This historic Toronto home is fresh and fun on the inside

Sarah Tolle—Homify Canada Sarah Tolle—Homify Canada
homify Scandinavian style houses
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This home in Riverdale—near Toronto—was an old rooming house before the architects from Post Architecture swooped in to incorporate more modern features and colourful details into the historic structure. The result is a home that maintains a sturdy sense of history and tradition in its exterior, while opening up its walls for an extra dose of sunlight for its modern and bright interior.

​History, with a twist

The old-fashioned character of the home is still present in the wide, double decker wooden porch and sturdy brick wall. However, the architects have added a playful detail that gives the home an extra burst of fresh energy—namely, the lively magenta door and matching lawn chair!

​Open interior

On the inside, this home is artistic and playful wherever you turn—highly appropriate, considering the home's resident is an art history teacher and her family. One of the intentions of this renovation project was to open up the home, and this fluid and open living room design is proof of a job well done. On either side, the living room benefits from easy, wide-open access to the kitchen and dining room, separated only by a central mass that houses the bookshelf on one side, and the kitchen cabinets on the other.

​Connected by colour

Most of the home's walls and furniture adopt light or cream tones, giving all the more emphasis to the rich, bright colours splashed across the spaces. This living room offers a strong visual connection between the flowers, wall painting, and colourful throw on the couch, drawing the eye around the space through the use of bold oranges and reds on a sea of light neutrals.

Love these bold colours? Take a look at this ideabook, with a tour of an unusually colourful and creative farmhouse!

​Kitchen

Nothing like what you'd expect in a historic rooming house, this kitchen is open, bright, and sleek! Seamless white cabinets set a polished tone, while features like convenient under lighting and a double oven make the kitchen useful for a busy family.

​Scandinavian dining room

The dining area takes on a certain Scandinavian feel, with a smooth wooden table and fine white chairs standing on thin webs of stainless steel. Full of low, horizontally oriented shapes, this dining room exudes a sense of relaxation, from the elongated paintings on the wall to the low-lying. rectangular window. This window is one of the spots where the architects have been able to open up the home, bringing more light into its interior while still preserving a sense of privacy from neighbors.

​Luxurious bathroom

This new bathroom is positively luxurious! Everything from the polished glass door to the smooth wooden look of the floor to the golden glow cast upon the niche shelf emanates a majestic tone. The ornate golden mirror conjures up the image of an antique framed painting, a subtle nod to the art-centric theme present in the rest of the home.

​Freestanding tub

This unique tub design is separate from the standing shower, enjoying its own little slice of heaven under a large, sunny window! The window sill shelf, low towel rack, and convenient bath tray all add to the usability of this beautiful bathtub!

​Calm bedroom

This bedroom, located on the second floor, adopts a calm and natural atmosphere. Large windows connect the space with the outdoors, and especially with the lush tree that sits right outside the window. This natural landscape is mirrored in the choice of artwork in the room, in addition to the light wood used in the bed and dresser, the natural wicker of the laundry basket, and the plant sitting near the window. This bedroom is a peaceful environment for a good night's sleep!

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