EPISODE 4: HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM! - RENOVATING MY TORONTO VICTORIAN HOME

Preparing to demo the middle half of the 2nd floor

RENOVATING MY TORONTO VICTORIAN HOME - EPISODE 4!

Following the completion of the work we did in the back half of the house, Adam and I were definitely riding an emotional high. We knew that even a seasoned contractor would have found the task we had decided to take on to be challenging and the fact that we figured it out ourselves only fuelled our fire to keep going. There was plenty of work still to be done but nothing could have prepared us for what was to come.

Proceeding to lay down a new sub floor on the back half of the second floor, Adam and I still had to demo the walls, ceiling and floors in the middle half of the second floor. Originally we had only planned to widen the staircase in this area but now that we had pulled the second floor into Phase 1 of our renovation, this area would occupy our new hallway that runs along side the stairs as well as our new master bathroom. In order to prepare for framing the new second floor layout though, we would first need to finish demoing this area.

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BEFORE AND AFTER PHOTO’S FROM OUR SECOND FLOOR DEMO!

Chaotic doesn’t even begin to describe how this next task went. Adam and I waded through rubble of lath and plaster, drywall, steel mesh and insulation for hours. The room was so thick with dust we could barely see more then 10 feet in front of us. Thankfully we were prepared with protective Tyvek suits, commercial grade respirators, and lots and lots of garbage bags. In order to avoid the dust from going to other parts of the house we had barricaded ourselves in by first covering the staircase opening with plastic before laying down planks of wood across it and covering it with plywood. There was no way in or out, and Adam and I had to keep going until all the work was done. Six hours, 80 garbage bags, and what felt like 10 pounds of sweat later, we were done. Despite wearing protective gear my legs were black and my face looked like I had a charcoal mask on. We were filthy and completely depleted!

Soheila hakimi - renovating a victorian home

What we didn’t anticipate to find was that the ceiling joists in this section of the house actually run the opposite way as the joists in the rest of the house. This came as a complete shock to us and totally added an unexpected challenge. Unsure of how this would change our plans to frame out a new layout, we knew we would have to have our residential structural engineer to come back in and take stock of our new findings.

STRUCTURAL ENGINEER

Since the very beginning, our structural engineer Ken Davis of K.H. Davis Engineering Consultants LTD has been nothing but amazing. Not only does he have great credentials and has worked on numerous Toronto century homes before, but he has been tremendously helpful with answering all our questions. Whenever a problem has arose during our home renovation that has caused concerns or a need to pivot, he’s been the first one we call and has always found a solution that works for our budget. If you’re even thinking about removing a load barring wall in your house, trust me when I say you’ll want someone like Ken on your team.

As we awaited news from Ken, we still had a lot of work to do. We still needed to finish widening the staircase and level the floors in the middle section of the second floor and we still needed to finish framing the first floor including build bulkheads for our incoming kitchen cabinets. Compared to the joist work we had previously done these tasks were a piece of cake and I actually quite enjoyed learning how to properly frame out a house.

HARDWOOD FLOORING IN TORONTO

Chestnut Flooring Showroom is located at 8601 Jane St, Concord, ON L4K 5N9 Tel: (905) 761-6655

Although our Toronto Victorian home renovation did see yet another unexpected delay, it also gave us time to go shopping for additional flooring for the second floor. Prior to starting our home renovation and my new home renovation series on YouTube, Adam and I talked extensively about what our dream house would look like. One design feature that I was obsessed with incorporating into our renovation was herringbone floors throughout the main floor. Only once we started to visit showrooms and look for a good suppliers did we stumble upon Chestnut Flooring in Vaughan.

Chestnut Flooring is a family-owned, full service, one-stop-shop for all your flooring needs. They offer a wide range of flooring products including hardwood, engineered, laminate, carpet, vinyl and even tile from both well-known domestic and international brands.

Since Adam and I were very happy with the white oak herringbone floors we previously bought from Chestnut Flooring a few months earlier, it was a no brainier for us to pay their showroom another visit now that we needed floors for the second floor. Within an hour we were in and out of the showroom, having found numerous suitable option and given the helpful advice we had received from the co-owner Sherry. I have never been one to make a design decision quickly and even shocked myself with how fast I was able to make a decision. I guess when you know, you know, and being in good hands with a great supplier gave me the comfort I needed to not have to think twice.

