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      Long wooden cabinet runs through slender Borden house by StudioAC

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      Pale woodwork wrapping white-painted walls forms storage to make more space in this 14-foot-wide house in Toronto, which has been overhauled by local firm StudioAC.The Borden project is the renovation of a Victorian-era, three-storey residence in Annex, a neighbourhood in Downtown Toronto.

      Like many other properties in the area the house has a “very slender” width measuring 14 foot (4.2 metres) wide, which is approximately half the length of a London bus.

      Focused on the the ground-floor living area and second floor bedroom, StudioAC’s overhaul aimed to emphasise the tall ceilings of the house and give the impression of more space inside.
      It painted the walls and ceilings white and added short wood cabinets, which it describes as “contemporary wainscotting”, to highlight the height of the walls.

      “With soaring ceiling heights, we wanted to articulate the interior in a way that felt intimate while maintaining an open slender floor plan,” StudioAC explained.
      “We utilised a language of wrapping the flooring material up to counter-height to create a nestled feeling throughout the ground floor and the level three bedroom suite.”

      In turn, the cabinetry is also used to conceal storage and functions, making more space in the floor. One of the cabinets stretches the floor length of the ground floor to form the base of a built-in fireplace and kitchen counter. Both the chimney and the oven are built out in white volumes on top.
      The decor of the space, including wood flooring and furniture, and mirrored walls, complements the simple aesthetic. A white couch is placed at the front beneath a large window covered with translucent, white curtains.

      Matching wooden cabinetry continues in the top floor main bedroom, extending around the bed and forming short storage cabinets, and closets.

      StudioAC designs Toronto house “disguised as a gallery”

      “The third floor bedroom suite also has incredible ceiling height,” said the studio. “So the language of the contemporary wainscotting is taken up to the bedroom to carry the thesis from private to public.”

      The woodwork leads towards the en-suite bathroom at the front of the house, whose walls and pitched ceiling is is covered in grey concrete.
      “The wood wrapper cradles the bed and weaves around the closet to direct the eye toward the bathing suite: an intimate room clad in concrete tile with a soaring pitched roof,” it added.

      StudioAC was founded in 2015 by architects Jennifer Kudlats and designer Andrew Hill, who met while working at KPMB Architects in Toronto.
      Other Toronto house renovations by the studio include Candy Loft, Hilton House and Pape Loft that was once a church. In one of its more recent projects it took cues from the work of late American designer Donald Judd to create a home “disguised as a gallery”.
      Photography is by Jeremie Warshafsky.

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      ACDF outfits Montreal FlightHub office with vibrant colours

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      Curving glass walls and brightly coloured curtains for partitioning workspaces are among the details Canadian studio ACDF Architecture has used in an office renovation for a Montreal travel agency. FlightHub, an online travel agency, asked the local studio to design a workspace to accommodate the expanding operations in its Montreal headquarters.

      The office occupies 12,800 square feet (1,189 square metres) and spans an entire floor. Its design is intended to embody the agency’s three key elements: technology, travel and tribes.

      Private offices, open-plan workstations and conference rooms are set up around the perimeter of the floor and divided into the company’s teams.
      In the centre a circular room houses communal spaces, including a reception area, kitchen, lounge and game room.

      “The design includes common areas at its core, with distinct ‘tribal’ zones beyond those spaces where teams can retreat to their different lines of business,” said ACDF partner Joan Renaud. “The layout provides a functional balance of flow and concentration that is conducive to the FlightHub culture.”

      A circular glass wall detailed with narrow translucent panes wraps around the common area concealing the interior from the outer spaces. Inside, a rectangular volume, reminiscent of aerospace technology, is clad with perforated aluminium foam to block ambient sounds.

      Playster Headquarters by ACDF includes brightly coloured workspaces

      To separate the spaces within the communal zone the studio has installed several fabric curtains and used vibrant wall colours and furnishings that also act as a wayfinding system.

      In the kitchen stainless steel appliances and a rounded counter are paired with a green ceiling and floor, while the lounge features red office chairs and matching walls. Blue chairs in the reception area blend with the hues used on the walls and in the game room the bright yellow paint stands out against the foosball table and other furnishings.

      On the outer ring each of the four zones is outfitted with storage, a printing room, a small kitchenette, private phone call booths and a conference room.
      Workspaces comprise clusters of eight desks arranged in two rows of four. A low-lying black screen divides the row of desks to create a privacy wall between workers.

      ADCF completed the project in April 2020 before businesses reconsidered how to layout offices to adhere to social distancing protocols as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. However, it believes the design scheme reduces contact between people.
      The circular plan forms two pathways and entrances for moving through the space and the small kitchen and meeting rooms in each “tribe” reduce the likelihood of large gatherings in the communal areas.

      ACDF is led by Canadian architects Maxime-Alexis Frappier, Joan Renaud and Étienne Laplante Courchesne.
      The studio has completed a number of office projects in Montreal, including a colourful workspace for entertainment service Playster and offices for software company Lightspeed that combines historic brickwork with pastel hues.
      Photography is by Maxime Brouillet.

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      Canadian surf town informs design for taco restaurant by September

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      Natural colours and beach textures from a Canadian surf town informed the design of this Vancouver restaurant by local studio September.Kit’s Burrito Bar is located on West 4th Street in the city’s Kitsilano neighbourhood. It is the latest outpost of Tacofino, a Mexican restaurant that serves tacos and burritos in a Californian style.

