This rug is a bit more vibrant than the one than use to reside here. However, I’m finding it really brings out the colours in the stained glass transom above our front door. I find myself delighting in its cheerfulness every time I walk down the stairs.

And here is a little before shot to remind you of what the hallway looked like with the other kilim rug.

A welcome change! Wouldn’t you agree?

Sara Wood, the owner and creative power behind Smock Cafe, started looking for a multifunctional space where parents and their children could unwind and connect with others after she found herself sitting on the floor of one too many gymnasiums with her own daughter. Together with graphic designer Courtney Wotherspoon and interior designer Sarah Keenleyside she set about to devise a space that would provide a meeting spot for parents, nutritious and seasonal food, crafts and activities for a wide age range of children and a place for regularly scheduled classes and camps.

Owner of Smock Cafe, Sara Wood.

Entrance to Smock Cafe (with beautiful encaustic tiles from Granada Tiles that Sara installed herself!)

Marble run wall and stowaway reading nook just for kids.

There is definitely a Do-It-Yourself aesthetic behind everything at Smock Cafe. Sara, Courtney, and Sarah threw themselves completely behind this project and did most of the work themselves from installing all the tile work (Sara), to making the Tom Dixon like black lights from Ikea bowls (Sarah), to creating craft boxes that you can do in the cafe or take home and try (Courtney). In addition, Sara’s father-in-law, put in 12 hour days  from the moment they  took possession to opening night.

Courtney Wotherspoon, Sarah Keenelyside and Sara Wood.

Matryoshka Doll craft box created by Courtney.

Vintage sink for washing up after crafts in the Wonder Workshop.

DIY craft boxes and tubes available for purchase.

Smock will be serving up delicious, homemade food that is seasonal, organic and local whenever possible. All of the baked goods will be made fresh daily and on the premises. The Wonder Workshop at the back of the space has a magical artist’s apothecary where children can purchase small items like feathers, pom poms, bark, ribbon, and buttons to make crafts on the spot. A facilitator will always be there to lend guidance and encouragement. In the lower room of the cafe, is a space for ongoing classes and summer camps as well as for special events and even children’s birthday parties.

The apothecary in the Wonder Workshop.

Fresh baked goods in the cafe.

Lower level room for classes and events.

This whimsical new cafe couldn’t have opened at a better time for me! Don’t be surprised if you find me there on a daily basis in the coming months. Congratulations to Sara, Courtney and Sarah and everyone behind Smock Cafe on their new venture. It’s clearly a labour of love!

For more information on Smock Cafe and Wonder Workshop and to register for classes head to their website or if you live in the neighbourhood drop in! They are officially open starting today.

287 Roncesvalles Avenue – info@smockcafe.com – 416-530-0888

{By the way, if you like those DIY Tom Dixon like pendant lights that Sarah invented come back in the next couple of weeks and I’ll fill you in on how she made them!}

All photographs by Sian Richards for The Marion House Book.

Dining area

Kitchen

Living Area

Hallway and staircase

Bathroom

Master Bedroom

Pretty amazing, right? A complete transformation and so much of it attained with a simple change of paint and a clear vision of what they wanted to succeed.

If you have any questions for Natalie or the homeowner, Kim, please ask away. I’m sure they would be happy to provide you with answers.

Enjoy the tour!

Names

Kim McGarrity and Morgan Maguire

Occupations

Tax Lawyer ,CEO of Investor-State Law Guide (ISLG)

Any kids or pets?

One cat. Her name is Raven, but we call her Kittums.

Year Home was Built

1981

How long have you lived in your home?

5 months

What’s your favorite room and why?

Our kitchen. It functions as well as it looks.

How did you find your home?

Our search began on August long weekend when our landlords at the time notified us that they were planning to sell the Yaletown condo we were renting. Four days later, we reengaged in a 3-way bidding war for the condo—which we lost. At the time, we were really disappointed; however, once we started looking at other places with our amazing realtor (and great friend), Ania Balicki, we quickly realized that we really wanted a townhouse that we could put our mark on. We found our townhouse in the Fairview/South Granville neighbourhood in September. While it needed some work, it had great elements: on a quiet tree-lined street; a 500 square foot rooftop deck; and just minutes from Granville Island, the seawall and downtown. After another nail-biting bidding war and due diligence period (we’re both lawyers after all!), the townhouse was ours!

Where do you get your inspiration from?

Kim: Throughout our house search, I collected images of different interiors that I loved (mostly from Remodelista, House & Home and of course, The Marion House Book). I’ve always loved simple, clean interiors, and Nordic design. We hired Natalie and Jeff Cutler of Cutler Design + Construction and Natalie came up with our “Scandinavian Modern” theme. For our kitchen in particular, I was really set on having white painted cabinets with honed black stone counters. I wanted it to be modern, but with nod to more traditional, country kitchens like Martha Stewart’s kitchen set in the 1990s.

How did you end up living in your neighbourhood?

We’ve always liked the Fairview/ South Granville neighbourhood, and have both lived here or very nearby in the past. At first we were hesitant to leave the downtown core, but once we moved in we felt right at home. We still get to enjoy the amenities and conveniences of living in the city, but we also get to enjoy the quiet and calm of living in an established residential neighbourhood.

What did your home look like when you first saw it?

It was in desperate need of an update from the blinds to bathrooms, to the awful stone fireplace. Every room was a different colour—mint green kitchen, mustard living room and a dark green bedroom. There were at least four types of flooring just on the first floor! The previous owner had renovated the kitchen and replaced the appliances. While the bones of the kitchen were great, it just wasn’t our taste.