Chestnut Flooring has a wide selection of hardwood flooring, engineered flooring, laminate, carpet, vinyl and even tile from both well-known domestic and international brands.

UPDATES ON MY CAST IRON RADIATORS

Following the pickup of our cast iron Victorian radiators for refurbishment, I heard from Ironworks Radiators Inc that one of our radiators did not pass its pressure test. Unfortunately, the ornate Victorian column radiator that we had found hiding behind a clunky rad cover on the main floor was missing a leg and where that leg used to be, was a tiny hole. In order to repair the radiator they would have had to saw it into three pieces, remove that cast iron column where the hole was and solder the remaining two pieces back together. Although Ironworks has successfully done this repair before, there was no guarantee it would work for our Victorian radiators so Adam and I decided that the safest approach to this problem would be to buy an additional vintage cast iron radiator from Ironworks Radiators Inc stockyard.

Ironworks Radiators Inc Stockyard - Located at 367 Bering Ave Etobicoke, ON M8Z 3B1 - By Appointment Only!

Located on the boarder of Toronto and Etobicoke, Ironwork’s stockyard is full of vintage radiators waiting to be refurbished! The owner of Ironworks Jennifer, has been collecting radiators for years often going into old homes and removing all the ornate radiators before they are demolished. She’s always adding new and unique finds and her inventory is always changing which makes each visit fun to her stockyard a fun little treasure hunt. Once there, not only was I able to quickly make a decision about which vintage Victorian radiators I wanted to purchase for refurbishment, but I also got to see a model of the two new Castrad radiators I was planning to purchase for under the twin kitchen windows. I would also come to realize later how helpful browsing her showroom and shop was when it came time to selecting custom colours for all the cast iron radiators I was purchasing! A decision I struggled with for weeks!!

PHOTO’S FROM MY VISIT TO THE IRONWORKS STOCKYARD

Well there you have it, our renovation continues to move ahead now that we have heard back from Ken regarding the second floor. Turns out we will need to do some additional structural work to the second floor, but it’s nothing that Adam, his dad and I can’t handle ourselves. Stay tuned for more on this in the next episode!

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Home sweet Home! My smoke bush out front has grown out of control over the summer! I am looking forward to doing more landscaping and gardening next year!

If you don’t want to wait for the next episode to catch a glimpse of what is happening behind the scenes you can always follow me on Instagram where I share up-to-date stories of my interior design and renovation progress!

Thank you so much for joining me today and for checking out my new Toronto home renovation series on Youtube. I am super excited to be modernizing a Victorian home while still keeping the charm of an old Victorian house. If you have any questions about my Victorian house renovations, what it’s like to live in Little Portugal, Toronto or recommendations for Toronto contractors, hit me up in the comments below!

Before I sign off, I’d also like to say a big thank you to Chestnut Flooring and Ironworks Radiator Inc for partnering with us on this project. I’m so excited to be working with local industry experts on our Toronto home renovations but want to reiterate that, like always, all opinions remain my own.

Until next time,

- Soheila

A shot of the Toronto city skyline in the fall of 2022

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EPISODE 3: SWEAT EQUITY - RENOVATING MY TORONTO VICTORIAN HOME

Renovating my Toronto Victorian Home - 2nd floor demo selfie

RENOVATING MY TORONTO VICTORIAN HOME - EPISODE 3!

When Adam and I first started talking about renovating our Toronto Victorian home, we knew we had to split it up into two phases. Phase 1 would focus on fixing the structural issues and redoing the entire main floor, while Phase 2 would focus on re-configuring the layout of the second floor and enlarging the third floor by replacing the back half of the roof with a new dormer.

What we didn’t anticipate, was how bad the condition of the main floor ceiling joists were in the back half of the house. Half didn’t span the entire width of the room, big chunks were cut out of them, and many were being held together by other, smaller, pieces of wood. We were Shoooketh!

Many of the ceiling joist on the main floor did not span the full width of the house!

