In interior design, there is such as thing as too pretty, and sometimes the best kind of order comes from disorder.
At King Country Estates in Nobleton, the Muskoka model suite — one of six vastly differing model homes outfitted by the site’s three builders — shows off just how compelling a little disorder can be.
Designer Mike Niven and his team took inspiration from differing textures, mismatched woods and competing — though complementary — colours to conspicuously avoid the detached feel of modern designs.
“It’s as unmatched as we could make it and that’s totally on purpose. It’s a mish-mash so nothing is really out of whack. I think it works because the colours are all of the same value — an olive green is the same value as a burnt red and everything is on the warm side,” Niven said.
In the kitchen, unusual choices abound with a chandelier made from wine bottles, different styles of furniture sharing the space and deliberately modern touches melding with obvious country sensibilities.
The effect is striking, particularly because while most designs call for furniture and accessories that are brand new, Niven’s team instead beat up pieces of furniture to give them a lived-in look: The dining table was smacked around to give it dents and chips and the lacquered, modern dining chairs were actually scraped down to look used. It’s all a part of creating a feel of a well-loved space with plenty of character and no pretension.
“We wanted to give everything that eclectic, used sensibility. Everything feels like you can just plop into it and it’s the type of house where the kids could run amok and they wouldn’t wreck anything, yet it still feels sophisticated enough to entertain in,” Niven said.
The effect is carried to the rest of the house with big, overstuffed furniture in the family room and a similar mix of textures and accessories in the master bedroom of the 3,438 sq. ft model home.
