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Furniture designer Tom Deacon teamed up with pal and architect Andrew Jones to renovate his Toronto townhouse. “Architects tend to think of the building first, the interiors second, and last, the furniture. Our approach was the opposite,” Jones says.

Husband-and-wife founders of Calico Wallpaper Rachel and Nick Cope show how easy it can be to put a personal, design-led touch on loft living—even when it’s a rental. When the Copes rented a Red Hook loft in an industrial 1860s warehouse, the couple turned their rental into a testing ground for their marbleized wallpaper business and installed wallpaper in each of their rooms. The custom pieces take inspiration from the loft’s immediate surroundings and characteristics—from the silver-and-gold marbled mural that complements the loft’s exposed structural beams to a color-gradient wallpaper in the primary bedroom that takes cues from the sunset seen from Red Hook.

In the open living/kitchen/dining area, the containers’ original apitong wood flooring, heavily sanded and sealed multiple times, complements the industrial austerity of the painted corrugated steel ceilings. The rug is vintage.

“We sculpted the lawn, so it became layered, almost like an amphitheater,” says Wyllie, who salvaged stones from the site to create steps down to the yard.

Sphinx, the family Carolina dog, scouts the perimeter of the Concrete Collaborative pavers in the backyard. The pavers were installed on a slight angle to channel water to the surrounding gravel, lawn, and planting beds. This substantially lowers the landscape's water demand. Perforated PVC pipes and a pump move excess rainfall (which would otherwise go to storm drains) into an underground basin where it can later drain off. Redwood fencing reflects the material palette of the interior and creates visual continuity around the backyard.

The wall of the master bathroom is tiled with Ming Green Marble Fan Tiles from Tera Nova, paired with tumbled limestone floor tiles from Tera Nova. A Michael Anastassiades Flos pendant light from Living Edge brightens the space. The bespoke vanity was designed by Carter Williamson and built by House by Hart Joinery. "Again, we used timber half-dowels to tie the look in with the kitchen," says Peake.

"My wish for the bathroom was for it to feel like walking along a creek through the Tasmanian wilderness,

An energy-efficient TPO membrane covers the living room’s zigzag roof.

"I often choose finishes that allow the natural texture to show through, and finishes that emphasize the cathedrals and burls of the graining,

Two sconces, Steven Handelman Studios Iron Wall Lights, flank original photography by Bess Friday. The design team furred out foundation walls in key places – such as behind the couch here – to create functional ledges, and straighten sloping walls.

Greenery views and vast amounts of light stream through two sets of large windows.

Just outside the apartment is a circular courtyard area. Lekien moved the kitchen from the rear of the apartment to the front so that it runs along the curved wall and connects to the outdoors.