A two-floor Toronto apartment in an old Victorian house

Emily and her husband weren't planning to move. Then they saw this 1,200 sq ft apartment on the top two floors of an old Toronto house. A brick wall runs up through both floors, and they moved in two years ago. They're from Halifax and moved to Toronto after their first apartment there.

The kitchen sold them too. Both love to cook, and they host long weekend meals for friends around the big island. A skylight above the dining table lights both floors. On sunny mornings, stained glass windows throw red, pink and yellow onto the walls. Every Friday at five they mix cocktails from the bar cabinet.

The art tells their story. Vintage-style travel posters from Etsy show Jamaica, New York and Copenhagen. Emily is half Jamaican, and her husband is part Danish. His father made maps of every place they've lived. Friends turned an empty champagne bottle from their first dinner here into a piece of art.

They use the main bedroom as an office and TV room, so the living room stays TV-free. They sleep in the smaller bedroom upstairs, under another skylight. Three small patios give them room to eat outside in summer.