Interior design: Making bigger better  

The designers at Stafford House Studio elevated the homeowner’s credenza by styling it with a pair of alabaster sconces, organic vases and a chandelier (not shown). Photo by Niamh Barry

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Large houses, like this 5,400-square-foot Burlington property with soaring ceilings and cavernous rooms belonging to a bachelor with two young sons, can be challenging to cosify. While ideal for milling with cocktails, such homes are hard to pull down to earth. 

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That’s where the right decorative elements come into play: artwork, furnishings and colours that feel grounding, inviting and still sophisticated, all of the vibes this homeowner wanted.  

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“The focus around health and wellness is also important for this family,” points out designer Sydni Hoffman.  

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Hoffman and her partner Nicole Bechbache (the pair runs Stafford House Studio) were recruited to work their magic after the design-build firm Brejnik Fine Homes had made substantial big-picture improvements to the home. (The Style Co. helped with styling.) 

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A ficus in an earthy vase and a quirky stone stool from Bettencourt Manor bring personality into the formal living room. Photo by Niamh Barry

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This included underpinning the lower level to accommodate an indoor basketball court, a golf simulator and sauna with a marble waterfall outside of it. A wine cellar for post-sweat tipples was also installed, and dark dated floors swapped for white oak throughout. 

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The first move by the designers was to neutralize the abode’s outmoded grey shell.  

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“We painted the entire house Creamy by Sherwin-Williams,” says Bechbache. “It’s a beautiful colour that warmed everything up.” 

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The paint, which has yellow undertones, “is on the trim, the doors, ceilings and walls,” says Bechbache. “It is softening — there are no visual breaks. People default to a bright, white ceiling but when you paint in the same tones, it’s elongating and enveloping.” 

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A concrete dining table from Restoration Hardware has an unfussy presence in the space. Photo by Niamh Barry 

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And, in her view, it draws attention to architectural flourishes such as the coffered ceiling in the living room and the curated ceiling light fixtures the designers chose throughout, one of them a three-pronged brass stunner from Etsy with shades that recall ostrich eggs. 

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The designers are especially proud of the formal living room that has little in common with the unwelcome space it once was. It came together by better using some of the homeowners’ own furniture. 

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A texturally rich sideboard, artwork and vase spruces up the wine cellar, which has Pietra marble and acrylic backlit shelves designed by Brejnik Fine Homes. Photo by Niamh Barry 

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“It’s a long and narrow room with a fireplace in the middle and two doorways,” says Bechbache. “It was a pass-through space.”  

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Previously, a sofa was plunked in the centre with two chairs flanking it and a coffee table and side tables. The vignette partially sat on a small rug.  

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“The wings [on either side of the room] felt totally sad and empty,” says Bechbache. “He loves to entertain and he wanted this room to feel like a parlour.” 

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As such, the duo layered in furnishings suitable for “casual hangouts with the kids” or drinks with adults, says Hoffman. 

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A sumptuous lounger offers a restful spot outside the sauna. Photo by Niamh Barry 

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A bespoke, vanilla-toned wool-nylon carpet (made by Allan Rug, over two weeks) fits narrow space, skirting perfectly around the fireplace’s hearth.