On the eastern edge of Vancouver’s downtown core lies a pocket of the city dubbed ‘Crosstown’, which houses an enclave of early 20th century heritage buildings along its main hub of Beatty Street. These buildings have since been converted into a tapestry of warehouse-style lofts, featuring former industrial spaces full of character details that hint at their former lives as bustling production, manufacturing and office spaces. Our latest residential project, Crane Loft, is a 900 square foot example of these spaces, replete with rich red brick walls, wooden windows and original columns. 

When working in the residential space, our process is naturally more intimate and personalized to the clients living in the home. We worked closely with owner Jasmeet to create a design that speaks clearly to her unique aesthetic sensibilities, personality and lifestyle. In the true sense of the word, she was the muse for our project. Her personal style, philosophy on life, love of hosting and exceptional sense of taste all played key roles in our approach and design programming for her home.

We landed on an eclectic mix that is moody and bold, sexy and elegant. In a phrase, sophisticated maximalism. Layered patterns and textures, inspired by Jasmeet’s love for vintage 70’s glam, are carefully choreographed to blend together beautifully. Curated pieces of artwork and beautiful objects were selected and positioned to work seamlessly with her existing collection. Vibrant, deeply coloured textiles, velvet curtains, wallpapers (Versace!) and custom area rugs adorn and create division between functional zones and atmospheres of the space, bringing a sense of depth, character and soul that works to create warmth to the inherently cold qualities of an industrial loft space.

From a space planning perspective, our team worked to carefully maximize the potential of the loft’s small footprint and create functionality for Jasmeet’s endeavours. Custom millwork touches almost every surface of the space, including full-height library shelving, a custom writing desk, expanded kitchen cabinetry and smart storage solutions throughout. Rather than hide the heritage details, including large columns in the main living area, we sought to highlight and utilize them to create divisions of space and embrace the history of the building and neighbourhood. The result is a home that reflects its owner from every angle, boldly celebrating her past, present and future.