The Stadus family, dedicated mid-century modern aficionados, here outside their Waterloo, Ont., mid-century modern bungalow. Left to right, Monty, a two-year-old Norwich terrier, Mary and R.J.Dave LeBlanc/The Globe and Mail
The slim, brushed-metal house numbers and the original front door sporting a tidy column of square windows against a jaunty lime-green backdrop are the first clues to the nhome’s mid-century pedigree.Dave LeBlanc
The rear elevation. The couple was drawn to the 1956 house’s clean lines, low profile and gentle placement on a large lot.Dave LeBlanc
The back deck. The couple’s first task after buying the house was to tackle the wildly overgrown English garden outside.Dave LeBlanc
‘When the [old] owners were driving out when we took possession, we had our landscaper drive up behind them,’ laughs RJ. Everything, except the two mature trees in front yard, was carted away. ‘We bought a bunch of old Sunset magazines from the [1950s] period and said, ‘Okay, how would they have landscaped it back in the day?’Dave LeBlanc
Much of the furniture was replaced with mid-century classics – an Isamu Noguchi coffee table, a Saarinen dining set, a teak bed – and a local artist was commissioned to create a large painting inspired by Karl Benjamin’s work for the living roomDave LeBlanc
Inside, everything except the kitchen – which wasn’t to their taste but had been renovated so recently they didn’t have the heart to tear it out – was brought back to the studs.Dave LeBlanc
Failing windows were replaced, bathrooms renovated, and the second-largest bedroom was converted to a dressing room complete with vanity. Hulking ductwork in the walkout basement was replaced to gain ceiling height so the couple could place their business there.Dave LeBlanc
Stairway.Dave LeBlanc
Upper hallway.Dave LeBlanc