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Designing Vancouver's Priciest Condo Listing

When Karin Bohn received a call in 2014 from a contractor to renovate a four-bedroom, five-bathroom penthouse condo at Three Harbour Green tower on Thurlow Street in Coal Harbour, it seemed like a straightforward project.

When Karin Bohn received a call in 2014 from a contractor to renovate a four-bedroom, five-bathroom penthouse condo at Three Harbour Green tower on Thurlow Street in Coal Harbour, it seemed like a straightforward project. “The client wanted us to change the wallpaper, change the floors,” she explains over coffee at Gastown’s Mink Chocolates.

Karin Bohn penthouse

Little did the designer, who leads a team of seven out of her Gastown-based design studio, House of Bohn, know, that the minor project in the luxury development would evolve into a two-and-a-half year-long renovation which included gutting the entire 9,000-square-foot penthouse condo, changing all of the finishes, the lighting plan and parts of the floor plan.

Penthouse kitchen

Even more astounding was the fact that post-renovation, the condo, which covers three floors including two rooftop terraces and boasts 360 degree views of the North Shore mountains on the East and West side, the ocean and Stanley Park, would be listed for sale at just under $60 million dollars—at the time the country’s priciest piece of real estate. “A few months after we closed the job, I got a phone call from a realtor (Juliana Jiao) saying ,‘We just listed the condo you worked on for $58.8 million dollars’,” Karin explains.

Coal harbour penthouse

Originally built in 2012, the 2016 listing represented a 254 per cent increase from the $16.6 million price tag of its previous sale in 2014. Since the $58.8 listing, which garnered its share of media buzz in 2016, the owners opted to take the home off the market and sell it privately.

Not a stranger to luxury renovation projects, (her roster includes high-end residential projects and revamps of retailers including Helmet Salon and eateries Q Shi Q and Anh and Chi), Karin approached this overhaul the same way she does the others. “We start with a blank canvas and never reference a previous space,” she explains.

Karin Bohn Penthouse

Karin's eclectic design esthetic is also influenced by diverse cultures and eras, including the Chinese and German heritages of her mother and father, respectively. “I’m inspired by nature, fashion, film and set design. I look at things that are not interiors so the projects don’t end up looking like the photos you picked out.”

For this particular project, the inspiration for the colour palette and design came mainly from the view; the spectacular outdoor landscape seen through the floor-to-double-height-ceiling windows. While the unique geometric pattern of the onyx and marble stone flooring in the foyer and the kitchen is a nod to the jagged shapes of the majestic North Shore mountains on display in the distance, the completely white onyx bathroom and naturally coated white oak kitchen offers a contemporary, soothing West Coast ambiance with a bit of a ’70s vibe.

Karin Bohn Penthouse

Custom furniture in rich materials and earthy hues designed by House of Bohn offsets the subdued cream, tan and white colour palette of the millwork. Blown-glass statement lighting in the living room by Bocci and a Ralph Bucci copper-sheet chandelier over the dining room table (“I’ve been wanting to use that chandelier for so long,” says Karin) add interest to the otherwise minimalist décor.

Though the finished product is spectacular, like most renos it didn’t come without its challenges, which included concrete pillars, making a layout change near impossible. There was also the kitchen which Karin says originally “looked like a morgue.” And the pea soup green floors that the client was adamant about installing.

Karin Bohn Penthouse

There was also a language and time barrier to contend with, as the owner, a real estate developer who had originally purchased the space with the Beijing real estate market in mind, was very busy and often not in Vancouver.

With its out-of-this-world price tag, the buzz this project garnered has helped bolster Bohn’s design notoriety, which she’s worked hard to develop over the last ten years. Along with a hefty Instagram following, Karin now has a YouTube channel with two shows—one called Bohnafide which is documenting the renovation of the North Vancouver townhouse she and her husband hope will be completed in January 2018—and there is talk of a TV show on the horizon.

Whether it’s her own home or a multi-million dollar suite, Karin Bohn’s designs are evolving with her clients’ tastes. “There’s been an evolution in design over the last ten years. More and more of our clients are willing to step outside the box. We’re not having to push them out,” she says.

Houseofbohn.com