Today we have another Small Home Tour for you! I promised there would be more this year. Grateful to Sarah of the beautiful food blog Tastes By Jade for offering to share her lovely Toronto apartment.
Pleased to share with you the home tour below…

How big is your home and what is the layout ?I l live in Toronto with my family of four, David, Camden and Sophia. Both David and I grew up in the suburbs, but have lived in Toronto for nearly a decade and have embraced small space living, even with the addition of two kids. We live in a 2 bedroom 2 bathroom 800 sq ft condo near the city's lakefront. It has a 100 sq ft balcony.

Tell me about your choice to live small as a family. Was it a conscious decision or did it just evolve?

Both my husband and I work downtown and wanted to be close to the city core in order to cut down on commute time. But like many major cities, affordability is an issue, so our first home was a condo. We like that it is low maintenance and easy to clean, buying us more time to spend with our family and in the city. At this point, we don't mind compromising on space if it means we are closer to the city and work.

How would you describe your home style?

Pre-pandemic we didn't spend too much time in our condo and chose a more minimalist vibe. We didn't have too many photos on the wall, and most of our belongings and furniture were neutral colours. But since COVID and the many lockdowns that followed, we opted for a more colourful, cozy and boho vibe. This past year we replaced our TV wall with a photo gallery of our travels, added different textures to the room with blankets, pillows and carpet. We also adopted several indoor plants.

View of the kitchen and the dining table

A play corner of the open floorplan living and dining space

Is there a piece of furniture or accessory that you couldn't live without that makes living in your space easier?When we bought our condo, we negotiated including the custom-made cherry wood table. It's a beautiful rustic piece that is truly the heart of our home. I am able to use it for food photography, hosting, preparing meals and most recently, as an office from time to time. It is a high top table, so when we had kids we bought a lobster high chair that attached to the end.

What is something you love about living small?

So much! I love the creative ideation that small space living requires; the seemingly endless possibilities for how to store things and make your space work. I love the sense of togetherness that comes with a smaller space. I am able to see and spend a lot of time with my kids and spouse, rather than being in different rooms or different levels of a house. Sometimes, it can feel overbearing, but we have access to a city park right at our doorstep whenever we need some time to ourselves.

What is something you hate?

Since the pandemic, it has been challenging to work from home with two little ones. If working from home is going to be a long term thing, we would prefer to have a separate office space.

What are your best ways to beat the winter blues and keep from going crazy with kids indoors?

Definitely going outdoors and exploring nature! One of the best things I love about our location is that it faces a large public park that spans two kilometres of the city's shoreline. Every day since the pandemic, rain or shine, we go out for walks and explore the park. It never seems to get old, especially with the changing seasons. We've embraced the saying from the Scandanavians, there is no bad weather, only bad clothing.

I think Small Space-ers need to stick together and share all their best tricks. Do you have any storage or organizational tips you want to share?

For our kids room, we removed the closet doors and opened it up. My dad built custom shelves and a change table to add more functionality to the space. It also serves as my sons' 'cozy corner' where he has some cushions and glow in the dark star stickers for when he wants his own space.

Obviously this past year has been particularly challenging for small space families. Wondering if there's anything in particular that has been working for you during this time?

Getting out everyday has made a world of difference for our mental health. We incorporated outdoor time as part of our regular routine and purchased a few things to keep us extra warm (i.e. merino wool onesies). Recently, we even had a picnic and beach day, in January!

Thanks again Sarah for opening your home to us. I especially love that you have cozied up and in to your small space during the pandemic. I couldn’t agree more that the biggest change to small city living with the pandemic is that we lost the ability to use the city to fill in the things we might be missing in our space. Happy to hear you have adjusted so smoothly (took me a little longer to adjust!). Also as requested Sarah shared the floorplan of her space so you can understand it in greater detail! You can find more from Sarah on Instagram and her Blog.

Small Home Tours: Sarah and Family in 800 Square Feet in Toronto