The Interior Design Show brings more than than 50,000 design buffs, decorators and house-proud Torontonians to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre to ogle innovative exhibits and the latest in home design. Given the sheer size of the show floor and the crowd, we suggest heading in with a game plan. Here, our 25 favourite products and installations, from the practical to the spectacular.
Interior Design Show Toronto, Metro Toronto Convention Centre, North Building, 255 Front Street West. The show is open to the public on January 26 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and January 27 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tickets are $19 online and $22 at the door.
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When Raymond Girard and Laird Kay decided to shack up two years ago, they wanted a move-in-ready place with a modern interior, but the Toronto housing market didn’t offer what they were looking for. The new houses they saw were full of faux historical details, and the old ones demanded major renovations. After a year-long search, they found a rarity: a 110-year-old three-bedroom box in Little Italy, which the firm Building Arts Architects had just redone. Girard and Kay brought discerning eyes to the space—Girard, a Winnipeg native and the publisher of Air Canada’s in-flight magazine, enRoute, had studied architecture at the University of Montreal before turning to publishing, while Kay recently launched his own architectural photography practice. The couple started with an assortment of modernist pieces and added mementos from their extensive travels. “Laird and I are obsessed with flight and planes and airports,” says Girard. As a result, they have a sizable collection of model planes and air travel memorabilia, as well as awesome international flea market souvenirs. The overall effect is quirkily stylish, like a well-curated boutique hotel. 
Peering at us from across a sea of lighting and countertop displays at the Interior Design Show 
