Muskoka mainstay Peaks & Rafters joins the parade of home-decor shops lining the North Annex.
The burgeoning Dupont Street décor strip got a major shot in the arm this month with the opening of Peaks & Rafters (585 Dupont St.), a swish new entrant that takes its place between Angus & Company (647 Dupont St.) and South Hill Home (200 Dupont St.), a few blocks to the east. Factor in other home stores Titus & Louise (677 Dupont St.), Pimlico (789 Dupont St.), Commute Home (367 Dupont St.), Relative Space (365 Dupont St.), Vienna Douglas (677 Dupont St.), Residential Lighting (489 Dupont St.) and Burnett (1052 Bathurst St.), and you’ve got a stroll that’s ready and able to give Castlefield a run for its money.
And while Peaks & Rafters may be new to the city, it’s no newcomer to the home-furnishings game, having catered to the upscale tastes of Port Carling in the heart of Muskoka for nearly 20 years. The brainchild of interior designer Margot Bell, Peaks & Rafters has expanded under the friendly, able oversight of Bell’s daughter Katelyn Jarrett.
P&R struts a catwalk between town and country. “We’re not really into bears and loons and ducks,” stresses Jarrett. “That’s not our aesthetic. Sure, we’ve done fabulous log cabins but good furniture should work no matter where you put it.”
Stacked on a table near the door is a selection of décor books including Christiane Lemieux’s Undecorate; Peaks & Rafters might just as well be called Unvintage, since so many of the pieces look old but aren’t.
Armoires and chic wooden tables (I especially love the Beckham entry table, pictured below, $1,746) are limed or otherwise distressed, giving them the suggestion of patina but with very au currant profiles.
Lamps, too, borrow yesterday’s shapes executed in today’s materials. The “Vintage Brass and Snow” lamp is vintage in name only and is priced out of reach for many at $777—but, oh, what a sweet thing to aspire to. The Morley iron table lamp also draws inspiration from the past and is priced at a more affordable $387.
And then there’s the art. Peaks & Rafters does double duty as an art gallery repping artists like Gordon Harrison, David Grieve and Jon Jarro, among others. Prices are in the $3,000-$5,000 range, so you’ll need to be feeling flush; mostly, the works are strong, graphic and colourful with a distinct focus on the natural world.
“We love art, it’s a complete passion for us,” says Jarrett. “I love calling an artist and telling them we sold a piece. It gives me such a high.”
With Bell’s experience and Jarrett’s keen enthusiasm, it’s no surprise that P&R does interior-design consulting in addition to the retail end of the business. “When it comes to decorating, some people think they need to do everything but that’s not a reality for most people,” acknowledges Jarrett. “Most of us don’t start from scratch. It’s a matter of keeping things you have and repurposing them or refreshing them with a few new pieces.”
