By Hattie Klotz
Photos by Jordann Brown
The sense of tranquility is unmistakable at this Manotick home, thanks to a major reno by designer Tanya Collins that’s notable for its streamlined simplicity and luxurious finishes.
When Will and Ashley Malloff moved to Manotick in September 2017, they bought a house with plenty of potential but very little style. “It was basically one giant staircase with rooms in strange places,” recalls Will of the house that felt like a rabbit warren.
“When we sold our home in Alta Vista, we were in search of what we would hope to be our forever home. We had a two-year-old and one on the way, and knew we wanted to settle in a neighbourhood where we could raise our two girls and set up roots in the community. We have friends who live in Manotick, and every time we visited, we would fall in love with the neighbourhood and sense of community. It checked off all the boxes, offering a perfect blend of small-town charm with the amenities of modern life. We love the family-friendly atmosphere and close-knit community spirit. Plus, with its proximity to Ottawa, we can enjoy the benefits of suburban living while still having access to the city’s job market and cultural attractions.”
After a major recent renovation at the hands of designer Tanya Collins, the house offers a serene sense of calm with luxurious finishes throughout. “Now the interior space flows. It feels like you can breathe. The energy in this house is amazing,” says Tanya.
This was no small job. They moved everything except the master bathroom soaker tub, staircase included. Will, Ashley and their two girls moved into an RV parked in their driveway. “It was fun for the first couple of weeks,” says Will, “and then it starts to wear on you.” By November, they were desperate to get back into their house, not least for the heating, but a delay in the installation of the cabinetry meant they did so without a kitchen.
Will, the primary cook in the family, prepared meals in a portable oven until his Monogram professional six-burner range was installed. “To be honest, it’s one of the things I was most excited about,” he says.
The range anchors an impressive kitchen, complete with a butler’s pantry to one side, a dream come true for any serious cook who likes to entertain. Walnut cabinets above and dark grey painted ones below offer plenty of storage both for dry goods, plates and glassware.
In the kitchen proper, brushed gold hardware on the walnut cabinets, a grey fluted hood cover and a dark grey undermount sink from Blanco—complete with a gold faucet—tie it all together in a streamlined way.
What appear to be classic subway tiles with grey grout are not quite so; they’re handmade, each one unique and with a pearlescent finish. A classic chair rail adds a finishing, tailored touch.
While the colour palette in this house is subtle—all tones of dark grey, walnut, black, creamy white with gold accents and natural white oak—textures are abundant. The fluted range hood speaks to the fluted front of the bay window’s built-in seat, the backs of the nearby creamy coloured sofas, a pair of round ottomans, the front of a dining room sideboard and even the front of a floating sink console in the downstairs powder room.
Many of the brushed gold fixtures boast a knurled finish, cross-hatched, soft and slightly rough like sandpaper. Large area rugs in grey and white, one contemporary with lines and the other reminiscent of a tiny checkerboard, define the sitting room area and the dining room, while offering a softness against the herringbone floor that runs throughout the ground floor.
Upstairs, serenity reigns. The girls’ bedrooms “are not theme-y,” says Tanya, who chose instead a soft pink palette with polka dot curtains for the ballet dancer and a pale powder blue with whimsical animal print curtains and a flowered carpet for the nature lover. In the master suite, it’s the bathroom that sings. “Practically the only thing that we didn’t move in the whole house was the bathtub,” says Tanya, of the luxurious soaker tub tucked across one corner. A giant glass-walled shower boasts a black frame, echoing that of the pair of mirrors opposite. Thoughtful touches include a dividing wall between the lavatory and remainder of the bathroom, blessed with a niche on either side of the wall, perfect for storing cosmetics sink-side and toilet paper on the other.
Tucked away under a barnlike sloping roof line is a dreamy laundry room. Herringbone grey tile floors, chunky white oak shelves and a sliding barn door keep the space out of direct sight, but it’s so pretty and practical, with plenty of space for folding, that laundry could become meditative rather than just another household chore.
A similar esthetic reigns in the ground floor mud room: simple, classic and stylish. Huge windows allow light to flood into the practical space that boasts dark grey walls, gold coat hooks, plenty of storage space and shelves for the business of hats, jackets, gloves and boots. Chunky white oak benches sit on an oversized black and white tiled checkerboard floor.
With so much change in the house, Will and Ashley are hard pressed to pick their favourite part of the renovation, but it comes down to flow, “the incredible improvement in flow and functionality across all the rooms, especially the bedrooms. It’s maximized every square foot, creating more functional and organized spaces throughout the house,” says Will. “We love how each bedroom now feels more spacious. The open, airy feel of the entire house is something we appreciate, enhancing how we live our daily lives and interact as a family.”
In this Manotick house, where streamlined simplicity, high quality finishes and a distinct sense of tranquillity are front and centre, luxury is found in a family-centred escape from the busyness of hyper-connected, day-to-day living.
