White Paint and Wood Warm Up A Vintage Vancouver Home

Name: Mary Jane, her husband Julian, their son Roman and their English Bulldog Vito
Location: Vancouver, British Columbia
The basics: 2 years, owned — 2,000 square feet

Mary Jane’s home is filled with earthy warmth thanks to the fantastic combo of honey-toned wood and white paint. The home’s high ceilings and big windows flood the space with light, while the small accents around the home lend it an air of curated homeyness to help combat all of that Vancouver rain.

Tell us a little (or a lot) about your home and the people who live there: I’m the co-owner of Twenty One Tonnes and live here with my husband, Julian, a film editor, our three year old son, Roman, and our English bulldog, Vito.

The house was built in 1912 and is very typical of that era in Vancouver. Most of the houses on our block are identical and I’ve been told by our neighbors that they were all originally built to house workers for a brewery.

We have quite an eclectic mix of furnishings, styles and eras. Our Marcel Breuer Cesca dining room chairs are a favorite, and are actually hand me downs from my father’s office. They were originally acquired by my mother in the late ’70s, but the design dates back to 1928. The dining room table is a 1940s industrial work table from Chicago that was refinished by Scott Landon Antiques. Our coffee table and side chair are mid-century modern. The art deco style wooden arc arm chair, circa 1930s, is inherited from my husband’s family. Also inherited is the oil portrait by Nicholas de Grandmaison, a Canadian painter from the ’30s and ’40s. Our gigantic sofa is down filled from Restoration Hardware, and it’s the best! Most of the basketry is from my own shop.

What is your favorite room and why? The main floor encompasses the living, dining and kitchen in one space, which has proven to be very useful with our son. We both do a lot of cooking, so it’s great to be able to cook and and still keep an eye on him.

If you could magically change something about your home, what would it be? We’d add an escalator along the outside stairs for Vito (the dog). He’s getting on in years and starting to struggle with the steps a little bit. He loves the backyard though.

What’s the last thing you bought (or found!) for your home? It would probably have been something from my own shop. I’m always trying out new things. Two fairly recent acquisitions have been the doum stool and saddle basket.

Which fictional character would be most at home in your place? I want to say Robin Ellacott from the Cormoran Strike novels just because I love the character and the interior layout of our style of house reminds me of a London row house. But my husband says it would be Fantastic Mr. Fox.

Mary Jane’s Words of Wisdom: Surround yourself with things that are made with love and try not to take it too seriously!

Thanks, Mary Jane!

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