From caution to confidence: The evolution of Toronto residential design | Canada Voices

As a magazine editor for Toronto design publications in the early 2010s, I had a steadfast rule when selecting covers: no all-white kitchens or grey-on-grey interiors.

I had my work cut out for me.

Throughout the decade, I sifted through a sea of neutral spaces until, miraculously, my first cover of 2018 was a display of full-on maximalism: colour, pattern, texture, sculptural lighting. There was no going back. While the spaces we featured had always been refined and sophisticated, it was thrilling to see the city’s interiors move beyond bland, and show signs of becoming what I always knew they could be.

In the years after, I watched that momentum build until last fall, when it was documented in Toronto Interiors, Catherine MacIntosh’s 240-page tribute to the city’s residential design scene. The book features 95 recently completed homes designed by 30 studios, spanning emerging and well-known practises and a wide spectrum of styles that mirror the diversity of the city itself.

Unlike established design capitals, Toronto resists a single signature look: its interiors are layered rather than loud, warm without being overly precious and globally informed while remaining rooted in local context. Designers working in the city often create a dialogue between old and new, preserving character-defining elements such as trim and mouldings while introducing modern interventions that support contemporary lifestyles.

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At her book launch last September, MacIntosh noted there hasn’t been a book on Toronto’s residential interiors for 30 years. For a city that has grown by leaps and bounds since then, with an ever-expanding design industry, that gap felt telling. It led me to a larger question: How did Toronto move from a safe, real estate-first, design-second city to this irrevocable moment of design confidence?

As with most breakthroughs, it did not happen overnight.

Designer Paolo Ferrari, founder of Studio Paolo Ferrari, which has offices in Toronto and Milan, brings an international perspective to the question. He confirmed it wasn’t until the mid-to-late 2010s that cracks in the neutral wall began to appear, with the pandemic later accelerating a shift toward expressive, personal and emotionally-grounded design.

Equally important was the Toronto design community’s evolution past a handful of practises in the early 2000s to a robust ecosystem capable of shaping its own narrative.

Ferrari pointed to what was a typical approach when Toronto was still “the little city that could.” “If you were designing a restaurant in Toronto 25 or 30 years ago, you would fly to New York, find something you liked and bring a watered-down version of it here,” he said. “That doesn’t happen any more.”

International clients now seek out Canadian firms for collaboration. Ferrari partly attributes this shift to Toronto’s relative youth as a city. Unlike Paris or Milan, it is not bound by a rigid design heritage. “There is space to dream here,” he said, adding that local studios have the creative freedom to experiment, evolve and step onto the world stage. Ferrari himself works between Toronto and Milan, part of a growing cohort of Canadian designers earning international commissions.

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Beyond global recognition, Toronto’s design industry was also getting stronger at home. More than a decade ago, designer Mischa Couvrette made the deliberate – and, at the time, risky – decision to establish both the design studio and production arm of his company, Hollis+Morris, in Toronto. “There was a genuine fear that local manufacturing could disappear altogether as brands chased lower costs abroad,” he recalled.

The first nine years were hard, he admitted. Still, he followed his instinct, investing in local craft, material knowledge and long-term quality. That conviction has crystallized into a distinct design language. “We’re seeing a real appreciation for rich materiality and pared-back design,” said Couvrette, who describes his brand’s approach as “simple minimalism.” In his work, expression comes less from ornament and more from material, proportion and craft – a quieter confidence that mirrors the evolution happening across Toronto interiors.

Today, Canadian lighting manufacturers are considered among the strongest in the field, notable alongside Italian labels. The pendulum has swung toward supporting domestic makers, which the recent push to “buy Canadian” has only accelerated.

“We are definitely having a moment,” said architect Jacob JeBailey of Reign Architects. He credits a convergence of multiple forces behind Toronto’s design momentum: advances in technology, skilled local trades and a younger, design-literate clientele. Social media has expanded access to references, while cultural and economic shifts have produced clients willing to take risks and articulate how they want to live.

MacIntosh has observed a similar trend. “The city’s design culture has grown up a lot and become more accessible along the way,” she said, adding that good design doesn’t require a luxury budget. Designers and homeowners are more willing to express personality and heritage, moving beyond formulaic interiors designed for status toward spaces that are layered and deeply personal. In her book, this is evident in a Victorian home where its original millwork is paired with bold contemporary lighting, and in a downtown loft that balances eclectic art and curated vintage finds.

Looking ahead, the author hopes the momentum continues with a greater focus on building for the future. Good design, she said, does not need to be elaborate or expensive: It simply needs to be thoughtful, healthy for its inhabitants and mindful of its impact on the broader streetscape. In other words, homes should be designed with consideration for privacy, comfort and longevity, not just for speed or resale.

Ferrari, the designer, believes it is equally important to acknowledge where the city’s design stands today. “I think it’s time we recognize this special moment in the evolution of Toronto design and celebrate it, unapologetically and at full volume.”