Cynthia and Luis are a couple based in Asia who travel back and forth to Vancouver to visit son Carlos and his family twice a year. We were asked to renovate this 2,700 square foot townhouse in Yaletown to accommodate the couple and their extended family who would come and visit during the Christmas and Summer months. We replaced all their laminate floors with hardwood and remodelled their kitchen, bathrooms, and bedroom closets. We also chose low-slung European furniture, modern art, and a neutral colour palette to give the house a decidedly West Coast flavour.

This 3-bed/2-bath condo in Olympic Village was designed for Leo, a high-flying creative professional and his equally busy wife Maria, an I.T. professional. Both needed a calm and peaceful space to unwind after running their separate businesses after a long and tiring day. The client requested that our design team create an contemporary and low-maintenance interior to suit their cosmopolitan lifestyle. We helped them acquire new artwork to complement their existing collection of Modern paintings and sculptures.

Before working with Cynthia and Luis, we had worked on their son Carlos and wife Theresa’s townhouse in Yaletown a few years earlier. Theresa had just moved from Manila and wanted us to create an interior that would help her get settled into her new life in Vancouver quickly. We mixed some fun contemporary pieces with some reliable mid-century classics, which made the house comfortable and pretty at the same time. The result is a home that looks and feels fresh and instantly makes you want to put up your shoes and relax.

This 2,000 sqft two-level penthouse condo in Richmond underwent a total renovation after Manila-based property developer Luis and Bing sold their large single-detached family home on Marine Drive in Vancouver’s West Side. They purchased a penthouse condo in Richmond that would serve as their local base whenever they were in town. The couple added a new bedroom and bathroom to accommodate this 4-person family. We were asked to create a contemporary and timeless look that would be easy to maintain given their busy and peripatetic lifestyle.

We had previously worked with Leo and Maria’s condo on their Olympic Village apartment, where they lived for a short time. After buying this 100-year old Craftsman Style home, the couple asked us to create a space that melded the house’s early 20th century aesthetic with their modern lifestyle. We decided to use Art Deco (with a bit of urban country thrown in) as this design style tends to work well with older homes and is suited to people who like a contemporary interior whilst having a traditional-style exterior. We used brand new Le Corbusier LC7 swivel chairs designed initially in 1928 (and recently used in one of the episodes of “Emily in Paris”). We suggested the couple keep their year 2000-made Michael Vanderbyl-designed couch (which is now a classic) instead of buying a new one. We did design their new dining table furniture from scratch. We created a beautiful patio setting where they can cook and entertain during the warm weather season. Finally, we needed to showcase their art collection – which had grown significantly – since we last worked together throughout the house.

For this particular space, my design team and I were inspired by Yves St. Laurent’s stylish home in Marrakesh. We decided to incorporate some the city’s Moorish influences with my client’s own mid-century aesthetic. One of the most distinctive features of North African design is the employment of interesting patterns on various surfaces. We used geometric designs on the cushions and area rug and highlighted our client’s Pakistani heritage by incorporating some images from his hometown of Lahore into the living room and bedroom wall art. This client also had a fondness for gold finishes which which we used extensively in the space to add some glam and sparkle to the space. This home is an excellent study of how to integrate different periods, decorating styles and shapes to create an elegant interior that stands the test of time.