How a family transformed their dated Woodbridge townhouse into a moody delight

The Place

A four-storey, 1,900-square-foot, three-bedroom, three-bathroom townhouse in Woodbridge.

The History

In 2021, a father and his two children were downsizing from an estate home in Uxbridge to this townhouse in Woodbridge. The kids, who both played competitive hockey, needed to be closer to their home arena and private school. But, during the purchase, the family found their new home dark and dated and knew that a proper renovation would be in order. So they hired Kristi Bullock, an interior designer at Emerald Brooke Interiors, to get to work.

The property would undergo a six-figure full gutting—including new floors and a new kitchen as well as updated bathrooms and bedrooms with custom built-ins. Throughout, Bullock wove in a modern-meets-industrial aesthetic.

Related: How this Corktown condo transformed from an everyday unit into a chic sanctuary

The Tour

The main floor begins with a mudroom–storage room combo that leads to this powder room. Bullock swapped out the old porcelain floors for a funky marble mosaic tile. She also installed a wall-hung sink from Catalano and a white faucet from Graff, plus a full-length mirror to give the illusion of more space.

Heading to the second floor highlights the open kitchen, living room and dining room. The kitchen formerly had a half-wall separating it from the dining area, but the owners wanted it removed. Bullock rejigged the layout for efficiency by moving all the appliances from the right side of the kitchen to the left. Then she plopped in an eight-foot island with a built-in sink, along with stools from CB2 and pendant lighting.

In the living room, Bullock traded the dark hardwood floors for an airier oak. That round dining table is stained concrete with a teak wood base, and those sconces and mirror are from Restoration Hardware.

Time for a closer look at the fireplace treatment. It used to be flanked by built-in shelving. Bullock axed the set-up, replacing it with a two-sided linear gas fireplace with a travertine-slab surround as a feature wall. The family also wanted plenty of seating in the living room for hosting and hangouts. Enter a large sectional with leather pouffes and a mix of modern and industrial accents.

Also on the second floor are the kids’ bedrooms. Before, the daughter’s space was basic, with storage in the corner. Now it has two built-in closets with arched recessed mirrors and footed bases. In between, there’s a custom built-in dresser with an oak finish. And the arched brass canopy bed is an elegant touch.

The shared bathroom on the third floor already had a desirable layout, but Bullock lightened it with a full mirror wall, open shelving, a stained-wood veneer vanity, marble counters and matching porcelain floors.

Moving to the fourth floor reveals the main suite. The open space at the top of the stairs has been transformed into a dressing room you might expect to find in Yorkville. Bullock gave it a moody feel—like a cigar room—with internally lit black-metal glass-doored wardrobes. She also added a burnished brass dresser island.

In the tragically ’90s ensuite bathroom, the team exchanged the corner bathtub for a soaker tub, a free-standing faucet, and a linear walk-in drain shower with a rainfall head and glass enclosure. The interior of the shower comes with textured Italian tiles and storage niches with touch-latch cutout doors. The space also has a wood veneer vanity with curved feet and leather-bound pulls.

Stoked about your staging? Recently finished a renovation? Send your story to realestate@torontolife.com.