Peter Fleming and Debbie Adams (husband and wife) have collaborated with Levitt Goodman Architects on designing their contemporary private house located on a street of historic working-class cottages in Toronto’s west end. Fleming, a furniture designer/craftsman and Debbie a graphic designer, have considerable talent to work on their modern house within a limited budget.
The private areas of the house are nestled into one corner, with the kitchen, dining and living rooms forming an “L” around them. These are bathed in sunlight and feature panoramic views of the gardens through over sized windows that were once the garage doors. The bedrooms and bathrooms are raised on a platform, creating domestic ceiling heights as well as much-needed storage underneath. A second storey was added with a large open studio space for work and musical jam sessions.
The garden is a successful mismatch of styles, including an outdoor dining room, a fountain plunge pool, a vegetable garden, a French-style orchard, as well as beds of native plants and grasses. Amid such dense planting, one can barely see the Goodwill donation trailer that sits in the supermarket parking lot just over the garden wall.
As a result of the fluid collaboration between the talented husband-wife and the creative architect, a modern house is built with extraordinary craftmanship and perfect originality. Via. Photography by Ben Rahn / A-Frame