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Originally, we thought all we would have to do was sister each ceiling joist (to sister a joist you add an extra identical joist to the existing over-spanned, damaged or inadequate joist, and tie the two together with glue and screws (or nails) to add structural support – sounds super easy, right!?), but after the demo was completed and structural work commenced, it became obvious that there was way more work to do! For one thing, 80% of the ceiling joists needed to be replaced. In order to do that, we would need to demo whatever was above. And yes, I’m talking about the second floor!

our 2nd floor ktichen before our renovation

We had not anticipated needing to renovate the 2nd floor kitchen (above) or the 2nd floor bathroom (below)

At that time, that area of the second floor was occupied by our second floor kitchen, my little back office, and a small bathroom with a stand-up tub shower. If I’m being honest, I didn’t love the quality of the cabinetry and the ‘master bath’ left much to be desired, but we were willing to wait. True, we had no real bedrooms but we had our master and two small twin rooms on the third floor that were being used as his and her closets. The house definitely needed more bedrooms and a bathroom worthy enough to be considered a master, but still, we had a plan, two phases.

p.s. I had not taken any photos of the second floor prior to the demo, so this was all I could find. The kitchen photo is from our viewing, prior to buying the house!

I guess this is the part where I should tell you that we not only did we end up pulling the second floor into the first phase of our Toronto home renovation but we decided to do it ourselves! In episode 3 of my home renovation series I share the last two months of sweat equity Adam, his dad, and myself poured into fixing our Toronto Victorian home. In this episode, we tackle the demolition of the second floor, how we replaced each ceiling joist one by one, us installing a new levelled subfloor as well as everything that happened behind the scenes! The crucial question is, will our work pass inspection? Find out in Episode 3: Sweat Equity! Haha!

Adam and I are ready to start replacing ceiling joists!

PHOTO’S FROM OUR SECOND FLOOR DEMO!

While Adam and I were busy working on the house, a few things did happen behind the scene. For one, our appliances finally showed up along with our new natural oak herringbone floors from Chestnut Flooring.

Chestnut Flooring - Herringbone flooring companies in Toronto

Our order from Chestnut Flooring arrived! We ordered some beautiful natural oak herringbone floors for the main floor!

If anyone is in the market for flooring, I highly recommend visiting Chestnut Flooring’s showroom in Vaughan. They are a family-owned, full service (that’s right, they don’t just sell you the flooring, they will help you install it too!), one stop shop for all your flooring needs. They offer a wide range of flooring products including hardwood, engineered, laminate, carpet, vinyl and even tile from both well-known domestic and international brands.

When Adam and I first began to look for herringbone floors we visited numerous showrooms but none stood up to the quality and variety that Chestnut Flooring provided. Their engineered herringbone flooring was superior in both top layer thickness and durability which meant down the road, if we ever wanted to re-sand and re-finish the floors we could do it without issue. Of course they also offer solid hardwood floors however, given our Canadian climate, engineered hardwood flooring is better suited for herringbone oak floors. Since the core of engineered hardwood consists of 5 to 7 layers of plywood pressed together in a crisscrossed pattern, it is its construction that makes engineered hardwood flooring less likely to shift, expand or contract when exposed to environmental changes in temperature, moisture and humidity (and when it comes to specialty floors like herringbone and chevron you don’t want movement). Further, our installer who had worked with numerous types of flooring from numerous flooring companies in Toronto, independently suggested we visit their showroom and commented on how he preferred the quality of Chestnut’s flooring products over others he has worked with. So really, that sealed the deal for us! Of course, now that we are redoing the second floor we will be revisiting the Chestnut Flooring showroom to order additional flooring. Stay tuned for our selection!

OUR TORONTO HOME RENOVATIONS - BTS PHOTOS OF US REPLACING JOISTS BETWEEN THE MAIN AND SECOND FLOOR.

Additionally, Adam and I also pulled the trigger on getting two of our column radiators refurbished! Prior to the demo of the main floor, we discovered a beautiful ornate Victorian radiator in the main floor bedroom. It had been hidden behind a clunky rad cover, had not been maintained and desperately needed to be refurbished, but it was beautiful and I was ecstatic about its discovery!

