Office

“When I have parties, there’s always something to get people talking.”—Kenneth Montague

Canada’s largest, privately owned contemporary art collections focusing on exploring African diasporic culture and contemporary Black life."

The kitchen takes on a gallery feel. “I’ve got art on the kitchen counter. I really want to say to people, ‘Don’t take art so seriously,’” says Montague.

Kids bathroom with Stars

Designtex mined the Charley Harper graphic archives with the help of designer and author Todd Oldham, who worked closely with Charley during his later years and is currently the steward of the Harper archive, to develop a line of contract-friendly textiles and wallcoverings. The collection launched in 2013.

A terracotta vanity expands across the full length of the bathroom.

Walls are covered in Fireclay tile in Navy Blue. The vanity has a custom concrete basin by Newbold Stone Architectural Concrete and steel base from Metal Works Austin. The custom steel shelf and steel-edged mirror are paired with a perforated pendant by Allied Maker.

Bright Designlab designed the custom vanity, fabricated by Maple Key. The wallpaper is by Portland studio Makelike, and the pink tap is Fantini.

This dark-blue 1907 home appears to be typical of the Victorian character that was evident in early 1900's residential architecture. Unbeknownst from the outside are the bright, light-filled interiors and modern interventions.

The majority of the house is clad in inky blue metal—a durable, low-maintenance material.

The home is elevated above a carport, which can also be used as a covered semi-outdoor living space in the summer.

A green wraparound fascia and staggered windows provide a quirky welcome and set the tone for The FUN House.

A section out of the central living pavilion was cut out to create an angled deck with a pergola. This angle allows the windows to be true north and creates an interesting feature.

With a new baby on the way and the soon-to-be grandmother moving in, Seattleites Ilga Paskovskis and Kyle Parmentier asked Best Practice Architecture to expand their detached garage into a 570-square-foot ADU, which they now call the Granny Pad. “We can see the joy it brings Grandma when the baby comes over to visit,” says Kyle. “It’s the best part of her day.”

“We definitely wanted to preserve the character of the home and make sure that it always fits the neighborhood,” says designer Jenny Bassett. To that end, the team kept the front façade intact, only repainting and adding new landscaping. The fireplace in the living room was also retained, so wood is stored in the front yard for easy access.

In leafy northwest Washington, D.C., a two-story addition expands a 1936 home without overwhelming it.

.There are 21 solar panels on the roof of the former cartshed (on the left).