE
One of the essentials of good design, says Blankrot, is planning storage. In the main floor bathroom she made the unusual choice to reduce the size of the bathroom and use it to create a huge hallway cupboard. Same thing on the second floor, where cupboards got larger and the bedroom and bathroom got smaller.
“Interior design starts with a foundation and organization is a big part of it. Designers and clients have to acknowledge that people have stuff, and you have to know how the space gets used. For example, my husband and I know how many shoes we have, and what we have when we walk in at the end of the day, and what room is needed for guests. So we planned to accommodate all those things. Now, everything fits everything perfectly. There is no clutter because we planned for everything we own. That is part of what I do for my clients, too.”
TECHNOLOGY
Because they took the renovation down to the studs, Blankrot was able to install the kind of lifestyle technology she loves; programmable thermostats and Sonos sound with speakers in every room. “I like that the house learns our patterns and prepares the house for when we come home; and I love having music wherever I go and being able to control volume wherever I am.”
In their window-filled home there are remote controlled blinds in the living room and dividing the bedroom from the upstairs sitting room. “This really keeps the space versatile. We could have put up a wall but I like the effortlessness of the blinds.”
Then there is where technology meets whimsy. Blankrot looks for ways to surprise, like the Qis pendant light in the kitchen. It is activated by hand motions and changes colour to suit the mood. A small touch, but intriguing.
“Technology is about having easy access to the things that you need to make your day run smoothly, music, temperature control, light. That’s what I try to bring to my clients and to myself.”
LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
Originally Blankrot and her husband intended to buy in Westmount. He wanted a standalone home with outdoor space. Blankrot saw a listing for a three-bedroom, two-bath penthouse in a small condo building and realized how much more flexibility to renovate she would have if she bought in St-Henri.
Her husband was won over the first time he saw it.
“There are two decks; a small one off the bedroom and a big one on the front. We came here one evening. The views! Priceless. We are walking distance from Atwater Market, to the Lachine Canal. When my husband saw this place, I could tell his preconceived notion of what he wanted shifted.
“In the end we are so happy we moved here ... this place is more ‘us’ than we really could have had with renovating an older house.”