Inside a maximalist Hamilton bungalow with hand-painted murals, disco balls and retro flair
Marina Porter, a vintage reseller, has always been drawn to fun and colourful objects. After graduating from Humber College’s fashion arts program in the mid-2010s, she rented an apartment at Kingston Road and Victoria Park from a landlord who let her select her own paint colours. She chose periwinkle and pink, pairing them with tropical wallpaper and vintage rattan furniture. The experience stoked her interest in retro design. “I felt like I could really express myself,” she says.
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In 2021, Marina and her then-husband Alexander launched an Instagram shop, Rainbows and Retro, which sells vintage decor and furniture from Facebook Marketplace, antique shops and auctions (Marina now runs the business on her own). Then, later that year, Marina found out she had neck cancer. While going through treatment, she realized she wasn’t happy in Toronto. “It was too fast-paced, and it was taking a toll on my mental health,” she says. So, in May of 2022, with her parents’ help, she and Alexander bought a 1950s two-bedroom, two-bathroom bungalow in Hamilton.
Marina wasted no time stamping her bright, maximalist personality onto her home: the day after she moved in, she painted the bedroom pink. Seven psychedelic murals soon followed, painted by Alexander. “I use murals as focal points,” Marina says.
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Through her vintage shop, Marina is constantly scoring new finds for her home and swapping pieces out as they sell. Now cancer-free, she finds joy in her lively, kitschy space. “There are no bad days here because it’s so happy,” she says. Since sharing her home on social media, Marina has also inspired others to go bold. “One person told me they painted a squiggly line across their living room wall because of me,” she says.
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