A 600-Square-Foot Toronto Rental Apartment Maximizes Kitchen Storage
Name: Angelo Licari, my boyfriend Jeff, and our new puppy August
Location: Cabbagetown — Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Type of home: Apartment
Size: 600 square feet
Years lived in: 1 year, renting
Tell us a little (or a lot) about your home and the people who live there: My boyfriend and I moved into the basement unit of our building (a 290-square-foot studio) two years ago, and turned it into a surprisingly warm, spacious, and functional living space. It inspired us to move into the unit above us and utilize its potential to create our current home. We believe our greatest strength in home design is refurbishing old furniture to fit a more modern style (kitchen table, coffee table trunk, kitchen chairs, etc.). We also love creating art and furniture from scratch. My boyfriend Jeff is an artist so most of the paintings would have been a Jeff original, and I’m more handy so the shelving units, ladder, etc. would be an Angelo original.
Jeff and I are a proud gay couple living with our son (puppy) August! You can see the celebration of our identity in our home through pride flags, photos, and inspiration of our art… and by how many plants we own. Living only a few blocks away from Church St. (LGBTQ+ Village) we have many neighbors that share similar lifestyles as us making us feel right at home! From our subtle rainbow bookshelf to our pride flag hanging in our bedroom, it couldn’t be more expressed in our home!
Describe your home’s style in 5 words or less: Eclectic, Boho, Cozy, DIY, Unique
What is your favorite room and why? My favorite room would be the kitchen. I have fallen in love with the tall ceilings and tons of natural light. This is very different than our last basement unit, which makes a world of the difference cooking. I was very happy when I was finally able to hang my kitchen pots from my pot rack, and know we have a ton of extra space for other storage items. The plants in the windows make me smile and the brick backsplash makes me feel warm. Jeff’s favorite room is the living room. It allows us to host friends in a bright, cozy, and spacious way. It also holds some of our favorite pieces of the house like our record player, fireplace, and bookshelf.
What’s the last thing you bought (or found!) for your home? The latest few items we bought for our home is our puppy’s mini living room items. We got him a puppy sized couch, and printed off and framed a poster of dogs playing poker to go above it. We also got him a cute wooden bin for all his toys to live together in. We set this up in the nook of our hallway, so he knows he has his very own place in our home. His style is slightly more messy than ours, but we make it work!
Any advice for creating a home you love? I think originally Jeff and I had slightly opposing visions for how we wanted our home to be styled, but after trusting in each other and compromising on certain decisions the collaboration of our visions came together as one. We also like to make our regular trips to the second hand boutique stores in Toronto, to get inspired, or to buy and refurbish furniture that fits!
This submission’s responses and photos were edited for length/size and clarity.
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