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Houzz Tour: A Light-filled Studio Apartment in a Garage Loft Conversion
An interior designer overhauled the room above her garage to transform it into a beautiful space for her student daughter
Once you see their daughter’s studio apartment, you might want this family to adopt you. To make the existing dark apartment over the garage suitable for the daughter to live in during her college years, interior designer Jacqueline Brynjolfson expanded it, gutted it and filled it with light. The space was full of challenges posed by the odd angles and low, slanted ceilings, but Brynjolfson solved the problems by treating the floor plan like an elegant puzzle. By adding a few dormers and skylights and laying out the space with smart precision, she managed to fit all the key pieces into the studio apartment while making it feel luxurious.
New dormers light up the apartment and expand the floor space. The one on the right, paired with a custom desk, forms a study. On the exterior it mimics the architecture of existing dormers.
‘The bedroom is partially private, but this is essentially a studio apartment,’ Brynjolfson says. The bedroom and bathroom are in the back, and the kitchen and main living area are in front.
‘The bedroom is partially private, but this is essentially a studio apartment,’ Brynjolfson says. The bedroom and bathroom are in the back, and the kitchen and main living area are in front.
‘The kitchen was the biggest challenge,’ the designer says. ‘The trick was figuring out the space for standing.’ By using a European cooker hood and fridge (both 24in wide), she was able to squeeze in everything, including a full-size dishwasher. A skylight brightens the area.
Cabinets, Ikea. Cylindra cooker hood, Saber.
Get expert advice on dealing with nooks and sloping ceilings
Cabinets, Ikea. Cylindra cooker hood, Saber.
Get expert advice on dealing with nooks and sloping ceilings
To make cabinets fit, Brynjolfson bumped out the wall behind them a bit (you can see the bump most clearly in the first photograph). ‘It’s just her living here, so she doesn’t need to store too much,’ she says. Floating shelves provide storage for everyday glasses, china and display pieces.
‘She wasn’t afraid of colour, and we needed a bit of a punch,’ Brynjolfson says. The designer chose watery blues and greens mixed with tans and browns to evoke the nearby sea.
Splashback in Agate tiles, Luanda Bay Tile.
‘She wasn’t afraid of colour, and we needed a bit of a punch,’ Brynjolfson says. The designer chose watery blues and greens mixed with tans and browns to evoke the nearby sea.
Splashback in Agate tiles, Luanda Bay Tile.
A sweet sofa is nestled into another new dormer opposite the study area. A daybed lies out of view to the left . ‘She is not a TV person, so we didn’t have to work around placing that, which made it easier,’ Brynjolfson says.
The designer wanted to create privacy between the cosy bedroom and the entrance to the bathroom, so she had a partial wall built behind the bed. New dormers and skylights let in the light.
Chandelier, Restoration Hardware.
Chandelier, Restoration Hardware.
Just to the right of the bedroom chair, a small door leads to more storage space behind the wall.
Brynjolfson created a partially closed hallway between the bedroom and bathroom. This custom storage wall is located on the other side of the partial wall behind the bed.
Paris-themed wallpaper gives the shelves fashionable flair.
Storage wall painted in Brassica 271, Farrow & Ball. Wallpaper in Regents Park, United Wallcoverings.
Storage wall painted in Brassica 271, Farrow & Ball. Wallpaper in Regents Park, United Wallcoverings.
A pocket door gives the bathroom complete privacy from the rest of the studio. A walk-in wardrobe is located inside the bathroom, just to the right.
Vanity unit painted in Dix Blue 82, Farrow & Ball. Bath, Maax. Basin, Kohler. Tap, Riobel. Toilet, Toto.
Discover 10 of the best walk-in wardrobes
Vanity unit painted in Dix Blue 82, Farrow & Ball. Bath, Maax. Basin, Kohler. Tap, Riobel. Toilet, Toto.
Discover 10 of the best walk-in wardrobes
Laying things out was all about finding standing room amid the angled ceiling. Brynjolfson bumped out the wall behind the vanity unit, then added a mini dormer to contain the mirror at the correct height. She placed the shower under the highest part of the ceiling. The toilet’s placement under the skylight provides ample headroom.
Watery blue glass tiles provide a calming accent on the splashback, over the bath and in the shower. Another skylight floods the room with natural light, which bounces off the tiles.
Quartz counters and trim detail on shower, HanStone. Floor tiles, Ican. Accent panels in Martini tiles from the Agate series, Luanda Bay Tile.
Watery blue glass tiles provide a calming accent on the splashback, over the bath and in the shower. Another skylight floods the room with natural light, which bounces off the tiles.
Quartz counters and trim detail on shower, HanStone. Floor tiles, Ican. Accent panels in Martini tiles from the Agate series, Luanda Bay Tile.
The globe light is fully enclosed to meet all codes.
Once their daughter has graduated from college and moved on, the homeowners will have a space that can serve as an elegant guesthouse.
TELL US…
Have you ever done a conversion like this? Share your experiences and photos in the Comments below.
Once their daughter has graduated from college and moved on, the homeowners will have a space that can serve as an elegant guesthouse.
TELL US…
Have you ever done a conversion like this? Share your experiences and photos in the Comments below.
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here A young woman in college; this studio apartment is over her parents’ detached garage
Location Vancouver, Canada
Size 809 sq ft / 75 sq m
Contractor John Quinton of Quinton Construction
Flooring Matt Robinson of Monarch Floor and Window Coverings
If you look just beyond the cylindrical steel vent hood, there’s a column that used to mark the exterior wall. Everything from the foreground up to that column used to be outdoors – part of a very large exterior deck. Brynjolfson added on to the second-floor space over the five-car garage, extending it from 50 sq m to 75 sq m.
This photo was taken standing right in front of the entry door. Off the entry, a generous deck overlooks the surrounding horse country. Vancouver’s Southlands area is ‘country in the city’, Brynjolfson says. ‘It’s a small community of pastures and horse farms.’
A long row of Ikea cabinets extends from the living room to the bedroom. It takes advantage of the low ceilings and provides plenty of storage and display space.
Ceiling and walls painted in Strong White; skirting boards painted in Calluna, both Farrow & Ball. St Basils flooring by Chester Collection, Dansk Hardwood.