Victorian Radiator repair - Ironworks pickup

Ironworks Radiator Inc picking up my Victorian radiator for refurbishment

Of course, since we were doing such a big renovation, the possibility of switching from cast iron radiators to forced air was an option but after learning more about the pros and cons of other types of central heating systems (particularly a forced air system) – like how they can collect dust and cause allergies, how the duct systems require regular cleaning, and that the furnace system serviced – central heating radiators just seemed like less yearly maintenance. Further, cast iron radiators are spectacular in moist climates such as Canada where we get tons of snow in the winter and rain in the spring. They are known for keeping basements bone dry during these months not to mention don’t require additional bulkheads like a forced air system. Lastly, they can be a beautiful showpiece (like a piece of jewellery for your home!) when refurbished and considering I am trying so hard to keep the charm of my Toronto Victorian home intact, it was an obvious choice.

In order to pass Toronto building code we would have to meet a certain BTU output, so enlisting the help of a heating experts at Ironworks Radiators Inc felt like the ideal next step.

CAST IRON RADIATOR REFERBISHMENT & REPAIR

Based in Toronto, Ironworks Radiator Inc. offers a multitude of services including consultation, radiator resizing, refurbishment (which includes custom repainting), is a supplier of radiator parts and accessories (including super fancy radiator bleeder keys), and offers pickup and delivery services. They also have a huge stockyard of rare vintage radiators to choose from and are licensed distributor for various new steel and cast iron radiator from international industry leading brands like Castrad.

Discovering Ironworks has been immensely beneficial for us. Not only were we interested in getting two column radiators refurbished, but we were in the market for an additional vintage radiators and two new custom modern radiators for under the twin windows in the kitchen. Jennifer at Ironworks was an invaluable help, organizing the pickup of our cast iron radiators for refurbishment (a rare service that many moving companies including piano moving companies won’t attempt because of how heavy they are!) and recommending new and vintage cast iron radiators to meet our BTU requirement, aesthetic and new main floor layout. She didn’t just recommend product though, she also provided a personalized consultation explaining the best course of action for the main floor given what we currently had to work with in other areas of the house. She really took the time to explain things to me as well, which I very much appreciated because I had a lot of questions! Central heating was a whole new world to me and I was on a mission to drill down and get all of the details. Our consultation of course ended with an invitation to come check out her stockyard. Inventory changes frequently in the Ironworks stockyard so who knows what rare Victorian radiator I will find when I go! I can tell you one thing for certain though, this is one treasure hunt I could not be more excited for! Stay tuned for more on this in the next episode!

If you don’t want to wait for the next episode to catch a glimpse of what is happening behind the scenes you can always follow me on Instagram where I share up-todate stories of my interior design and renovation progress!

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PHOTOS AFTER SISTERING AND REPLACING THE CEILING JOISTS IN OUR TORONTO VICTORIAN HOUSE

Thank you so much for joining me today and for checking out my new Toronto home renovation series on Youtube. I am super excited to be modernizing a Victorian home while still keeping the charm of an old Victorian house. If you have any questions about my Victorian house renovations, what it’s like to live in Little Portugal, Toronto or recommendations for Toronto contractors, hit me up in the comments below!

Before I sign off, I’d also like to say a big thank you to Chestnut Flooring and Ironworks Radiator Inc for partnering with us on this project. I’m so excited to be working with local industry experts on our Toronto home renovations but want to reiterate that, like always, all opinions remain my own.

Until next time,

- Soheila

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SPILLING TEA: ALL MY JUICY RENO PLANS & INSPO!

My Romanesque style Toronto Victorian home

It’s been almost six months since we moved into our Toronto Victorian Home and yet waking up and walking from one room to the next still feels so unreal sometimes. The spark we first felt when we initially toured the house is still very much alive and it all just goes to show that our crazy first time home buyer experience was worth the struggles. In the end, we found a beautiful house in a great neighborhood that we have been loving learning more about and exploring.

OUR CREEPY HIDDEN STAIRCASE

Being over 125 years old, our Romanesque style Victorian home does come with its fair share of quirks. For one, we discovered a creepy hidden staircase in a wall while planning out our main floor renovations! We suspect it was closed off to hide plumbing to the second floor bathroom and make room for a new staircase to the basement, but given it features the same high baseboards you see in other parts of the house, the staircase was likely part of the original house.

Additionally, when we bought the house we noticed that the floors sagged. This is a common characteristic of old houses usually equated to their age, but upon further inspection by our structural engineer, we began to suspect that load bearing walls in the basement had been removed by a previous owner at some point. Thankfully the foundation of the building is sound and our renovation plans will address this issue.

