When it comes to colour, this designing duo likes to keep things fun, fresh and a bit playful. “We think of turquoise as a neutral colour,” say Melissa VanToever and Carly Martin of Charlottetown’s Turquoise Shed Designs. The pair started their custom furniture refinishing business only two years ago. “We couldn’t find much that was our style in P.E.I., so we started creating it ourselves,” explains Carly. It quickly spun into a full-service design company that sees them handling everything from window coverings to whole-house jobs.

Four years ago, Melissa and her husband, John Michael Murphy, bought this 90-year-old, three-bedroom duplex (they rent out the other half) in the heart of Charlottetown. With lots of help from family and friends, every wall was torn out, allowing them to open up the main floor’s three small rooms into a single large, airy space. Even the ceiling was ripped down, exposing beams that were probably taken from old ships, still with large bits of marine hardware left intact.


Front entry
A wall between the front entryway and living room was removed, along with the ceiling. To maintain some division, homeowner Melissa VanToever’s brother built a tall storage unit, which holds a TV on one side and hooks and cubbies on the other.

Living room
The living room’s dark grey sectional was the “first real furniture purchase” for Melissa and her husband. The artwork above the sectional was a wedding gift.

Colourful accents
Melissa’s love of turquoise also extends to decor accents in the home, as seen here in this pretty tray.
Dining room
The teak dining table and chairs in the eat-in kitchen design were bought from a used furniture shop and treated to new, textured vinyl upholstery in a bold turquoise shade.
Table setting
Simple white china mixes with thrift-store turquoise glass plates for a fresh table setting.
Kitchen
Dark green kitchen cabinets were updated with white paint and new hardware. Bright, high-gloss yellow paint on the backsplash that easily wipes clean is an affordable alternative to tile.
Playroom
Melissa had this tall corner cabinet built to offer a storage solution for the main floor’s playroom (originally the dining room), where the kids can be watched from the living room or kitchen. It’s hard to believe that the newly reupholstered armchair, found on Kijiji, used to sport retro green fabric.
Bedroom
To counteract the master bedroom's turquoise walls, everything else in the space was kept in a neutral white or beige. The vintage headboard was painted white and reupholstered in a natural linen, which was also used for the drapery.