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Our Project Westdale Tudor Revival is now live on @ruemagazine.

A 1930s home reworked through a full renovation and addition — balancing architectural integrity with how a modern family actually lives.

Grateful to @kellilamb_ and the Rue team for the feature. 🤍

Full gallery now live on Rue. Link in bio. ✨

Design & Build: @simoneandphil
Architectural & Interior Design: @simonesmithdesign
Construction: @parkstudiobuild
Photography: @niamhbarryphoto
Styling: @newmodehome taken in Westdale by @simoneandphil

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6 months ago

When our clients purchased this 1930s Tudor home, much of its original charm had been stripped away after years as a student rental. There was literally nothing cool about it to save. Phil and I set out to restore its soul, gutting it and building a mudroom addition, and introducing timeless architectural details throughout. We’re so happy this home has new life in her. For those of you who like reading, our blog post about designing and renovating Project Westdale is going live shortly!

Beautifully captured by: @niamhbarryphoto
Styled by Alessia from: @newmodehome taken in Westdale by @simoneandphil

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a year ago

Simone keeps designing arches… and I keep building them.

Some are simple. Some test my patience. But all of them turn out pretty damn great in the end.

These are a few of my favourites we’ve done together, from big feature openings to tiny niches. Got a favourite? I’m taking votes.

#customcarpentry #interiorwoodwork #archeddoorway #homeinspo #designbuild #archdetails #renovationideas #millworkdetails #carpenterlife #homeswithcharacter #simoneandphil

What’s your favourite? taken in Hamilton, Ontario by @simoneandphil

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a year ago

Our foyer ❤️ If you guys remember I was battling over what kind of border to do around this checkered tile and I ended up going with something I didn’t show as an option on a whim. At first, I worried I was forcing ornateness and complicating the design for no reason. A marble checkered floor could surely suffice, right? But after seeing the Greek-key style border in that took foreeeeever to do, it’s perfect and we couldn’t see it any other way.
Are you team border on the tile? by @simoneandphil

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a month ago

Gatherings feel effortless here ✨

Photo @niamhbarryphoto taken in Westdale by @simoneandphil

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3 months ago

Our living room.

A lot of you originally followed us while we were renovating the main floor of our home, but I don’t think we ever gave this room a proper finished reveal.

We sourced an old fireplace, rebuilt the room pretty much, and somehow convinced ourselves to lay the herringbone and tiled entry floors ourselves. Very much an “only because it’s our own house” decision.

Gosh, it needs some art, but the transformation feels slightly insane when we look back at what was here before. taken in Downtown Hamilton by @simoneandphil

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3 months ago

I like when I get to do the fun stuff. taken in Ancaster, Ontario by @simoneandphil

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3 months ago

One of the biggest mistakes people make in design is treating every decision as a standalone moment.

In our clients’ 1816 new ensuite, the curves repeat:

The shower exterior.
The vanity.
The marble backsplash.
The arches throughout the room.

Even the shower opening was inspired by the twin segmental arches in our dining room.

I truly believe that good design is often about repeating the right things and pulling from what already exists.

If you’ve ever walked into a room and thought “I can’t explain why I love this”, I’m willing to bet that repetition had something to do with it. taken in Ancaster, Ontario by @simoneandphil

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3 months ago

Harmony Hall has stood in Ancaster since 1816. Built by Israel Dawdy, a Captain in the Gore Militia, it’s older than Canada itself, standing nearly fifty years before Confederation.

When we first walked through, the arches found us before we found them.

Segmental arches built into the original dining room cabinetry.
An elliptical fanlight over the front door that stops you before you even reach for the handle.
Stone archways in the foundation still standing exactly as they were laid.

We didn’t have to invent an inspiration for this project.

The house already had one, we just had to listen to it. Every arch we’re building back in started as an arch already living somewhere in these walls.

This is the beginning of that process, and we’ll be here for all of it.

Some of our favourite work yet is happening behind these walls right now. by @simoneandphil

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3 months ago

Most people try to make a home feel expensive at the end.

Better furniture. Better styling. Better finishes.

But if the bones aren’t there… you feel it immediately.

Low openings, thin walls, no transitions — everything reads flat, even if it’s “nice.”

What actually changes how a home feels is harder to see, but impossible to ignore once you notice it:
proportion, depth, and how spaces connect.

This is what we focused on in Westdale — not adding more, but building the right structure from the start. by @simoneandphil

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6 months ago

Open concept made sense for a while. It felt modern. Spacious. Connected.

But here’s what nobody talks about: when everything is visible, nothing has presence. No privacy. No quiet. No sense that one room is different from the next.

Our Westdale project changed how we think about this. We kept a wall the engineer wanted removed and it became the kitchen’s range wall. The anchor of the whole space. Structure that earned its place.

This home got the same treatment. We didn’t open it up for the sake of it. We designed for separation. For intention.

Defined rooms that still connect. Spaces that reveal themselves gradually. A home that doesn’t show you everything at once because the best homes never do. by @simoneandphil

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6 months ago

Simple doesn’t mean luxurious.

Most of the time it just means:�fast, easy, inexpensive to build.

What actually feels expensive?

Detail. Time. Craft.

If it looks like it took time, it feels expensive. by @simoneandphil

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6 months ago