House & Home

“Wow!” is all I can say about the “Hello, Reno!” story in the April issue. This style is right up my alley: affordable and beautiful. It’s so great to see a renovation that uses retailers where people with average budgets actually shop. More of this in the future, please! —MARY STRONG, Dundas, Ont. I absolutely love your April cover story (“In the Mix”)! Audrée Kemp Bélanger did a fabulous job designing the space to feel open and light, yet interesting to the eye. I fell in love the moment I saw those wood beams. —SANDRA BLUE, Barrie, Ont. I was amazed to see Karine Vanasse on the cover of April’s House & Home! For us Québécois, she’s a local pride and joy. The house is beautiful, and I’m not sure if it was the…

“Photograph your room from all angles to choose your ‘money shot.’ Then, work on making that view fabulous! Sometimes, it just takes one dramatic gesture, like the floor-to-ceiling drapes in sapphire blue that I designed for this client’s room. Also, I can’t say enough about the importance of a fresh paint job to wake up a room.”—LYNDA REEVES“Always include one thing that makes you smile. In our house, it’s the cat door, which has cat ears at the front and a cute tail at the back.”—ALICE LAWLOR, Editorial Director“Don’t underestimate the importance of lighting; it makes a huge difference to a room. I often start with the light fixture, buy the best I can afford, and see how the rest falls into place. In my former Toronto living room, I…

Moroccan design is having a moment — and an enduring one at that. Consider The Boho Lab’s new outpost your passport to the look. Co-owners Sara Gheisari and Hamza Menebhi first met at The Rug Show in New York City in 2018 and, three years and many conversations later, decided to open a Toronto shop that brings together their shared appreciation for traditionally crafted textiles and accessories. (Hamza co-founded the first Boho Lab in Montreal in 2018.) To bring the feeling of a Moroccan marketplace to a bustling stretch of Dupont Street, the pair enlisted Julian Paulo Rodrigues of JPR Design. The main space displays a wide range of smaller items, while galleries at the back — one light and airy, the other with a black limewash treatment — are designed…

ATMOSPHERE YOU LIKE TO CREATE IN A HOME: Elevated, sophisticated, but still very welcoming. ITEM IN YOUR HOME THAT MOST REFLECTS WHO YOU ARE: My vast collection of handmade ceramics tells a story of my past and how I’ve evolved as a designer. CHOOSE ONE ROOM OR BUILDING IN THE WORLD TO REDECORATE: The Luxembourg Palace in Paris. The original design was a wonderful expression of French classical style; I would create a space that celebrated an unexpected juxtaposition of styles, rooted in history. IF YOU COULD BUY ONLY ONE MORE THING FOR YOUR HOME: The Maggiolina lounge chair by Zanotta. AN AUSTRALIAN CREATIVE CANADIANS SHOULD KNOW ABOUT: Sculptor, print-maker and photographer Alana Wilson. Her wonderfully tactile work questions the relationship between humans and their environments, often drawing upon biographical and anthropological sources. She’s…

“Light has the ability to dress and inhabit an environment,” says Anaïe Dufresne of the inspiration behind Jacques & Anna, the Montreal lighting studio she co-founded with her father. A recent collection features ceramic and Ductal concrete fixtures inspired by lighting from the nautical world, such as anchor lights, lighthouses and buoys. Its first brick-and-mortar store opened in the city’s design-centric Mile End neighbourhood in 2021, and serves as a space where Anaïe can put clients front and centre. “My vision is to bring warmth and magic into everyone’s home,” she says. Text by Rosemary Poole (Hot Take)/Joseph Cicerone (Canadian Made)/Photography by Corrie Bond (Hot Take, Claire’s portrait)/Anson Smart (Hot Take, living room, bedroom)/Félix Michaud (Canadian Made, sconces)/Alex Lesage (Canadian Made, fixtures)/courtesy of Zanotta (Hot Take, lounge chair)/Landscape design, Wyer &…

“We chose this neighbourhood because it’s a lively area with a close-knit community of independent boutiques,” says Canadian jewelry designer Melanie Auld, whose second retail location recently opened on Ossington Avenue in Toronto. Melanie is known for her refined, distinctly modern gold and silver pieces, so finding someone who could translate that aesthetic to the shop’s interior was key. Luckily, she knew where to look. “Montana Labelle’s work strikes the perfect balance between eye-catching details and beautifully executed architecture,” says Melanie. Montana’s team had also created travertine tables for Melanie’s home in Vancouver (the city where you’ll find the brand’s flagship location). In the Toronto store, Venetian plaster walls, richly patterned marble shelves and a central pill-shaped jewelry case in plaster and raw brass are the perfect backdrop for the…