Our client originally hailed from New Zealand. One of their primary mandates was to create an environment that brought features of their native country into the mix. They also wanted to achieve this without making the house feel like it was deposited, out of context, from overseas.
They wanted a modern look: a simple clean, white palette upon which they could drop pure colour impacts.
This project was a renovation on an older box style house. The house had the entry on the lower level with all the bedrooms and the living areas on the second floor.
We worked with Peter Archer Architects for this Georgian Bay renovation to put a master bedroom addition on the back of the upper level and to keep the family room and some of the bedrooms on the lower level. This allowed us to create larger living spaces on the upper level, a large walk out deck with great views to the water and spaces that were accommodating to family visits when the tribe of grandchildren descended for the summer.
The sand dune hills provide a beautiful counterpoint to the contrasting black and white exterior.
The welcoming textures of the road side of the house make visitors comfortable. It also provided an easy way of finding the entrance.
The Interior
We chose the interior materials for their durability to extreme use, as well as resistance to wear. We designed this home for aesthetics and practicality. There are no carpets and all wood flooring is durable laminate that will withstand the rigors of grinding sand being tracked in.
Kitchen counters are natural quartz, a harder material than granite. This also provides a colouring which suits the palette.
Tile floors are porcelain, and are therefore easy to maintain and resists wear.
We created a white background with this approach. This allowed the client’s photographs and artwork to capture their love of water and Kiwi heritage.
