Montreal-based interior designers Indee Design have completed what the studio describes as “a playhouse for kids (and adults!)” in the city. Named Atelier Chabot, the scheme saw the transformation of an existing duplex into a single-family home featuring curated furnishings themed around play.

“On a mission looking to change the lives of their family, the owners were trying to decide whether to take a trip around the world by sea or to purchase a home,” the team explains. “This project combines both of those dreams, which seemed to oppose one another. For these great travelers, the notion of travel became the common thread of this project, which inspired the idea of creating a space where the inner child can awaken within.”

While the beams and brick walls of the original duplex were preserved, the unit was otherwise overhauled to remove overly-confining partitions. A new vertical circulation space was created to link the two floors, while the living room was placed in the center of the house to serve surrounding rooms in an act inspired by Moroccan riads.

The main staircase is constructed of perforated steel panels, as are the landing, a catamaran net, and a slide landing on the kitchen counter. In a nod to the owner’s engineering background, the slide was custom-made to be the same width as the kitchen counter “in order to create an essence of perfect geometry.”

The home’s various rooms are tied together through the use of “original, playful, and unexpected elements” designed to appeal to both children and adults. A rock-climbing wall decorates the children’s bedroom, while the slide connecting the catamaran net to the kitchen functions as an alternative to the stairs. While the net conjures images of a sailboat, the rock-climbing wall is placed to be visible from the ground floor, finished with maple panels and colored attachments.

Across the home, materials such as maple wood, navy blue steel, and bespoke curtains “add a theatrical touch, while emphasizing the playful spirit of the space.” Meanwhile, vintage objects brought back from the clients’ travels populate the space, with books and antiquities representing cultures and world eras. In the bathroom, a selection of ceramics reference period cement tiles, while recycled objects such as a clawfoot bathtub are accentuated by “joyous paint palettes.”

“The perforated steel of the floors and the stairs can turn from a dark navy blue to black based on the hours of the day,” the team adds. “The opening and perforation of the holes within the space enable visibility across the house while keeping everything visually harmonious. Additionally, navy blue was selected for the cement tile ceramics from Ramacieri Soligo. In contrast to the darker color, and to punctuate the living space, the designer selected light-colored woods, such as maple and light cherry wood.”

The home is one of several recently completed residential projects to feature in our editorial. Last month, StudioAC showcased a Toronto home with an 'unapologetically contemporary' gable form, while Ryuichi Sasaki Architecture completed a set of minimalist concrete apartments on a narrow site in Tokyo. Late last year, meanwhile, IOAN showcased a Joshua Tree residence using natural materials set against a desert backdrop.