Open Kitchen Living The Esplanade Toronto

The Esplanade

Toronto, Ontario

"Sometimes the shape of a room dictates the furniture and millwork layout."

In the case of our Esplanade project, the open living, kitchen and dining room had an unbelievable view of Toronto with the windows pointed toward a structural column. During design development, we were coming up with ways to check off the clients wants while making the most functional layout that emphasized the view.

The final result was to build a new kitchen island to match the upgraded Italian kitchen and have the countertop waterfall on 3 sides. We then designed a custom made dining table in a unique shard-like shape extending on a diagonal to emphasize the shape of the room and budding up right against the island. The design allows everyone at the dining table the luxury of enjoying an amazing view of Toronto while also having ample circulation space around the kitchen and balcony access.

Open Kitchen Living Downtown Toronto

"Sometimes the shape of a room dictates the furniture and millwork layout."

The furniture placement in the living room achieves the same result. Furniture is kept low and the boucle settee by the window allows the view to pass through. A fireplace feature wall in Lavastone acts as a subtle focal point to bring some warmth to the living room but does not compete with the number one contender – the view.

One bedroom was turned into a home office with custom bookshelves to feature our client’s love of reading. A dark grey on the walls allows this room to feel very cozy in the day and allows someone to marvel at the amazing cityscape at night. The client had an amazing antique Chinese curio cabinet that was open on both sides to continuously bring the cityscape inside. With a love of family and ancestry, we curated a collection of family photos going back generations opposite the marble base desk, making the perfect backdrop for video calls.

This custom bookshelf was also strategically designed with an opening of 66″ so that it can house a queen size mattress in the future with the bookshelf acting as a visual feature headboard should the client ever wish to sell.

The second bedroom colour was inspired by the antique Chinese chairs our client owned. We pulled the deep merlot colour and added a sofa bed for guests to maximize functionality.

The primary bedroom is more serene with a softer palette of pinks and lavender. A fluted upholstered wall paired with a wallpaper motif creates the headboard of a low platform bed frame. A vanity console table acts as both an end table and a functional space to apply makeup to start the day.

An empty open niche was turned into a more functional pantry for storage and pulls in the colours, materials and finishes throughout the home.

Purple, pink and grey were the main colours used throughout the space to strike a balance between feminine and masculine elements.

Our Client's Testimonial

Nothing but praise for Level Studio. Luca and Vinh were my first foray into hiring an 'interior designer' and they hit it out of the ballpark (and possibly left me with unrealistic expectations for future projects!).

Luca and Vinh were engaged to help me plan and design my new build condo in full. From the first introductory call, it was clear that they are a welcoming and knowledgeable pair. In terms of the project design - I had a general vision and some old family pieces I was keen to introduce to my new home. It isn't easy marrying old furniture with a contemporary style, but Luca and Vinh succeeded. They found a way to interpret my clumsily explained thoughts and very patiently met with me at meetings to walk through the vision for each room. It was a wonderful collaboration and such a pleasure to chat with them at each stage of the project. Their enthusiasm and eye for design is infectious. Not only does the condo look and feel like a home, but it is wildly functional. My condo followed an odd floor plan: Luca and Vinh were able to come up with a creative custom island/table configuration that maximized the space and layout, seating arrangements and views. It was a genius solution and I am so pleased with my home.

Luca and Vinh bring very complementary skills to the project and it is special having two minds thinking about your project (creatively and technically). They thoughtfully considered every element - from the size of the kitchen island to the positioning of the lighting arrangements. Every idea they brought forth had been carefully considered and they presented their reasoning behind each design element which I loved.

They are both terrific project managers and they have a wealth of experience on which they drew. There are special planning considerations for a new build and they walked me through and managed the process seamlessly. I appreciate how they were realistic and honest about timing and budget expectations - they delivered on time and on budget and there were no bad surprises along the way. The whole process probably took about six months but it - surprisingly - did not feel like it dragged at all. They optimized our timing to minimize any furniture shipping delay times. There was minimal interruption to my lifestyle.

Luca and Vinh's care and attention to detail is remarkable - it was white glove service the entire way. Moreover - they are wonderful and caring people who love their work. They have great relationships with their tradespeople and it shows. I recommend them wholeheartedly.
Amelia M
Condo Owner