ALEX NEWMAN
\nSPECIAL TO THE STAR
\nWith a central location, high functioning layouts, and a country classic furnishing scheme, model homes at Maple Woodlands in Barrie have big family appeal.
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\nSean Richards, who designed the 2,900-square-foot model home with Suzanne Wicentowich, says families figured largely in the decorating decisions.<\/p>\n
“The floor plan, with formal entry, living room on the left and dining room to the right, and great room stretched across the rear, is a popular, workable one for families \u00e2\u20ac\u201d open enough without being too open, very little space being wasted, and realistic for growing families,” he says.<\/p>\n
In the front rooms, a simple symmetrical layout lends formality, but was toned down by adding some country-styled furniture. Upholstery on the traditional roll arm sofa and chairs is chenille or cotton; dining table and chairs are clean-lined, but sturdy; coffee tables are a mix of dark gleaming mahogany and reproduction Canadiana. Easy-care sheers at big windows offer privacy without the expense or maintenance requirements.<\/p>\n
The staircase up is situated toward the back of the house, between the living room and two-storey family area, creating an open second floor overlooking the great room. “It’s terrific for keeping an eye on kids when you have to be upstairs doing something,” Richards says. “I should know \u00e2\u20ac\u201d I have two of my own. They might think they’re on their own, but we know what they’re doing.”<\/p>\n
Throughout the home, walls in a neutral putty background help blend the mix of furniture and contrast nicely with the dark hardwood floors that run the length of the home. The dark and light scheme is punched up by accents \u00e2\u20ac\u201d drapery and pillows \u00e2\u20ac\u201d in rusts, reds and vibrant paisley fabrics.<\/p>\n
In the great room area, the country scheme is brought up a notch by a formal fireplace that’s flanked by built-in bookcases and embellished with a revolution-era style mantel.<\/p>\n
“This shows people what they can do in that two-storey space,” Richards says. “While humanizing the volume of the space, it’s formal, hugely functional and provides tons of storage. It also looks great from the upstairs balcony, with that dramatic light fixture.”<\/p>\n
Decor is kept simple \u00e2\u20ac\u201d softly curved furniture counteracting the angular aspects of the mantel and bookcase area, and a patterned rug grounding the seating area, and adding visual interest to the otherwise plain upholstery.<\/p>\n
Continuing the country casual family friendly theme into the kitchen, maple cabinets in a U-shaped layout, with separate snack area for the fridge and coffeemaker, porcelain tile floors and laminate counters stand up to any abuse kids and dogs might dish out.<\/p>\n
Counters are in laminate \u00e2\u20ac\u201d a popular choice and wears like iron. What some designers do to balance budget with looks, Richards says, is to have a combination of the two materials \u00e2\u20ac\u201d laminate on the main counters and granite on the island. Go for one of the slate look-alikes, Richards advises.<\/p>\n
“Natural looks are the trend, and there’s a lot of choice with laminate. Some of the newer ones have the patterned look of stone or solid surfacing.”<\/p>\n
A good-sized pantry handles storage, and a laundry, large coat closet and mudroom directly off the kitchen take care of family maintenance.<\/p>\n
A delicate wrought iron and glass bistro table with four matching ice cream chairs dress up the kitchen with a bit of rustic elegance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ALEX NEWMAN SPECIAL TO THE STAR With a central location, high functioning layouts, and a country classic furnishing scheme, model homes at Maple Woodlands in Barrie have big family appeal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1609","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-furniture-world-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1609","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1609"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1609\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1609"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1609"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1609"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}