38
The DL
Stuff
Reina^ portrait^ by^ RILEY^ STEWART;^ interior^ photos^ by^ SCOTTNORSWORTHYConfession: we’re coffee lovers. And this should go without
saying, but: we love design, too. So we’re launching a new
online series dedicated to both. Recently, we sat down
with Kfir Gluzberg, principal architect at Kilogram Studio,
a blossoming firm tucked into a Queen West laneway. We
talked, of all things, about cold-pressed juice. To date,
he’s devised 20 vibrant interiors for Greenhouse Juice
Co. (a Canadian brand) in remarkably fiddly locations: a
two-metre-wide laneway in Midtown, under an escalator at
Brookfield Place and, recently, in a sunless Union Station
corridor. Read more at DLM.AG/COFFEE-WITH-DESIGNERSOnce upon a time...in Etobicoke, the House of Lancaster,
a strip club, ruled the Queensway near Royal York Road.
Now, the joint has been demolished for a new mid-rise
condo, Reina. Behind the coup is Canada’s first all-female
development team. Led by Taya Cook (of Urban Capital)
and Sherry Larjani (Spotlight Development), together with
women designers from Quadrangle, Urban Strategies
and PMA Landscape Architects, these power players are
currently drafting a family-friendly residence with women
in mind. REINACONDOS.COMCoffee with Designers
We talk design and java (juice) with
Kilogram Studio’s Kfir GluzbergOnes to Watch
Room We Love
When Vanessa Fong met with her clients about renovating
their Summerhill Edwardian, the problems with the home
presented themselves to the architect right at the front
door. The foyer was cramped and dark, with very little room
to put on shoes, let alone welcome guests (the staircase,
baseboards, dropped bulkheads and a set of French doors
crowded the entry). And the kitchen – too tiny for a couple
that regularly entertains – was hemmed in by a living room
and a dining room that just didn’t flow. Storage...well, there
was none. The whole ground floor needed a rethink.
Fong took down three walls, and the open-concept
space now flows seamlessly from the foyer through the
kitchen, past a dining area and out to the backyard off the
living room. The staircase at the entrance was replaced and
reoriented, making
room for a civilized
gathering space at the
front door, with steps
going down and a
powder room tucked
neatly into a vestibule
under the staircase.
Wrapping this and
extending into the
kitchen is a perfect
cube of cabinetry
(built by Harvest
House Craftsmen)
featuring vertical slats
of white oak. Eight
metres long, the millwork conceals a pantry and cookware, all
while linking the foyer and kitchen to the dining room around
the corner. Problem solved. VF-A.COM