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One thing I am 1000% doing is preserving the historical charm of the house as much as possible. Both the entrance way and drawing room feature high baseboards and crown molding centered around exquisite Victorian ceiling medallions. I also love the original ornamental molding that can be found throughout the first floor that embellishes the doorways including the main entrance. Unfortunately, a lot of these decorative molding features have been removed from the second floor, so one thing I’m definitely including on my ‘to do’ list is custom mill work to incorporate it back in.

Speaking of ‘to do list’, the reason why I am sharing today’s post is not only to expand on my pre reno tour, kitchen appliance tips, and share interior design inspiration for my upcoming renovations but it’s also to introduce a new Youtube series I’m going to be filming, documenting our renovation journey! I feel like this house and first floor renovation is going to be an amazing opportunity to share about my love for design and create entertaining content to excite you. There no doubt will be challenges but it’s in those challenges that great stories are made so I hope you will join me on this journey.

Of course, by way of this blog post I also wanted to give you a sneak peak into all the beautiful inspiration I’ve been collecting, what we are planning, and why we called in a structural engineer to help us. SPOILER: it goes beyond sagging floors!

RENOVATING A VICTORIAN HOME

Given our budget after buying the house and the fact that it is currently split into two units, Adam and I decided the best way to approach our top to bottom renovation is to split each floor into phases. This way, we can continue to live in the house during the renovations while still having a working kitchen on the second floor.

As you have probably guessed by now, phase one of this project is going to include a complete first floor renovation. Structural changes to support this, including widening the staircases on both the main and lower floor, will also be taking place as well as reintroducing an entrance way from the front hallway into the drawing room and removing unoriginal walls to create an open concept layout towards the back of the house where you will find a new kitchen, powder room, and bar. The sun-room at the back of the house will eventually be demolished so as to reclaim more of the backyard and a larger door opening will be created to replace it allowing for maximum natural light.

I will be elaborating further about these design choices throughout this blog post as well as providing inspirational images to help you visualize what we are planning. So without further ado, let’s start with diving into each element our renovation plan starting with structural changes.

STRUCTURAL CHANGES

I knew prior to starting our first time home buying journey that I loved Victorian homes so while on our quest we visited many renovated Toronto Victorian homes. A common repeated feature we noticed was an open concept layout on the first floor which, when paired with high ceilings, not only made the house look bigger but grander! Since original walls only seem to exist at the front of our house, Adam and I had no hesitations when deciding to alter the main floor layout by removing walls to make room for a larger kitchen and overall entertaining space. We learned that making these layout changes would require additional steel beams to provide stability and prevent structural issues that could arise later in the other phases of our renovations.

Additionally, since we wanted to demolish the sunroom and reclaim more backyard space we saw this as an opportunity to install a larger opening for a new doorway leading to the backyard. Doing this would require a steal frame to be installed to support the brick wall at the back of the house.

Pre Reno Kitchen and Sun Room - Photo Cred Raffi Tutundijan @jaggedlens

CRITTALL STYLE DOORS

Originally, Adam and I were thinking of doing a large steel Crittall style doors as the back entrance door, however after pricing it out and seeing what the lead times would be to have one made big enough for the opening (it would have to be custom made) we got cold feet.

Living in a cold climate, steel Crittall doors aren’t known for being the most energy efficient door systems since they aren’t great at preventing heat from escaping or blocking the cold from coming in. The Toronto Building Code does have a minimum thermal break requirement for all external doors which is why aluminum doors or fiberglass doors are more common (they offer superior energy efficiency when compared to steel) as well as cheaper. Alas, we are still undecided which way we will go but here’s some inspiration of what we are thinking.

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Further, it wasn’t until we moved in and tried to get furniture to the second floor and basement that we realized how narrow our staircases are! When it comes to staircases, Toronto’s current building code requires staircases in new builds to be a minimum of 36 inch wide. Historically, staircases were never this wide and although our staircase is not original, the opening was never widened by a previous owner. Our staircase comes in at 27 inches making it extremely hard to fit assembled furniture upstairs. For the longest time Adam and I wracked out heads trying to figure out how the previous owners managed to get the kitchen appliances up to the second floor. It wasn’t until we finally measured the width of the doorway to the small front balcony off our master bedroom that we figured out they must have removed the door temporarily and craned them in through the small balcony! Crazy right!? One of the biggest and possibly most pivotal decisions we had to make when putting together our renovation plans was figuring out whether we were going to address our narrow stair issue, how it would impact the structure of the home, and how much widening and replacing both staircases would be.

