Grove House, Toronto Interior, Ontario Real Estate, Canadian Architecture Photos

Grove House in Toronto

Jun 10, 2020

Grove House Toronto

Design: Joanne Myers Architect

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

The Grove House project began with a classic Toronto problem: A young couple outgrows their condo and needs a house. The couple bought a small home in Dufferin Grove, a leafy downtown enclave.

The design challenge was to take this house—low on natural light and divided into many small rooms—and transform it into a bright, modern space.

It would have been easy to ignore the neighbourhood character and turn this into a modern cube like any other. But despite its limitations, the facade had original character worth keeping. Beyond the front door, however, everything changed.

Highlights:
· A new extension at the back, designed around floor-to-ceiling windows.
· To bring in even more light, we designed a corner glass-to-glass window to anchor the ground floor.
· A restored front facade with a rebuilt porch and new cedar shakes. We also preserved the stained-glass window and front door.
· The back of the house was opened completely.
· A reconfigured and wholly new kitchen and living space.
· A reinvented the dining room with new, arched entrances and pocket doors.
· For even more natural light in what was formally a dark space, we designed skylights for the second storey hall.
· Redesigned the bedrooms and added a principal bedroom with an ensuite.
· A secret skylight warms the poured concrete principal bathroom.
· To keep the feel contemporary, we specified details such as recessed baseboards and glass guards.