Describe your home: A heritage house converted into a triplex in East Vancouver.
Occupant: Rachel Harrison, owner of RoomCraft Design and Renovation, married to Luke Harrison with two small children, Layla and Ethan.
Major selling feature: Close to The Drive, across the street to the park and one block from the Adanac bike lane.
First thing you changed: The layout. I opened the space and created four bedrooms (one room is used as an office/den).
Feature you brag about: The view! From the front windows is all green park and from the back windows it’s the North Shore mountains and the shipping cranes. I love the view at twilight when the mountains glow a soft violet – it’s such a peaceful scene.
That one conversation piece: My custom painted Mother Mary (The Maria, The Lady Guadalupe, The Madonna; pictured) by Zoe Pawlak. It has so much soul and yet feels completely modern and stands for divine feminism. Plus she is a dear friend. It was such a precious gift.
The story behind the art/antiques:
The teak dining hutch was passed down to me from my nan, and has been a constant in every place I’ve lived for the past 14 years. The traditional linen rolled arm sofa was given to me by a friend. I feel it really elevates the room and was a jumping off point for the whole space. I have all my favourite art in this house – I really pared it down as there wasn’t that much wall space. A new fav is the white-on-white abstract female figure by Zoe Pawlak; an old fav is a vintage art deco train stop poster from Milan (a gift from Jennifer Scott) and finally an oil painting of the Lions Gate bridge that has every colour of blue in it, and was inherited from Luke’s granny.
The decor: It changes in every place I live, but in this place it’s a very light palette of creams, whites, greys with soft blues and as always a hit of pink. I feel like the vibe is a European townhouse with a touch of Nordic minimalism.
Downsides: The park attracts people late on summer nights and it feels like they are in our house!
Neighbourhood haunts: I love Prado Café and Grandview Park for the kids. Liberty Wines has a great selection and I have yet to try La Mezcaleria, but I’m a huge fan of anything Mexican so I already know I will be a regular!
Compared to your last place: We lived in a two-bedroom apartment in South Granville. It was a great place but this home has more space, more garden, great parks, and pretty much everything you could ever need at a close walking distance.
Favourite activity: Curling up with the kids on the sofa and reading books!