WOOD STAIRCASE DESIGNS

After finally deciding to move forward with widening the staircases, Adam and I debated whether to go more modern or keep it classic with the new stairs. We both love the look of floating stairs but given how much traditional character the house has, we ended up going for a more traditional design. But I’m sure we will add a modern twist somehow.

Lastly, structural issues in the basement that caused the floors on the main level to sag needed to be addressed before we can lay down a new subfloor and install new floors. To do this it seems that a few new beams will have to go in on the lower level - especially at the front of the house - to ensure the new floors won’t buckle a few years down the road. Installing these new beams will be also help us address the issues on unsupported over-spanned joists that we believe were caused by the removal of a load bearing wall in the basement by a previous owner.

Speaking of floors, I’ve been obsessed with mosaic and herringbone floors for years! Prior to buying a house, I told Adam that I hope whatever we ended up with needed new floors so I would have an built in excuse. During our viewings we saw a few Toronto Victorian's with mosaic and inlaid floors that only continued to fuel my obsession.


CURRENT FLOORING

Currently, the main floor has three different types of flooring going on, one of which does look original. However, it’s only a small section at the back and they aren’t in the greatest shape. If there was more of it and it was in better shape I may reconsider redoing the floors, but in our case this is one ‘out with the old in with the new’ sacrifice I’m willing to make. Traditionally herringbone floors were made of oak and these days you can get them in engineered oak in many different sizes and colours. Narrowing it down to a size was exceptionally hard given the size of the space. Too large and you don’t notice them, but too small and it’s all you notice. It needs to be balanced! In the end we went with a 90 mm natural oak herringbone colour which I am so excited about. It’s going to add warmth back into the space and match beautifully with what we have planned for the kitchen. I can’t wait!

HERRINGBONE FLOOR INSPO

I’ve shared a little bit about the kitchen appliances we ordered a few months back but when it comes to designing my dream kitchen you can bet it won’t be all white! In order to ensure flawless execution for this part of the project, I brought in the big guns, Domani Design Group. Not only does Domani distribute luxury European brands like Pedini but they also specialize in custom cabinetry for both kitchens and bathrooms as well as custom millwork! Just what I needed!

To us, the kitchen is truly the heart of the house and both Adam and I love to cook and entertain. With 10 foot ceilings and an open concept layout, I wanted the kitchen to feel airy but still anchoring, warm and full of natural light. Currently we have two big beautiful windows in our hallway that we plan to position the island between. For cabinetry we are keeping it simple, timeless, and classic but modern with a shaker style kitchen in a dark French navy to match our La Cornue range in the same colour with brass accents. The La Cornue range is going to be the centrepiece so I wanted cabinetry to compliment it, but not compete.

SHAKER STYLE KITCHEN INSPO

A warm porcelain countertop in a Calacatta with brown-gold warms up the space and plays on the natural oak herringbone floors. Floating shelves in a cool natural wood surround a simple and understated range hood which extends all the way to the ceiling to accentuate the height of the room. Bar seating will surround the kitchen island sink. I have even gone so far as to start to think how I will organize the kitchen and have submitted special millwork request to Oscar at Domani including a pull out spice rack and cabinet pull out drawers for my small appliances! I’m so excited!


KITCHEN STORAGE & ORGANIZATION IDEAS

I obviously don’t expect this renovation to go smoothly. I’m actually banking that it’s not so that I have some great stories to come back and share, but I am super excited for all that is to come. I’m also super excited to document and create my Youtube series around it so you guys can get a sense of the process too! If you aren’t following me already make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow me on Instagram for updates on this phase 1 renovation and more design projects I have in mind!

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renovting my toronto victorian home
renovting my toronto victorian home - romanesque victorian
renovating my Toronto victorian home

10 INTERIOR DESIGN TRENDS I AM LOVING!

My ‘marshmallow couches’ and new swivel chairs in the living room of my new Toronto Vicotiran house!

