The Unionville Estate Residence is a testament to what a genuinely comprehensive large-scale home renovation can achieve when the design team is given both the brief and the trust to reimagine a home from the inside out. What began as a family home in need of a major facelift became, under the direction of Jessica Cinnamon Design, an open, luminous, and deeply livable estate that bears little resemblance to what it once was — except, critically, in the structural bones that gave us the foundation to work with.

The project brief was ambitious: not just to update the finishes and furnishings, but to fundamentally reconsider the floor plan and create spaces that worked with the way the family actually lived rather than against it. The original layout was a series of compartmentalised rooms — each functional in isolation but collectively creating a home that felt fragmented, dated, and resistant to the kind of casual, flowing family life our clients envisioned. The transformation required careful structural analysis, close collaboration with the architect and contractor, and a clear design vision that could guide every decision from framing through to final styling.

The floor plan redesign is the foundation of everything that followed. By working with the existing structural elements — identifying which walls could be opened and which needed to remain — we were able to create a main floor that flows with an ease and generosity that the original layout never allowed. The kitchen, living, and dining areas now read as a single connected space, each zone defined by ceiling detail, material transitions, and furniture arrangement rather than walls. The result is a home that feels significantly larger than its footprint and dramatically more connected to how the family spends their time.

Natural light was a defining priority throughout the redesign. The original home had generous windows, but the compartmentalised layout prevented the light from penetrating the interior spaces. By opening the floor plan and repositioning key elements, we created sightlines and light paths that allow the morning sun to reach the kitchen and the afternoon light to illuminate the living areas. The home now changes beautifully throughout the day in a way it never previously could.

The material palette for the Unionville Estate Residence is anchored by a combination of natural marbles, warm and cool wood species, and custom millwork in multiple finishes. Natural marble — selected in both polished and honed varieties depending on the application — appears on kitchen countertops and backsplashes, bathroom vanities, and feature surfaces throughout. The combination of different wood stains in the cabinetry and built-in millwork creates warmth and visual interest without the palette feeling busy or unresolved.

Custom millwork was designed throughout the home with a dual purpose: to provide the storage that a busy family requires and to serve as the primary design element in each room. Built-in cabinetry in the kitchen, library-style built-ins in the living area, and custom vanity millwork in every bathroom give the home a level of finish and permanence that off-the shelf furniture simply cannot replicate. Every piece of millwork was designed specifically for its space — sized, proportioned, and detailed to fit both the room and the home's broader design language.

The primary suite renovation transformed what had been a functional but uninspiring master bedroom into a genuine sanctuary. A complete reconfiguration of the layout allowed for a dedicated dressing room, a spa-inspired ensuite with a large-format stone wet room and freestanding soaking tub, and a sleeping area that feels calm, considered, and deeply comfortable. The custom millwork headboard wall, upholstered panels, and integrated bedside storage create an environment that feels hotel-quality while remaining entirely personal.

The Unionville Estate Residence is a project that Jessica Cinnamon Design approaches with particular pride — not because it is the most glamorous entry in our portfolio, but because it demonstrates something perhaps more valuable: the ability to take a home with real constraints and real history, and to see in it the potential for something extraordinary. This is what large-scale renovation interior design in the Greater Toronto Area looks like when it is executed at the highest level, from concept through to every last detail.