Peek inside an eclectic and contemporary 1,900-sq.-ft. house

You can’t have a Vancouver life in Toronto, and you can’t have a Toronto life in Vancouver, but they’re both great,” says Sandra Harris. She should know. The food and lifestyle photographer and her husband, Mike, moved from Vancouver to Toronto in 2001; then a decade later, with daughter Ruby (now eight), they moved back to Vancouver to be near family.

Theirs is a tale of two cities. It’s also a tale of two houses. “The Vancouver house was built in the 1930s as a tiny workman’s bungalow, maybe 1,000 square feet,” says Sandra. A prior renovation added a third bedroom and 900 square feet. Even so, the house is less than half the size of the Victorian semi they had in Toronto’s Annex neighbourhood. And a completely different style too. “Picture almost 5,000 square feet, 10-foot ceilings, original mouldings,” says Sandra.

Tip: Inject personality with art and colour
The living room’s prized Carl Stromquist cedar carving and Fred Herzog photograph highlight the creative couple’s passion for art. The teal Egg chair lifts the mood and sets a modern tone.

Egg chair, Morba. Cocktail table, pouf, The Cross Design. Rug, Ikea. Photograph, Equinox Gallery. Cedar carving, Eagle Spirit Gallery. Floor lamp, Elte.