Annex House

Toronto, Ontario

Palmerston Boulevard is a well-known romantic residential street situated in Toronto’s downtown core. A young couple with two children approached Altius Architecture to redesign their semi-detached home while keeping the historic exterior. The dwelling contains three bathrooms and three bedrooms, and the clients were looking for an open-plan layout with integrated light, minimal and natural finishes.

Dining room and Entrance with CNC milled white oak wood screen

The interior of the 2,860 sq. ft. home is all white oak, with white and grey accents, maintaining a very clean Scandinavian style aesthetic. All millwork is custom designed to match the overall appearance. The main feature of the house is the three-panel lift and slide overlooking the rear garden from the main living space, which you can see upon entrance.

Master Bedroom with white oak framed ribbon windows and flooring

“While standing behind a holistic, collaborative approach to design, the Toronto-based architectural firm was able to bring a whole new level of flow to the interior.”

“A Toronto-Based Firm Breathes New Life Into a Victorian’s Interior”

– Dwell

Master ensuite bathroom with marble tile freestanding bathtub and frameless glass shower

Toronto Annex home with exposed brick party wall and white oak cabinetry

The house has ample daylight coming in through many large windows, with some original stained glass ones as well as new skylights. The ground floor was squared off with an addition to create more living space, and a third-floor dormer was also extended to make a large master suite. The master bedroom features a fireplace, 10 ft. ceilings, and a 4×4 skylight in the central space. There is plenty of concealed storage space along the walls.

“The owners are thrilled with the results.
Without expanding the footprint of the house,
they [Altius] opened it up and made it feel
larger, more fluid and much more efficient
(with the help of built-in cabinets everywhere)”

– Toronto Life