design et al are delighted to announce that Douglas Design Studio have won the Residential £10 Million Plus (Project By Value) Award in The International Design and Architecture Awards 2017.
The Lakefront Family Home is a modern and glamorous space inspired by the expansive lakefront views.
This luxurious 17,000 square foot home is situated on the shores of expansive Lake Ontario, offering ever changing views and a peaceful refuge from the city that surrounds. The client desired a modern space that is not austere, resulting in a calm, airy and glamorous two-storey living room, while offering warmer more intimate spaces for family gatherings. Douglas Design Studio were challenged to create a balance between classical and modern elements throughout, using bespoke furnishing to achieve this.
The home has an open plan, so connectivity between spaces was important. Clean, strong architectural lines were introduced to define and connect spaces, and invite guests throughout. The main floor is designed for entertaining with a high two-storey living room, large kitchen with a dramatic two-storey breakfast room, an intimate dining space and comfy family room which then connects back to the kitchen.
Douglas Design Studio developed a fashion inspired palette featuring Dior grey that’s punctuated with jewel tones including amethyst, deep Yves St Laurent blues, and bright pinks. The goal was to create a fresh, relaxing yet richly detailed space, that’s contrasted with bronzes and dark stained woods in the dining and family rooms. Art and art placement was a major consideration in the overall scheme, carefully balancing the use of colour, texture, line and sculpture.
Bespoke furnishings reminiscent of the Deco era, selectively curated for a more modern aesthetic, are used throughout to lend glamour, comfort and elegance to the lofty space. Douglas Design Studio used their artisan skills to create horizontal panelled walls with a reveal, bespoke polished nickel grillwork and hood cover over the gas range, back painted glass panels inset into the kitchen cabinet doors and Bianca Carrara Extra marble master ensuite. There is an easy elegance and flow from space to space that is lightly modulated to give differing environments for different functions. The whole home can be used for casual entertaining, or easily be cosy for homemade wood-oven pizza and movie night.
The home is situated overlooking Lake Ontario and the home has incredible views of the water for as far as the eye can see. The interiors of the home were designed to draw in the blue colours from the view through expansive windows to incorporate them in the colour palette. The home feels like a vacation home even though it is right in the city. This was exactly what the client wanted, a calm retreat from the city, while still being close to city conveniences.