Inner sanctum A calm and elegant master suite by SPG Architects

Updating an historic property for a contemporary lifestyle can be rife with challenges not least because you're trying to reconcile two disparate programs.

"Built in 1901, this two-story carriage house forms part of a much larger home that recently underwent a complete renovation," says Coty Sidnam, principal of SPG Architects.

"For the master suite, the owner wanted to create a sleek, seamless look using a pared-back palette of materials and colors, while incorporating a number of modern amenities television, audio visual system, fireplace and air conditioning."

Natural wood ipeª and walnut feature throughout and a complementary palette of browns and ochres creates a warm ambience.

"The scale of the room, with its very high ceilings, created large wall planes. In order to break that up and to inject a human scale into the room, we created two inset feature elements using Burma teak marble," says Sidnam.

"As this part of the building has a heritage designation, we couldn't make any changes to the original windows. To give the illusion of extra height we added a fixed walnut panel above, which then brought the windows into line with the rest of the vertical elements."

The walk-through wardrobe continues the use of wood as a base material, while the ensuite bathroom inverts this, so that it becomes an accent to the Venetian plaster and back-painted glass.

The owner also has a fondness for Moroccan design, so hand-carved pocket doors were crafted to separate the bedroom from the wardrobe and the wardrobe from the bathroom.

"It is more than a private space, it is a personalized space, an evocation of the client's personality made manifest," says Sidnam.

Story by: Trendsideas