Home design: Living the ravine dream

National Post

a day ago

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Further back, the objective was to open the interior of the house completely to that wonderful view as much as possible, while maintaining a clear if less defined sense of division between areas. On both main and upper floors, windows and sliding doors dominate the rear elevation, and almost all the walls in the rear part of the main floor were blown out, the better to make the view a feature from every point.
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In the kitchen at the side, rift-sawn white oak cabinetry presents a clean profile that seems to complement the leafy scene beyond. Its rich honey colour is set off by a swath of perfectly veined quartz used as a backsplash inside the cooking zone and on the island counter. 'We must have looked at 100 different slabs before we chose that precise one,' Garrido says.
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The team turned a former bay window into a modest bump-out in the breakfast area, just deep enough to achieve the effect of making the occupants feel as if they're sitting in the woods, visible on three sides. A built-in banquette upholstered in hard-wearing blue fabric is tailor-made for little kids but sophisticated enough for grown-ups.
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The living room in the centre is brightened by another light fixture masquerading as art. Created by Sans Souci, a lighting company in the Czech Republic, its 86 translucent glass leaves suspended on wires from the ceiling were individually mounted by a specialty lighting installer.
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Both homeowner and architect wanted some separation between the dining room and the rest of the space without cutting it off completely. The solution was a massive, floor-to-ceiling slab of book-matched granite, open on either side and perforated by a double-faced fireplace. The addition of a standalone bar, given that the kitchen is some way away, saves steps and gives the dining room a sense of place. Comfortable bouclé chairs and another striking light fixture, this one of stylized flowering vines, add an informal but gracious feel.
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