HUSHED TONES
Modern meets traditional in this couple’s quietly vibrant light-filled semi.
Modern meets traditional in this couple’s quietly vibrant, light- filled semi
When these newlyweds ditched their condo for a house – as so many do – they set their sights upon Toronto’s leafy Summerhill neighbourhood, which they admired for its older homes. The couple found a 2,290-square-foot four-bedroom semi built in the 1930s that fit the bill in terms of age and locale, but it hadn’t been touched since the ’80s.
“It was so dark,” says one of the homeowners, referring to the interior, which was coated in dowdy browns and suffering from tiny rooms and windows, as well as a gloomy kitchen partitioned from the rest of the house. “We needed more light and a large kitchen for my husband, who loves to cook,” she says. Simply put, the house was hardly what you’d call a love nest.
So the homeowners enlisted Croma Design’s Ryan Martin and Amy Kent to give their starter house a style transfusion. “We wanted to create a classically inspired backdrop with clean-lined furnishings and art,” says Amy. The homeowners didn’t want to go too stark or too stuffy, so they settled on a transitional look with bold lashes of black and modern furnishings boasting traditional details. And, of course, they addressed the cramped spaces and lack of light.
To that end, the designers reworked the layout, removing the powder room, relocating the kitchen and expanding the
windows at the front and back of the house. “We opened everything up so the light emanating from the new windows and existing skylight would stretch further,” says Ryan. He notes that, while the house was once so boxed in that it didn’t seem like it was three storeys, the 15-foot-wide building now feels huge.
As for the finer details, near-black accents add striking drama against the palette of soothing greys, blues, browns and whites. “The colours in this home are very subtle, tone-on-tone and easy to live with,” says Amy. “We wanted the house to make an impact as a whole – not for any particular wall or accent to stand out above the rest.”
Whether the homeowners are upstairs lounging in the relaxed media room or downstairs sipping tea in the more formal living area, there is indeed a clear sense of cohesion, which is a hallmark of this home – and what makes it a far cry from its gloomy beginnings. “I loved being able to customize the house to our needs,” says one of the homeowners. “My husband really loves the new kitchen.” It now has all the right ingredients to cook up a great life together.