Bright and dynamic—an existing bungalow scaled up to serve a growing family in the Leaside neighbourhood

Designed for a young family of four that longed to stay in their neighbourhood, but needed more space for their growing family, the proposal added a second storey to an existing bungalow in Leaside. It was important to integrate the 2nd storey addition to create a cohesive home that was of its time and in keeping with the scale and proportion of the other homes in the neighbourhood. As is often the case in deep, narrow lots in Toronto, the home had ample natural light from the front and rear facades, but limited opportunity for light from either side lots, which abutted existing two-storey homes. The ground floor was left open for ease of flow between the more public living/dining areas and the rear kitchen and mudroom - visually interrupted by a textured brick chimney that connected the various levels from basement to the roof. A skylight adjacent to the chimney provides an opening for natural light to wash over the patterned brick and provide a sculptural effect that changes through the day and over the course of the year with the path of the sun.