My ‘marshmallow couches’ and new swivel chairs in the living room of my new Toronto Vicotiran house!

INTERIOR DESIGN TRENDS FOR 2021 AND 2022

With renovations soon to begin on my new Toronto Victorian home, I have been finding myself feeling a new sense of purpose and passion for interior design. What once was a collection of ‘wouldn’t it be nice’s’ and ‘maybe one day’s’ is now inspiration on my ‘First Floor Renovation’ Pinterest board and things just hit different. ‘Pinning’ is ‘planing’ and 2022 interior design trend reports, home decor colour trend boards and industry highlights are definitely what I have been gravitating to. For those who don’t find that stuff as sexy though, here’s a summery of what I learned and what I’m loving.

From the rise of Japandi (Scandinavian functionality meets Japanese minimalism) to the fall of grey kitchens, 2021 and 2022 interior design trends seem to show a shift in how people are moving through life and feeling about their spaces. Now that they are forced to stay home, comforts and cozy atmospheres are a must as well as a need to incorporation more sustainable elements and natural materials into the home. If we can’t go out, we want to bring the outside world in and create beautiful spaces to enjoy while doing so. An emphasis on functionality has taken centre stage as we declutter our spaces and focus on having a few statement pieces rather than an abundance of décor and furniture. When it comes to paint, neutral and grounding colours are also being favoured over vibrant jewel tones and powerful patterns, but nothing has stolen my heart more than these 10 interior design trends for 2021 & 2022:

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mirror trends.PNG

Round and Irregular Shaped Mirrors - A useful tool when it comes to interior design, mirrors can help make a room feel larger, reflect light, or even add a splash of glamour to an otherwise stagnant space. Of course, hanging a few mirrors in a home is definitely a must, but one 2021 interior design trend that I am absolutely loving is the use of round and irregular shaped mirrors to unify a room or add a statement. One such mirror that I am currently coveting from Ferm Living is called ‘The Pond’. In some ways it reminds me of Salvador Dali’s melted clock because of it’s similar ‘melted’ characteristics. I especially love to see round and irregular mirrors used as a way to add juxtaposition to a room that otherwise would have a lot of sharp edges like a dining room or a tiled bathroom. Further, irregular or round mirrors perform the double duty of being a design element that is both functional and eye catching while still reflecting light around the room.

Crittall Doors, Windows and Partitions - Not only are they edgy and versatile, but Crittall frames are incredibly eye catching and work well with all types of aesthetics including industrial, mid-century or Scandinavian interiors. Characterized by the grid-like frames and modern lines, the use of Crittall allows both light and space to feel abundant while creating zoned areas within it. Although traditionally used for doors and windows, lately I have seen Crittal also being used to create walls around at-home office space, as doors to pantries, as shower screens and even as partition between rooms. It’s definitely something I’ve been pinning a lot and can guarantee it will be showing up in my new home.

Moody and Dark Kitchen Cabinets - A white kitchens may be timeless but nothing can do ‘sleek and striking’ better than dark kitchen cabinetry. The industry has seen a strong gravitational pull towards dark cabinet kitchens when previous overlooked as purely an 'accent' colour. Black walls, cabinetry and work surfaces are having something of a moment as dark grounding colours feel liveable, luxe and inviting. Mix in some floating shelves made of textured woods and the spaces now feels warm, rustic and inviting. Earthy tones such as terracotta and sand continue to be popular as we aim to create natural, grounding environments to help us truly disconnect from our busy lives. Same holds true for appliances. Back Stainless Steel appliances are now being offered by brands like Bosch, LG, KitchenAid, and Samsung. I myself, feel its gravitation pull and recently purchased a La Cornue stove for my new kitchen in a dramatic dark navy with brass knobs! It’s going to look SO YUM, I can’t wait!

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PHOTO CREDIT: @oldstockantiques

PHOTO CREDIT: @oldstockantiques

Natural Elements - Bringing nature in doesn’t have to be as literal as filling your place with a million new plant babies. Instead, switching furnishings out in favour of those that incorporate more natural fibres such as rattan, wicker, cane, and wood are a great place to start! Fabrics such as wool, linen and cotton are also being used to add texture to a room along with terracotta vases, dried flowers, marble coffee tables, and wicker baskets. These all add warmth to a room while creating an atmosphere that feels organic, relaxed, and calming. 

