Historic home now a working beauty
NewWall studio offers luxury wallpaper in the elegance of a 19th-century city townhouse
Maria Raco’s hands sprang up in panic when her fiancé Alex showed her a real estate listing for a city townhouse two years ago. He suggested it as the perfect spot for a downtown location of NewWall, the wallpaper distribution company Raco launched in 2009.
“I couldn’t even think about it,” Raco says. “We were getting married in four weeks!”
But soon after the wedding, Raco went to see the historic property at 363 Adelaide St. E., in the King St. E. Design District — and it was love at first sight.
See the wall: A large screen on the main floor of the new location allows clients to see digitized versions of patterns from the NewWall House library, which includes lines from such design houses as Armani/Casa, Abnormals Anonymous, Marimekko, Calico and J&V Italian Design, with the pattern name and price below.
“Wallpaper tends to be displayed on wings. We wanted to stand out, to show products in a new way.
“Besides, a lot of people can’t visualize paper on a wall — this lets them see how the ones they love will look,” Raco says.
Vintage: Blessed with great bones, lots of natural light and a dramatic central staircase, the NewWall property is also known as Paul Bishop House, after the blacksmith who built it in the early 1840s. It was one of the few surviving structures after a massive fire in 1849.
The day Raco bought the building, its next-door twin went on sale. “We certainly were not planning on it, but the opportunity seemed too good, so we jumped on it,” says Raco, who rents out the adjoining townhouse as a residential property.
Design decisions: A tastefully-appointed room with ensuite bathroom serves as a meeting spot for designers and their clients. But NewWall isn’t just for the trade.
“I don’t think it’s fair that people can’t purchase something because they aren’t designers. Of course, I have trade pricing and retail pricing, but I sell to anyone who wants beautiful product.”
Pricing starts at about $125 for rolls of the cheerful Finnish brand Marimekko to between $500 and $600 for a roll from Timorous Beasties.
Reimagined: In addition to wallpaper and custom murals, NewWall will also sell vintage and antique furniture pieces which Raco, husband Alex and mother-in-law Danielle — the latter two are not directly involved in the business but are Raco’s “biggest fans” — have been collecting for years.
“We decided to furnish NewWall with these reimagined pieces, because they reflect so well who we are,” Raco says.
Soft furnishing are often upholstered in textiles from Timorous Beasties. Panels: On the second floor, sliding panels with wallpaper samples are set into well-lit display units. The units form part of the finely detailed custom millwork Raco had installed throughout the studio. Tucked between the two built-in panel showcases is a cosy, colourful window seat. A handsome, zinc-topped table an- chors the room, and is one find Raco says would be hard to part with.
“As soon as I saw it, I said ‘it’s mine!’ and spread my arms across it,” she says with a laugh.
Up in the sky: A third-floor office’s angled ceiling at NewWall is covered with a custom mural and windowpane-like treatment to create a sense of being way up to the clouds. Part of the appeal of murals, which Raco says are becoming hugely popular, is that while wallpaper creates eyepopping repeat patterns, murals can be “such pretty, pretty pictures and such a wonderful way to make something that is really personal. It’s made just for you,” she says.