For a new Georgian-style home in a quiet Toronto neighborhood known for its treelined streets, the team of Burdifilek — a design studio cofounded and led by Diego Burdi and Paul Filek — crafted an interior of exceptional warmth and restraint. Created for a client who is a textile designer by trade, it is a welcome respite from the bold colors and patterns that fill her days at the office. This family residence offers a harmonious interior enveloped in neutral tones and natural finishes.
This project consisted in being as reductive as possible by removing such standard fixed elements as baseboards, moulding and door handles. Various living spaces throughout the main level are divided not by doors but by ample thresholds that reach to the ceiling 12 feet above. Clean walls read more as stretched canvases designed to catch changes in light throughout the day and into the evening. Curtain rods have been tucked into wall pockets to keep the mechanical aspect of hanging sheers hidden from view.
Burdi describes his pared-back approach as creating an “interior skin” for each room. When surface changes do occur, they are expressed in a new way.The interior’s overall palette combines crisp white marble and textured neutral wallcoverings. These tone-on-tone ensembles are paired with hard surfaces in leathered Canadian black granite and vast amounts of European white oak. Nine custom-milled oak cupboards, each reaching floor to ceiling, occupy one wall in the great room, the largest and most used space in the home comprised of the main kitchen, a dining table that seats eight and a living area surrounding a blackened-steel hearth. A hidden bar creates a theatrical moment when two full-height doors open to reveal its dark Macassar ebony finishes, bronze fixtures and mohair velvet walls. In the formal dining room, a custom table in polished black stone is detailed with nickel edging along the legs. The tabletop’s reflective surface plays off a stunning silver chandelier designed by Vincenzo De Cotiis.
At the house’s core is a Thassos marble spiral staircase bathed in natural light from a pitched skylight and featuring a Burdifilek-designed blackened steel railing, which draws the eye to the second-floor landing to a three-dimensional art work by Dennis Lin.
On the upper level, two bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms occupy one side, while the main bedroom is located on the other and closed from view by double pocket doors. Beyond is a series of adjacent rooms that work in harmony with one another, from the study’s whitened oak built-ins and matching desk, which together express a sense of calm repose, to the cleanliness felt in the all-white marble bathroom. The sink vanity is positioned in front of two windows providing glimpses of the backyard trees. A few steps beyond is a him-and-her walk-in closet consisting of four consecutive rooms.
Furnishings throughout the house — a mix of curated pieces and custom designs — add a final layer of atmospheric continuity and comfort. The overall effect of the entire house is a luxurious and embracing sense of warmth and calm serenity.
Team:
Interior Design: Burdifilek
Architect & Builder: Wayne Swadron Studios
Stone Fabricator: Crystal Tile & marble Ltd. (throughout) and AST Stone Ltd. Powder room vanity only)
Millwork: Erik’s Cabinets Ltd. And Mar-tec Woodworking Ltd.
Lighting Consultant: Marcel Dion lighting Design
Photographer: Doublespace Photography
