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Collection by Luke Hopping

Take Me to Birch: 8 Houses that Make Use of Birch Wood

Affordable, durable birch wood makes an eye-catching addition to these homes.

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The outbuilding serves as a studio, a guest house, and a playroom. A Murphy bed sourced from Craigslist was customized with a birch surround to give it a built-in appearance.
The outbuilding serves as a studio, a guest house, and a playroom. A Murphy bed sourced from Craigslist was customized with a birch surround to give it a built-in appearance.
In the kitchen, the architects contrasted the oak floor, bamboo cabinetry, and birch walls and ceiling with what architect Jonathan Knowles calls “a family of grays”: granite floor tiles, limestone countertops, and the steel stairway. The birch wall behind Yvette is actually the sliding door to the pantry closet.
In the kitchen, the architects contrasted the oak floor, bamboo cabinetry, and birch walls and ceiling with what architect Jonathan Knowles calls “a family of grays”: granite floor tiles, limestone countertops, and the steel stairway. The birch wall behind Yvette is actually the sliding door to the pantry closet.
The cabinet doors of the living room wall unit, in birch veneer painted a calming gray, slide with silken ease but never fully close, leaving strategic gaps for the display of Jun’s eclectic array of books and objects.
The cabinet doors of the living room wall unit, in birch veneer painted a calming gray, slide with silken ease but never fully close, leaving strategic gaps for the display of Jun’s eclectic array of books and objects.
“We left the roof exactly as it was, with the old four-by-eight-foot modules,” Depardon explains, noting that the original panels, attached to the two-by-four frame, effectively held the house together. “It’s an unbelievably tight structural system, and we had to recreate it – we couldn’t just layer Sheetrock on it.” The architects also removed a wall, opening up the public space, and installed a long bench beneath the windows. “The area near the eaves is so low you’d have hit your head,” says Depardon. The bench serves as a cue to sit down.
“We left the roof exactly as it was, with the old four-by-eight-foot modules,” Depardon explains, noting that the original panels, attached to the two-by-four frame, effectively held the house together. “It’s an unbelievably tight structural system, and we had to recreate it – we couldn’t just layer Sheetrock on it.” The architects also removed a wall, opening up the public space, and installed a long bench beneath the windows. “The area near the eaves is so low you’d have hit your head,” says Depardon. The bench serves as a cue to sit down.
Custom birch millwork, fabricated by Toronto's Gibson Greenwood, defines a home office space on the second floor. Susan brought the yellow couch at right when she emigrated from Hungary in 1969.
Custom birch millwork, fabricated by Toronto's Gibson Greenwood, defines a home office space on the second floor. Susan brought the yellow couch at right when she emigrated from Hungary in 1969.
"Rather than trying to fit the furniture into the apartment, we decided to fit the apartment into the furniture," says architect Antoine Santiard. "However absurd this may seem, it immediately alleviated all the constraints linked to laying out tight spaces." The wool curtain dividing the space was made by a local company called Arpin. The custom track is by G-Rail.
"Rather than trying to fit the furniture into the apartment, we decided to fit the apartment into the furniture," says architect Antoine Santiard. "However absurd this may seem, it immediately alleviated all the constraints linked to laying out tight spaces." The wool curtain dividing the space was made by a local company called Arpin. The custom track is by G-Rail.
"We took a lot of time designing the cabinets," Baird says. "We wanted the refrigerator to be hidden, to have as many windows as possible with views to the garden and courtyard, and to have no upper cabinets." Baltic birch plywood cabinets are paired with white oak countertops. The combination speed oven, microwave, and convection oven is from Miele.
"We took a lot of time designing the cabinets," Baird says. "We wanted the refrigerator to be hidden, to have as many windows as possible with views to the garden and courtyard, and to have no upper cabinets." Baltic birch plywood cabinets are paired with white oak countertops. The combination speed oven, microwave, and convection oven is from Miele.