Love It Or List It Vancouver: Stephanie & Stephen

Stephanie & Stephen had a generous sized home in a lush green neighbourhood of North Vancouver but they couldn’t see the forest for the trees as the house was so divided. With an awkward kitchen in the middle of the house, separate from the dining room at the back with tiny windows  – no one could enjoy the spaces or the scenery.

We immediately remedied the inaccessibility to the view by putting in as large a window as structure would support! We moved the kitchen to this prominent location, allowing for both a larger kitchen as well as one open to the dining and living rooms by opening up a couple walls.

Merit Kitchens provided us with a generous-sized L-shaped kitchen with pantry surrounding the fridge, and island and bar cabinets for entertaining. In two colours, white and a dusty grey-brown, this kitchen is fully-functional as well as elegant.

Shilo Living provided a custom made live-edge countertop which really brings the outside in and warms the space up. This 100-year-old piece of fir will grow with the family for years to come.

World Mosiac Tile – a constant supporter of Love it design – once again supplied us with stunning tile for the kitchen backsplash. A lovely modern porcelain tile that comes in a mix of 5 slightly different patterns, it reflects the traditional/modern bent we gave the design.

In an effort to update the spaces, we selected lighting fixtures that had both traditional and contemporary lines – we looked to Pine Lighting, which offers a wide selection of lighting fixtures for home or business – to get us just the right fixtures for this family home. The dining room fixtures is both classical in that it’s a chandelier shape but a little edgier with its bear bulbs and black accents.

The bathroom – a strangely long and narrow shaped room – provided us with a bit of a layout challenge: we wanted to get a 5 piece bathroom in this space but soon found it to be impossible due to how narrow it was! We opted for a double vanity, again provided by Merit Kitchens over a separate tub and shower and enough circulation space to allow for a couple people in there at once. Circulation space is as much a part of functionality as the number of fixtures is.

The salt and pepper marble penny round tile – again supplied by World Mosaic Tile  – gives this bathroom some fun as well as style. Merit Kitchens double vanity provides the family with ample storage as well as dedicated sink space – crucial to a family of 4!

With a functional bathroom and the main floor opened up to reveal the green view right from the moment you walk in the door, this home now lives up to its location.

A big thank you as always to Janis Nicolay for the gorgeous photos!!

Visit the W Network for more on this Love It Or List It Vancouver episode! To watch the full episode, click here and for more before and after photos, as well as a full resource list please click here!!!

Francesca Albertazzi