What work have you done on it to make it your own?

Before we moved in, we hired Cutler Design + Construction to renovate the townhouse. The kitchen got a serious facelift: new countertops, backsplash and fantastic brass hardware; sprayed the cabinets; added a display shelf, etc. We gutted the main bathroom and replaced some of the fixtures in the powder room. We painted throughout and replaced the all flooring, doors and trim. The renovation went really smoothly thanks to Natalie and Jeff!

We purchased some furniture including the custom dining bench and some accent chairs from Craigslist. We’re still figuring out how to freshen up the chairs.

What would your dream house look like?

It would have an ocean view, a sauna and let in tons of light. Something between Suzanne Dimma’s cottage and the Fredensborg House by Norm Architects.

We really love clean, bright spaces. That said, Morgan loves a patterned textile, so our dream house would have to have one or two pieces from Svenskt Tenn, which we discovered on a recent trip to Stockholm.

Thanks Kim and Morgan for inviting us into your West Coast home. And thanks again to Natalie and Janis!

I’ll be back here later in the week with the before shots of this townhome and some insight into Natalie’s design process. You won’t believe what this space use to look like!

All photos Janis Nicolay.

I’ll be back here on Wednesday with a special Hello! Neighbor home tour from a brand new city. Stay tuned!

I’ve allowed myself to modify the following items: curtains, rug, bed linens, wall art, and accessories. I’m hoping these small changes will have a big impact on the space. Here’s the moodboard I’ve created to help me get there.

1. Linen Curtains – These are from Restoration Hardware but I’ll probably do custom made ones. They’ll actually be less expensive than these ready-mades.

2. Lillian Crib Sheeting and Pillows – I picked up the crib sheet  from this line when I returned one of the Duvet covers that I didn’t end up using for Henry’s room at Pottery Barn Kids. I like the quilted sham as well.

3. Dash and Albert Yacht Stripe Woven Rug – This will be the most expensive addition to the room ($284 for a 6 x 9 rug) but I also think it will have the most impact.

4.Wooden Elephant Toys – She’s going to need a few new toys of her own and I love this dark grey elephant!

5. Sheepskin – I admit that these are one of my go-to items for immediately changing a room. They add a lovely, soft texture and are perfect for babies to lie on. Plus, I already own an extra one!

6. Booties, shoes, dresses and hats – Baby clothes are so adorable they can easily double as room decoration. I’ll probably put a few of the really gorgeous items people have already passed along to me out on display.

7. Baskets – For dirty laundry and anything else you don’t want to look at. I love that this one has a lid.

8. Serena & Lily Sumba Stool - I remember when I was breast feeding Henry that it was nice to have something to put your feet up on while you were in the rocking chair. I think this woven grass stool would work nicely.

9. Inke Heiland Wallpaper Elephant – This will probably be my solution to the large holes that will be left in the wall once I remove the Ikea Lack shelf. And yes, I guess I have a bit of an elephant theme going on!

Do you think these changes will be enough to soften the room? Anything else you think might work? I’m hoping to finish off this room by next week!

I think with a couple minor variations I could make a big difference in the room. Let’s start with what is staying.

Obviously, I’m not changing anything that requires a lot of labour (removing wallpaper, repainting walls) or money (the furniture). What I am willing to update is the rug (this one is currently in Henry’s new room), the curtains (these are inexpensive window coverings from Ikea that don’t block the light), and the bed linens.

The other big change will come on the other side of the room where we have moved the credenza from our former dining room. Installed above the credenza is an Ikea Lack shelf that has never hung perpendicularly (I blame our not so flush plaster walls). It’s been a pet peeve of mine ever since it went up! I can’t wait to take it down and hang something else in its place.

I’ll be back tomorrow with my ideas of how to update the space quickly and inexpensively!

If I hadn’t given away all my money to the taxman earlier this week I might be sporting something like below. If I’m lucky I might be able to afford the espadrilles!

Have you started thinking about your summer wardrobe yet? What’s on your list?

It all started when I asked her to shoot her own home. I’ve known Kristin for a few years now and appreciated that she was a professional photographer before three boys under the age of seven put that pursuit on hold. Her home was only the third in the series and up until that point I had been shooting the homes myself (or asking my husband).

Kristin was excited to get behind the camera (as any mum who has been changing diapers incessantly can testify). She took the whole day to shoot her own house and loved every minute of it. When the time came to shoot the next month’s house she volunteered to shoot it and our partnership began.

Since that time we’ve photographed over 26 houses together. We’ve also seen our stories picked up by 2 for Couples Magazine and several of the homes we first featured here have ended up in major print publications like Per & Elana’s (Style at Home), Rachel & Paul’s (Today’s Parent) and Jana & John’s (Toronto Life).  None of that would have happened without Kristin!

This weekend Kristin had some shots in The Globe and Mail (pictured here). In fact, her shot made the cover of the Style section. She’s also just launched her own website built using 4ormat dedicated to her photography of interiors. If you’re looking for home inspiration than you will definitely want to check it out. It’s chock full of goodness!

For more on this kitchen and its owners, John Bell is the host of HGTV’s The World’s Greenest Homes and his wife Patsy is a stylist, check out The Globe and Mail story. The space features many green features you might be interested in learning more about.

For more details on where these materials are from and how you can apply them to your own home. Head over to the HGTV blog.

Have a happy weekend everyone!