My favourite room: Kimi Willgress’ sunny kitchen

When Kimi Willgress retired from her career as a professional athlete, the Olympic snowboarder turned to art. Inspired by her uncle, she started creating and selling Prana Rocks—oil lamps made with Nova Scotia slate—as a side hustle until she just couldn’t keep up with demand on her own. “Showing people how to incorporate them into their home was such a big part of selling them. I really started to enjoy selling them by showing people what I do with them in my house,” says Willgress of the evolution of her business. Now, Prana Rock is just part of Indie Home, her growing line of handmade and handpicked home decor. Here’s a look inside the founder’s home.  -AS

The room
The kitchen's always the heart of the home and we spend the most time in it. It's also an open-concept floor plan. When we bought this house, where the kitchen is was just an open dining room area. As soon as I walked in, I was like, 'But the kitchen has to be here!' and my realtor and husband looked at me like I was crazy. Now, everyone who comes in here is like, 'I can't even imagine it any other way' because the kitchen was originally facing the street and now it's facing the lake.

The inspiration
The biggest thing was the view, that was number one. The natural light, it faces south east so it's not super-bright but certain times of the day when the light comes in here it's just so nice to be in the space. There are so many windows. It's funny because it's the room is not square, it's kind of a triangle shape off the rest of the house, but I had some help from my cousin who's a designer. She sent me some drawings and then it seemed so simple. I always wanted a white kitchen because it's just kind of timeless and bright.

The details
I love my farmhouse sink—we did everything before Ikea was here so to get a farmhouse sink wasn't the easiest—but that's one of my favourites because it's so deep I can even bathe my baby in there, which is awesome. I love my gas stovetop, that was a big want for me because I grew up with one and it's so easy to cook on. And then, I always get comments on my pendant lights. For a long time, I was looking and couldn't find the brass with the clear globe. I ordered them from Schoolhouse Electric and they're a little vintage, a little mid-century, but they don't overpower the room at all. —interview edited for clarity and length