Accent Lighting - Lighting doesn’t just need to be functional, it needs to make a statement and much of the inspiration I have been pinning these days for the living room in my Victorian house include a beautiful chandeliers. Emphasis on luxurious lighting offers a great opportunity to draw the eye upwards accentuating high ceilings in a house like mine. If you don’t have high ceilings, no worries, you should still think of lighting as a form of jewelry. Make sure to choose something that provides some sort of opulent grandeur without overwhelming the entire look of the room.

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Blush In Bedrooms and Bathrooms - Although not a new colour, earthy pinks are super popular when it comes to 2022 interior color trends and textiles. Perhaps it’s because they mix so well with earthy pigments such as terracotta and sand or natural materials like rattan and woven jute, but I have been very attracted to a rose pink palette when it comes to master bedrooms and powder rooms. There is something so subtle, sophisticated and delicate about it that it evokes feels of relaxed romance for me. I will definitely be incorporating this colour into my home after renovations are complete and am already banking a ton of inspiration for my master bedroom in this colour.

Marshmallow Couches - Definitely not an industry term but instead 100% something I just made up, marshmallow couches and/or curved and shapely furniture have been gracing the IG pages of so many of my favourite home decor accounts for the past few years. Of course striking lighting can make a statement but nothing makes a living room more welcoming than an enticing sofa. Curved couches invite your gaze to dance across a room and nubby textile like bouclé appeal to the touch drawing you further in. I have already began to embrace this 2021 living room decor trend and have procured two couches in this ultra comfy style. I also found two swivel chairs that I plan to reupholstered in bouclé to help me create the dreamiest living room setup!

Rattan, Cane & Wicker - Two things I have been swooning over for what feels like an eternity is rattan, cane and wicker! Although woven furniture styles have been gaining popularity in the last few years, they have always had a place in my heart. Growing up there was a lot of rattan and cane in my home and to me, it feels nostalgic. Natural materials like rattan and wicker add warmth and lightness to home decor while adding texture and natural elements. Both weaves are lightweight and versatile with the ability to work in every room of your home as well as outside! Think rattan garden furniture or cane dining chairs! I will definitely be incorporating a lot of this kind of furniture into my new home as I already have a few DIY’s planned and my eye on a few pieces!

Dramatic Flooring - One things Adam and I are super excited about updating in our new Victorian home are the floors. Currently we have four different kinds of flooring on just our first floor and in order to make the room feel more cohesive, we knew changing the floor was going to be a priority. I have always loved Parisian apartments and Scandinavian interiors which is why we are opting for herringbone flooring. If you’re renting or looking for a lower commitment solution, another way to jazz up your floors is to add a dramatic carpet, animal hide or animal-printed rug to your space.

Swoon-Worthy Ceilings - Accent walls have been around for a while but swoon worthy ceilings are gaining popularity especially if dramatic flooring is not in the budget. Instead of adding wallpaper to one wall, more and more people are opting in for neutrality on their wall and instead using easy stick wallpapers on their ceiling for added flair. I know when Adam and I were house hunting we came across a few Toronto Victorian homes with tin kitchen ceilings and I couldn’t help but fall head over heels in love with them. Thankfully swoon worthy ceilings are in vogue once again and I look forward to incorporating this trend into my home in some aspect.

CREDIT: Peter Salerno, Wyckoff kitchen & bath designers, NJ. Stratta tile design. Rangecraft hood. Peter Rymwid photo

CREDIT: Peter Salerno, Wyckoff kitchen & bath designers, NJ. Stratta tile design. Rangecraft hood. Peter Rymwid photo

So there you have it! Ten 2021 & 2022 interior design trends that I am currently loving. If you are curious to see how my first floor renovations turn out I invite you to follow along. I am planning to post a lot more video’s documenting the process on my Instagram and YouTube channel as well as write a lot more blog posts like this one, so feel free to subscribe! If you think this list is missing big trends or you are obsessed with anything I shared above, feel free to let me know in the comments below!

Until next time!

- Soheila

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2022 interior design trends
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