The Bloor-West brownstone project by Jesse Sahlani draws inspiration from the famous brownstones of Greenwich Village, while incorporating a uniquely casual California influence. The result is the creation of an artistic style uncommon to the Toronto streetscape that balances the best of the old character of this neighborhood in a fresh-faced, contemporary format. As always, Jesse starts with a sketch to define the proportions of each home he creates, balancing this alongside the window and skylight placement needs as identified by his initial sun studies. However, for this home, maintaining both the interior and exterior proportions was of utmost importance to ensure that the three-storey massing didn’t feel monolithic while ensuring that the interior floor plan felt sprawling.

Everything about this home exudes the level of detailed masonry design that Jesse is known for. It is details such as these that reference what has quickly become a dying art within the city, a fact that has lead us to be extremely picky about the masons selected to work on bringing Jesse’s designs to life on site.

The roof massing was designed to have the same effect on the massing of the home, serving to hide the third storey. The square dormers and rooftop deck features are stepped back from the front facade, using a different form and material to both smoothly integrate and highlight the third storey proportions at the same time. This design method is, at its core, a direct reflection of Jesse’s ingenuity when designing a home that exudes so much timeless character in a casual format.

Most notably, Jesse incorporated herringbone brick details between the second-storey arched windows, doubling down on the timeless design profiles that support the casual California influence that runs through the foundation of this timeless design style. In addition to this, he incorporated detailed brick cornice details that step in and out, running along the top of the second-floor wall. The rounded corners were done in a similar fashion and feature quoins. Each of these masonry details serves an intentional purpose on the exterior facade, reducing the imposition of the massing, grounding it, and adding a level of intentional detail that encourages visual interest.

The exterior facade was meant to exude a warm, traditional character that can only be offered by red brick paired with the lush green contrast of the structured gardens. As you walk up the driveway, the landscape design creates a build-up leading to the front door. Layers of structured low hedges, accent trees, and beech trees, in their young current form, tier upward on either side and draw your eye forward toward the entrance.