Decorating & Design
10 West Coast Homes Inspired By Nature
Updated on December 27, 2024
Whether it’s a rugged ski chalet in the Whistler mountains, a contemporary Sunshine Coast retreat or an artsy condo in the heart of Vancouver, the West Coast has been the source of some outstanding homes in H&H over the years. It’s time to celebrate these natural beauties, which always seem to make the most of the breathtaking local scenery. Scroll down for the best West Coast homes from the pages of House & Home!
Emma Reddington’s Mid-Century Modern Home In North Vancouver
As House & Home’s Deputy Editor, Emma Reddington finds daily inspiration in the array of well-designed spaces that cross her desk. But when she and her husband purchased a 3,500-square-foot, four-bedroom, three-bathroom house in North Vancouver, B.C., during the pandemic’s real-estate frenzy, she was the furthest from inspired she’d ever been. Emma rose to the design challenge, partnering with Darcy Hanna and Emma Sims of Vancouver design firm &Daughters to bring the home’s copious green walls, maple floors and popcorn ceilings into a new century. Using the original cedar ceiling as a jumping-off point, the trio leaned in to North Vancouver’s classic mid-century modern houses to reimagine the space in minimalist lines, rich textures and natural materials.
A Minimalist Victoria House With Classic West Coast Style
The design brief for this 3,500-square-foot, three-level newly built house designed by Bidgood was to be equal parts light and contemporary, with a footprint that would comfortably fit the whole family. “Our client wanted warm, inviting and timeless,” says lead designer Christi Rivard of Bidgood. The design team opted for a subdued overall color palette that favored texture, warmth and softness, with bolder hits coming from mid-tone furniture, colorful abstract rugs, ochre accents and locally commissioned art.
A Contemporary Cottage On Halfmoon Bay
Patrick Warren and Kevin Kaufman searched high and low for a place to build a cottage that would reflect their free-spirited ethos. From the Gulf Islands to commuter community Bowen Island, nothing felt exactly right…until they found Halfmoon Bay on the Sunshine Coast. Their half-hectare lot overlooked the Georgia Strait, a historical lighthouse on a nearby island and a seal colony. After visiting Japan and seeing the ryokans in Kyushu (traditional inns with pared-down amenities like tatami mats and futon beds), the couple was inspired. “We loved the way the dark buildings receded into the shadows of the forest,” says Patrick. “The natural materials created a unity with their environment, a soothing counterpoint that felt very restorative.”
A Downtown Vancouver Pied-À-Terre
Imagine a ferry terminal at your doorstep, where one stop on the Aquabus brings you across False Creek to Granville Island for fresh produce, followed by a stroll to Fisherman’s Wharf for the morning’s catch of the day. Weekends are spent wandering the seawall and relaxing at Sunset Beach before heading up more than 20 storeys to watch the sun sink into the ocean. This is Vancouver living at its best, and the reason why these owners, a couple who work in import-export and media, respectively, bought a 1,200-square-foot, two-bedroom, two-bath condo at 888 Beach. “In so many ways, it’s the essence of downtown Vancouver,” says designer Chad Falkenberg of the building’s prime location.
A Newly Built Home Near The Edmonton River Valley
“It was important to us to be near the river valley,” says the homeowner of her three-year search for the right home. When a tiny house in the Glenora neighborhood came up in 2019, her and her husband jumped. It was near Edmonton’s city core and sat on a private, pie-shaped lot flanked by two lanes; here, they could build a home from the ground up. “My father always said, ‘You build a house on what a lot offers, not what you want the house to be,’” she says. The couple turned to Gino, Sophia’s 87-year-old, now retired father to design the house. To realize his vision, they hired Calgary’s Alloy Homes for the build. When the envelope was nearly complete, Alykhan Velji Designs stepped in to tackle the interiors.
A Serene Whistler Ski Retreat
They say that if you want to own a house in Whistler, B.C., you have to go Full Cabin: wood beams, nostalgic memorabilia and all. But Melissa Meehan, a Whistler regular, was looking for something lighter and fresher. When she and her husband, Paul, who are both entrepreneurs in Vancouver, began hunting for a four-season weekend home for themselves and their three ski-mad children, Melissa knew exactly what she didn’t want: “No knotty pine. No tartan. No skis on the wall.” They found a contemporary house built for a developer by architect Brent Murdoch and decorated by Vancouver designer Denise Ashmore. It sits at the edge of a golf course on a quiet cul-de-sac, with views of Whistler, Blackcomb and Rainbow mountains.
A Designer’s Vancouver Ranch Home
Designer, cookbook writer and bakery owner Rosie Daykin has a knack for focusing her love of all things English through a Canadian West Coast lens. She and her husband, Paul, bought this 3,000-square-foot, mid-century ranch house 14 years ago and upgraded it with British-inspired decorating.
A Vancouver Island Duplex With Coastal Charm
This 910-square-foot Vancouver Island duplex has it all: outdoor spaces on both levels, a private beach and a separate art studio, all of which take in views of a quiet inlet that’s minutes from downtown Victoria. Local restaurateurs Shellie and Mike Gudgeon worked with BoForm architect Chris Foyd and designers Christi Rivard and Kyla Bidgood of Bidgood + Co. on the clever build. When the couple’s daughter, Isabella, wanted her own space, the time seemed right to take down the existing 1960s house — worn from its long years of service as a rental property — and build anew. The new house would be a duplex with a top-floor apartment for Isabella and a ground-floor rental suite.
A Joyful Color-blocked Penthouse
Even on a gloomy, rainy day in Vancouver, sunglasses might be required in this penthouse apartment in East Vancouver. Banana leaf motifs, smile-inspiring palettes and don’t-worry-be-happy glamor are present throughout this two-level, 1,400-square-foot home.
A Bowen Island Retreat With Mountain & Ocean Views
Nestled on a three-hectare site on Bowen Island — a tranquil community with beaches, hiking and biking trails just a 20-minute ferry ride from West Vancouver — this dwelling has an unspoiled mountain and ocean view that is the stuff of workday fantasies. The three-bedroom, 2,900-square-foot house, with its green roof, locally sourced cedar cladding and minimal footprint, blends in to the surroundings while providing a place for the owners, a pair of busy Vancouver physicians and their two young children, to relax and recharge.