“As a designer, I help compose your personal story in a balanced and cohesive visual style.”
Residential Design
A well designed home means many things but most importantly, it’s about you.
Whatever you call home, an urban bachelor condominium, suburban family oasis or rural retirement bungalow, ownership is a lifelong commitment and for most people their greatest investment.
David Baker Design is here to help you make the best decisions in a timely, informed method. We help by introducing you to the latest in products and technologies. We resolve details cohesively. We ensure your design intent is brought forward to your builder. We detail your project and follow those details to completion.
To each project we bring this vision; a steadfast focus on the moment when it all comes together.
Shelter
This fully enclosed courtyard offers privacy from the outside and protection from the weather.
New Homes
Our design begins with the understanding of location. The site informs the design : sun angles, wind direction, drainage, views, privacy, openness and light all play a part in a well-designed home.
As a true custom design firm, we tailor each home for each client. Like your favorite comfort food, the components that make your home your own is personal. Tastes will vary, styles change and trends will fade but the principles of good design are timeless : form, function, flow, light, scale and space.
“The meaning of the word shelter includes privacy.”
Renovating
Renovating is not always a single project, for many people change is a process, an ongoing evolution of creating space defined by their lifestyle. Crucial to any renovation is to begin with a concept and allowing that vision to evolve over time as your tastes change and new ideas need to be expressed. On the journey of creation, design is not a linear path. It ambles and rambles and finds its’ own way. Sometimes you stop to rest and pick up again at a later point. What we do is help guide the process to ensure a cohesive and consistent result at every stage. At each pause your home should look and feel complete before you set out again.
It takes experience to remodel a building. An understanding of times gone by, the technology, materials and practices of-the-day ensures we recognize what we see when lathe, plaster and horsehair hits the floor. David Baker Design renovates with the sensitivity needed to weave original spaces into something new; something whole.
Kitchens
The heart of your home
Contemporary Homes
New thoughts, ideas and technologies bring dynamic change to modern building design
Infill Design
Any new home in an established neighbourhood is by definition an infill.
Re-development of gentrified communities breathes restorative life into aging places ensuring neighourhoods have a range of ages; a lifecycle for urban sustainability. As demographics evolve the market changes and new forms emerge. New expectations of what home is continuously adds to the community quilt.
Tradition and Change
In the past half century our cities have transformed dramatically. Populations have boomed and suburbs seem ever-expanding. Inner-city communities are highly sought after, not only for mature streetscapes but for the lifestyle of large lots and short walks.
By-laws and building codes continue to change and in many ways leading the path of forward thinking. David Baker Design stays current with emerging codes keeping our clients informed and in front.
Suites
Evolving City By-laws now allow for Laneway (Back-yard) Suites and Secondary Suites in a basement. Suites contribute to inner city community vibrance as the older suburbs, built for large families of the last century, have seen populations drop off. Suites provide owners a supplemental income and established neighbourhoods with more eyes on the street and more commerce for local business.
City regulations will evolve over time and not all properties qualify for a suite. Sites can have physical limits including site coverage and ties to existing neighbourhood infrastructure. David Baker Design can help you find potential on your property and create designs that respect the established character of the community you already enjoy.
Apartment Living
Typically the interiors of new condominium tower developments don’t overwhelm. Spaces are designed around base building mechanical and large structural columns. Kitchens tend to have minimal accessory functions and are built for cost effective construction. As buildings age those materials chosen to minimize cost tend to wear quickly.
Designing and renovating in a concrete and steel tower presents different challenges than we have in ground-level, wood framed homes. Acoustics and neighbours, fire ratings, service shut offs, ceiling drops, space efficiency and working around immoveable objects pose challenges and opportunities.
Apartment kitchens become the centre of function and form in small spaces, not to mention the social centre. Well designed kitchens with functional, efficient storage makes small spaces livable especially when the nearest store is down the elevator and blocks away!
Environmental Conscience
Lighting contributes to only 10% of electrical consumption in the average North American home and we consider this one of many contributions to sustainable design. Appliances, HVAC and electronics consume the other 90% in large bites. David Baker Design continues to navigate your options as the supportable environment industry grows. We approach new trends with eyes and ears open. As new products and technologies become available we keep our clients informed of potential advantages and sometimes hidden flaws.
Natural Light
Allowing sunlight to find the darkest reaches of a home provides an endless connection the environment and the world outside
Supporting Local
Even before COVID reminded us of the importance of supporting local economy, David Baker Design has prioritized Made in Canada products. From quartz counters quarried and fabricated in Quebec to local natural Rocky Mountain stone, Canadian made plumbing fixtures and finishing wood from sustainable Alberta forestry, supporting our neighbours in business and industry is top of mind in design decisions.
Visability
Great design doesn’t stop at the corner
Residential Project Scope :
Site Evaluation
New Home and Renovation Design
Suite development
Apartment and Condominium Interiors
Tender Documents and Specifications
Bid Analysis
Working Drawings
Development Permits
Building Permits
Project Management
Construction Liaison
Home Systems Planning
Lighting
Kitchen and Millwork Design
Stair Design
Interior Finishes
Color Consulting
Furniture and Window Coverings
Detailing and Features
“People who build their own home tend to be very courageous. These people are curious about life. They’re thinking about what it means to live in a house, rather than just buying a commodity and making it work.”