多伦多市区中的现代四合院

我比较喜欢简约又舒适，实用的家居设计，最好再带点中国风，明朝那种简明线条的。纯粹的现代装饰我也不是很喜欢，太冷，太硬。 

而且，我也不喜欢那种大把砸银子的装饰。特别的佩服一些年轻的建筑师，在囊中羞涩的情况下，买下一间狭窄破烂的房子，然后靠着自己的巧思，把它修建成一个舒适的家。 

下面的系列照片，是一对建筑师夫妇在多伦多的back alley里面，把一个废弃的库房改建成温馨的四合院，包括他们的工作室，和两个孩子的游玩区。夫妻两位都是幼年时就移民加拿大的亚裔，从他们的设计可以看到both中西文化的影响。 难怪他们的工作室，叫做studio junction.

开工前，破败的库房。可他们看到了未来的家。

施工进行一半了。

完工了。外面是市区，里面别有洞天。二楼的小平台给孩子们一个安全游玩的地方，而且洒满阳光。

In the living room abundant daylight can pour in, but rain and snow keep a safe distance from the family’s well-loved collection of vintage furniture.


Tan built storage into every available corner of the house, including the stairs, each of which contains a drawer.


In the kitchen, wall-to-wall cabinets hold files from the adjacent home office in addition to storing servingware and kitchen appliances. The custom island shows off Tan’s craft. The range hood is wrapped in millwork, and the countertop is a 1-inch slab of solid plantation teak. When there’s no cooking going on, “the kitchen can just disappear” behind another piece of wood, Ho Ping Kong says.



Only a set of sliding doors separates the kids’ room from the master bedroom beyond. When the time is right, there is a track inlaid in the ceiling for a four-panel bifold wall to divide the space into two private rooms for Ian and Abbe.

With windows looking out onto the second-story courtyard, the laundry/bathroom area has a custom-made and a picturesque view.

The workshop is used for messy model-making and creative playtime for the kids.

The main courtyard is a “communal” space, Tan says, and the couple keeps a second teak dining set at the ready for occasions when family or friends come for a meal.