A big home reno in Burlington creates space for a big family

Julie Cole comes from a long line of large families. While her brood of six kids doesn't come close to her great-grandparents' 21 offspring, they do make for a bustling household.

Throw in a global pandemic that forced three university-aged kids back home, and everyone else inside, and you've got the makings for a lot of wear and tear on the family homestead.

This past January, Cole, a parenting blogger and co-founder of Mabel's Labels, figured it was finally time to upgrade their Burlington home.

We bought it when my sixth kid wasn't quite one, and it's been a house meant to be lived in. I have a high tolerance for chaos, and I'm good with kids rollerblading in the house, being messy and having friends over," she said.

Now that my oldest is 21 and my youngest is 12 and they're not rollerblading through the house anymore, I figured it was time to go to the next level. Being at home for so long through the pandemic put a fire in my belly to elevate the space and make it more functional," Cole said, adding: We can have nice things now."

She hired Beth Maricic, of Beth Maricic Design, to transform the main floor into an uber-practical space that both embraces and contains the many vagaries of a big family.

The first step was reconfiguring the layout of the 1,600-sq.-ft. space, swapping the kitchen with the living room. For Julie and her family, the kitchen really is the heart of the home. We invested space and budget into making this a place where the whole family can gather," said Maricic.

Kitchens have always represented love, connection, hospitality and laughter in my family. Being central to good food and drink is a bonus," said Cole.

Cole's number one kitchen requirement was to ensure there was enough room for at least six kids at the island. The kids like to chat when they come home, but people were always fighting because there were never enough stools."

To solve the problem, Maricic designed a three-metre island with six chairs (two are tuck-ins at either end) and an adjacent peninsula with room for four more on high-back chairs and two tuck-ins.

I work from this space a lot and if a neighbour pops in, that's where they perch themselves. People sit at the island all the time. It's perfect," said Cole.

A 48-inch double range, wine fridge and integrated fridge, freezer and dishwasher were all upgrades that help make mealtimes more efficient. And while the $90,000 price tag of the custom, solid-wood cabinetry was steep, Maricic and Cole agreed that it was an investment worth making.

Part of the mission of my company is to be as environmentally sound as possible. I'm very aware of what goes into the landfill. Cabinetry experiences a ton of wear and tear, more than anything in the house, especially with a big, busy family. You want to invest in the best so you can refinish cabinetry rather than throw it away and start over if you want a different look," said Maricic.

The warm colours of the upper and lower cabinets serve to brighten the space and contrast with the white oak hardwood flooring that was installed over the well-worn - rollerblades! - parquet flooring to avoid additional waste. The nearby Canadian-made dining table was crafted from rift-sawn oak by Hamilton company Camposilvan and Sons.

We wanted the finishings to be as Canadian and as durable as possible," said Maricic.

It was important to me to help support local businesses. We're all struggling (due to the pandemic), so it was a priority. Plus, I know from buying kids' clothes that when you cheap out, you can't hand things down. This kitchen is going to outlast my humans and hopefully lots of grandbabies, too," Cole continued.

Rezoning the main floor also made for more nooks and crannies for kids to get cosy. I had my fifth child when my oldest was six, so I needed them all in the same room. I was counting heads," she said.

My kid Spencer used to make a reading nook by opening a drawer and crawling under it. That was their way of finding privacy in an open space," said Cole.

Now we're at a stage where they might want to do something apart from a sibling, so our house can function differently."

Today, some kids can flake out and play video games or watch movies on the giant sectional in the living room, while others can curl up with a book in the sun-drenched area by the back door.

Maricic also helped bring harmony and storage to the home's foyer, a mudroom and a laundry room on the main floor. The renovation began in January and was complete by summer. The family set up a kitchen and living space in the basement so they could all stay together.

The construction costs, including the countertops maxed out at $140,000, which Cole says was well worth the serenity of a space her whole family and lots of friends can enjoy together.

We had an open house recently and we couldn't believe how different the house felt, spatially. Before there was so much wasted space where kids would dump hockey bags and backpacks. It was a hoarder's delight," she said.

Now that it's all tied in together and we have all these functional spaces, people can spread out and use all of it. The renovation has been a game changer for us."

Heather Hudson is a Toronto-based writer and a freelance contributor for the Star. Reach her on email: heather@heatherhudson.ca