      September took cues from the “natural features” of Tofino, a small beachside town on the coast of Vancouver Island to outfit the 2,000 square foot (185.8-square-metre) space.

      “The client had requested a fresh space that made reference to Tofino, the Canadian Surf town where the clients live and started the business,” the studio said.

      “To do this we focused on using the minimal amount of materials necessary to make reference to the natural features the area is known for.”

      Exposed electrical wiring is strung across the white ceilings and walls in patterns intended to mimic the shape of ocean waves. Streaks of green paint curve up the walls in similar shapes.
      A banquette constructed with pale green cedar slats wraps around the water tap to form a wall of seating. The sculptural paneling also hangs above the all-black service counter fronted with black rocks and is used at the check-in desk at the entrance.

      To accent the plain walls and the black furnishings the earthy colour is also used on the countertop, bathroom door and bathroom wall.

      Green and yellow Eames chairs fill Tacofino Ocho restaurant in Vancouver

      Each of the rectangular dining tables is topped with black and white beach stone terrazzo slabs designed in collaboration with a local artist. Black chairs with slender wire backs from Afteroom Studio are arranged around the tables.

      Asymmetrical menu boards with black text display the eatery’s offerings. In the bathroom, an irregular, oval-shaped mirror by local designer Kate Richard attaches to the vibrant green wall.
      “References to water and natural forms appear in the wall menu, ovoid mirrors, custom beach stone tabletops, and artwork,” the studio added.

      To brighten the dark restaurant, which is situated partially below grade, a series of bulbs attached to the round sockets fasten to the curving electrical conduit that meanders throughout the space.
      September is a residential and hospitality design firm led by Brendan Callander and Shiloh Sukkau.

      Before establishing the studio in 2019 Sukkau worked on the design for other Tacofino locations, including Tacofino Ocho furnished with Eames dining chairs and bar stools and Oasis, modelled after mid-century Mexican resort towns.
      Photography is by Vishal Marapon.

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      Renovated Montreal house by Atelier Barda contrasts black and white

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      Black furniture provides a stark contrast to the white interior of this Montreal residence, which has been overhauled by local architecture studio Atelier Barda.Atelier Barda’s Portland Residence project involved adding an extension to the rear of a historic stone house located in Montreal suburb Mount-Royal, and reconfiguring the floor plan to improve the flow between spaces.

      “This innovative redesign has freed the building’s spirit from its original constraints, giving it fresh expression in a setting that is both classic and resolutely contemporary,” the studio said.

      Architectural details like rounded walls and simple mouldings were preserved and then painted white to offer a contemporary update.
      The team then installed a box clad with black anthracite oak to span all three levels.

      The volume includes storage, a bathroom, kitchen appliances and a staircase, and forms a passageway between the main living space and the bedrooms.
      Its black hue stands out against the white backdrop and chevron-patterned oak parquet floor, defining the material palette throughout the interiors.

      Black steel mullions also frame the glass curtain wall of the extension, which the studio said it chose to protect the house from harsh climatic conditions.
      The windows wrap the kitchen, living and dining room, offering views of the garden and natural light.

      Atelier Barda renovates Montreal apartment with minimalist finishes and custom furniture

      In the living room, translucent white drapes cover the space’s large windows matching the colour of the walls. A circular, plush sofa from de Sede and a grand piano provide touches of black, while the fireplace is grey stone.
      Foraine par Atelier Barda, the firm’s design studio, designed a number of furnishings in the house.

      Many are built with solid black anthracite oak like the rectangular dining table and bench, which have wide legs detailed with thin grooves, and a circular coffee table.

      Smaller round tables for the bedrooms are wrapped in the oak panelling and fronted with drawers.
      The bedrooms and a private office are located on the upper levels of a house. A skylight is situated above the stairwell to bring natural light into the space.

      In the bathrooms, white vanities are finished with a lime and tadelakt plaster and topped with marble, which is used to cover the floors as well.

      Atelier Barda was founded by Antonio Di Bacco and Cécile Combelle, it has completed a number of renovations in Montreal including a loft apartment with black and white interiors and custom furniture and the conversion of a shop into a two-storey residence with pastel accents.
      Photography is by Alex Lesage.

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      Michael Godmer and Mathieu Turgeon renovate their Montreal design studio and home

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      Designers Michael Godmer and Mathieu Turgeon’s home in Montreal features contemporary Danish pieces alongside oak, terracotta and marble. Located in the city’s Plateau Mont-Royal neighbourhood, the Victorian-era brick home was renovated by the couple to accommodate a design studio and residence for them and their two poodles. Completed in 1885, the residence has a slender width of 3.1 […] More

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      Ménard Dworkind recreates 1970s New York pizza restaurant in Montreal

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      Thin ribbons of wood line the green ceilings and white pine wall panels in this Montreal pizza restaurant designed by local studio Ménard Dworkind. Vesta, located in Montreal’s Villeray neighbourhood, takes cues from the decor of New York pizzerias of the 1970s. Its funky colours, bold use of textures and use of vintage objects are […] More

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      Green and yellow Eames chairs fill Tacofino Ocho restaurant in Vancouver

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      This taco restaurant in Vancouver, designed by local studio September, is filled with fibreglass Eames chairs and curvy black tables. Located in the city’s Mount Pleasant neighbourhood, the Mexican eatery occupies a former factory building that Australian architect H H Simmonds completed in 1942. September designed the restaurant called Tacofino Ocho to riff off the […] More