Next. Level. Living. The city s best new homes, condos & all the modern stuff you need. Furniture Showrooms 292 & Decor Shops ISSUE ISSUE 3, 2016

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1 ISSUE 3, 2016 Next Living Level The city s best new homes, condos & all the modern stuff you need Anniversary ISSUE $5.95 Furniture Showrooms 292 & Decor Shops

2 Orange Crush Why we ve fallen for Superkül s zippy new townhouses on Harbord Street By Iris Benaroia Photos by Naomi Finlay and Ben Rahn 62 designlinesmagazine.com

3 Grey and white brick and orange finishes make Superkül s design hard to miss. To reduce waste and save time, the project was built on-site using prefabricated frames. photo of exterior by ben rahn/a-frame 63

4 Large Alumilex windows and doors bookend the open-concept main floor. Kitchen by Scavolini. The lightly veined island and backsplash are Statuario Nuvo by Caesarstone. Stools from Morba; candles from Medulla & Co. Furniture in the dining room with north-facing balcony is from Rove Concepts (Vancouver). Kate Makinson, a PR professional, never thought she would live in a townhouse. It feels a tad pedestrian for a woman whose spirit animal is Stevie Nicks and who can rock a pair of ripped jeans and a gypsy blouse like nobody s business. When I think townhouse, Makinson says, I think cookie cutter. But this is an urban take on the traditional town. Designed by architectural studio Superkül for developer Oben Flats, Makinson s 186-square-metre home is one of six units that make up Harbord Towns. While the lot is compact at 4.85 metres wide and metres deep, the building s small scale feels appropriate next to its fellow duplexes. Located on the site of a former gas station, it s best viewed from across the street to take in Superkül s adventurous vision. The playful facade sees Tetris-like black-and-white brick, as well as zippy orange doors, window frames and aluminum channels. Superkül co-principal Andre D Elia describes the scheme as a graphic expression. D Elia delineated the units with a flashy flourish because the building is a modest size and is flat out front. We didn t have the luxury of doing projections because the building is tight to the front property line, so we did it through materials, he says. Effectively, Harbord Towns reads as one neat contemporary structure, as opposed to a mess of doorways and exterior staircases. Earlier this year, the project won the Design Excellence award from the Ontario Association of Architects (OAA). OAA president Toon Dreessen was impressed. Harbord Towns is joyful, lively and exuberant, he says. The challenge in housing typology is creating something unique on an infill site. 64 designlinesmagazine.com

5 2 1 5 In the southfacing living room is a West Elm rug, table from Phil z, art by Maxime Stein, throw from Medulla & Co Clad in smoked oak (by Weston) like the floors, the staircase s deep reveals add drama to all three storeys MAIN FLOOR SECOND FLOOR THIRD FLOOR Balcony Dining room Kitchen Living room 5 6 Guest room Guest bath En suite Walk-in closet Master bedroom Balcony 65

6 On the third floor, a skylight-lit Scavolini en suite fits a double sink, a skirted tub, shower and water closet. Toiletries from Art 27; porcelain from Stone Tile. A cedar patio off the master has far-reaching views. Wallpaper by Drop it Modern; pillow and lamp from Stylegarage; throw from Art 27. Makinson s four-level home is a lovely example. Its ground-floor anteroom offers a teasing sense of compression that expands in a burst of light and height as you climb to the three-metre-tall living room and kitchen on the main floor. At only four metres wide, it feels tremendously spacious and the finishes are premium: rich oak floors, solid wood doors and knobs, quartz countertops and oversized Alumilex windows. The large tilt-and-turn windows work with the terraces off the kitchen and upstairs in the master suite to connect inside with the outdoors. Still, like most people Makinson hangs out on the main floor. I spend most of my time here, she says, padding barefoot from the kitchen (Scavolini, like the bathrooms) to the sculptural staircase. I love the cutouts on the handrail. Fashioned from grainyflecked oak panels that bring warmth and weightiness to the space (the conventional choice would have been glass), the staircase is an artistic feature in its own right. It feels cozy, even if it s on four floors, says Makinson, who admits the unit offers a ton of space for a single person (two guest bedrooms and a bath occupy the second storey). The bedroom is my sanctuary, she says of the master suite on the third floor. It feels like a tree fort. Rooftops and backyards spill out in the distance and the mood is mostly restful invigorating is the perky black-and-white print on the wallpaper and a large photograph of Bruce Springsteen s sweaty, muscled form. Bruce and Stevie show up a lot here, Makinson quips of her home that obviously has a grown-up gravitas, but still speaks to this wild child at heart. OBENFLATS.COM, SUPERKUL.CA 66