A Vancouver Designer Invited Her Mom to Move in—and Then Built Her a Calming Suite

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two women standing in kitchen — Designer Kate Totten (right) and her mother.

When most people move out of their childhood home, they’re excited to wiggle out from under their parents’ thumbs and finally be on their own. However, in designer Kate Totten’s experience, don’t be surprised if you crave closeness with your folks decades later. Prior to opening Liber Creative in 2025, Totten worked at a small design firm in Portland, Oregon, which meant she couldn’t visit her family in Canada during the pandemic.

“It was very difficult because I’m very close to my mother,” she shares. “We had previously lost my stepfather and my kids were so young. [My husband and I] both felt like we were drowning when we were working from home, which I think a lot of people felt then.”

Ultimately, Totten’s family moved back to Canada, and she floated the idea of buying a house with an in-law suite to her 67-year-old mom, Jill, who was ecstatic about the idea. Fortuitously, a 3,685-square-foot home just east of Vancouver in Port Moody was available and could accommodate three generations under one roof.

But how? Totten broke the design process into two phases, the first being a to-the-studs renovation of the 1,771 square feet that comprises her two children’s bedrooms, a recreation area, and Jill’s two-story suite. “She wanted it to be sophisticated, but whimsical and tied back to nature,” Totten says of her mom’s earthy escape. “She never had an interior designer design a home for her before, so this was the first time in her life that she got to have that say.”

Here’s how the designer made the multigenerational home work.

Tiles and Paint to Set the Tone

bathroom shower pre-renovation — The suite’s bathroom shower, before.

bathroom with bench and dark blue tiles — Slim navy tiles from GL Stone & Tile set a soothing backdrop, while a low curb, handheld showerhead, and bench add an accessible edge.

The shower niche’s slim tiles from GL Stone & Tile provided both a spa-like serenity and jumping-off point for the space. The tile’s inky hue informs the light blue kitchen cabinetry, textural light fixtures from And Ceramic Studio, and lots of wooden details—including the maple hardwood floor seen throughout the entire home—all of which celebrate British Columbia’s natural beauty.

white kitchen space before renovation — The suite’s kitchen, before.

kitchen with sink and window and floating shelves — A spa-like calm was essential to the design.

Independent Space and Flexibility

bedroom with murphy bed — A Murphy bed adds more space-saving solutions to the suite.

sitting area with brown chair and artwork — Perhaps one of the most difficult acquisitions was the West Elm chair that sits in Jill’s suite. “We spent hours,” Totten confesses. “So many chairs to find the one.”

Totten didn’t just want Jill’s suite to look like her own place: She also wanted to give her mom independence. Though the two-story suite can be accessed from inside the home, an exterior entry makes it possible for Jill to come and go as she pleases. (There’s even a Murphy bed in the unit’s entryway so she can host without abandon.) Totten also gave her mom a kitchen to meal prep—and, sure, savor silence. “Her bedroom is below her kitchen, so no one is directly above her,” Totten shares. “She gets peace and quiet at night and we don’t have to worry about noise.”

kitchen with floating shelves — Clean lines were key.

kitchen with coffee area and microwave — Since her mom “hates clutter,” Totten made it a point to build lots of storage, including a designated appliance garage. “Having enough storage for her to have everything in its proper place brings her a lot of joy and function simultaneously,” the designer says.

Designated Family Spaces

white space before renovation — The breakfast nook, before.

dining nook with bench — The storage under the bench keeps “Nana Sunday” supplies hidden for most of the week.

Despite the close quarters, Totten says her family can go days without seeing her mom. The exception, of course, is “Nana Sundays.” Every Sunday, Totten’s kids head down to their grandma’s suite for breakfast and crafts. In fact, storage in the kitchen’s breakfast nook is filled with “Nana Sunday” supplies. “The kids just go in, open their drawers, and it’s all art supplies and bracelet-making kits,” she shares. “That’s the corner where all the magic happens.”

Elegant-Yet-Ergonomic Solutions

empty space with tan carpet before renovation — The bedroom suite, before.

bedroom suite with bed and small sofa — “I didn’t treat it like it was secondary,” Totten says of her mom’s suite. “The suite is its own beautiful piece of design work, and it’s what my mother deserves.” Decked out with a fireplace and couch, the bedrooms offer a cozy convenience.

Both Totten’s mom and kids want “Nana Sundays” to last as long as possible, so it was crucial to future-proof her mom’s space. She raised her mom’s twin bed to minimize back or knee pain and added a fireplace for warmth, but it’s the bathrooms that epitomize effortless accessibility. The shower’s low curb makes it easy to step inside, while a handheld showerhead and bench create an intuitive spot to rinse off. A comfort-height toilet and lower vanity complete the elegant-yet-ergonomic setup.

There’s a bathroom on each floor for convenience, but why have two stories for a 67-year-old in the first place? “My mom did a bunch of research and found having stairs keeps you [in better shape] for longer,” the designer explains. “She jokes that she’s never leaving this house, so eventually we’ll have to put in one of those lift chairs on the staircase.”

Rooms Designed For Growing Minds

white room before renovation — The son’s bedroom, before.

green bedroom with green bedding — Desk, IKEA.

bedroom with tree mural — A woodsy mural from Fine & Dandy on one wall—and green paint everywhere else—turns this bedroom into a cozy, comfortable respite.

Totten also contemplated the future when decorating her nine-year-old daughter and 11-year-old son’s bedrooms. “When I told them they were going to design their own rooms, they came up with all these wild things,” she says. “But, when I offered them a few decisions and helped them curate, I saw them start to think about what life could look like in a few years.”

kids room with desk area — In her daughter’s room, there’s space to come into one’s own. “My daughter has her diary and a wall organizer in her room for all her stationery and pens,” Totten shares. “I can see her becoming herself, and that’s what this space allows.”

kids room with bench seat and avocado pillow — Kawaii Avocado Plush Toy, Etsy.

In her son’s room, verdant paint and a botanical repeat from Fine & Dandy Co. helps him feel like he’s in “a warm cottage in the middle of a glen.” Meanwhile, the Belarte Studio wallpaper in her daughter’s space gives the often-twee floral motif a moody edge. Each room is equipped with a generous workspace, which will come in handy as homework becomes more demanding.

white rooms before renovation — The recreation room, before.

living space with two chairs and a coffee table — A Samsung Frame television, squiggly lamp, and quartet of patterned chairs arranged in “game board mode” create a fun-yet-intimate area akin to a speakeasy.

The bedrooms might be designed with the years ahead in mind, but there’s still plenty of room to be a kid. The shared bathroom gets its childish wonder from a squiggly mirror—a Wayfair find Totten painstakingly refinished. She lovingly calls the recreation room the “kid’s speakeasy,” where her children watch movies, break out board games, and play Zelda.

bathroom with squiggly mirror and wood vanity — Sconces, Anony; Mirror, Wayfair; Wall Tiles, GL Stone & Tile.

bathroom with large tub — Floor Tile, Clé Tile; Artwork, Carlos Rodríguez.

Next up: The home’s second phase, which includes the primary suite, living room, dining room, kitchen, and office. Totten plans to imbue her personal style in the next chapter, including nine-foot-long windows with ocean views and a total transformation of an outdated chocolate tub. However, at the home’s core, is a celebration of its rich, multigenerational history.

“All homes have a sense of self,” she says. “The house wants what the house wants—and the client wants what the client wants—but the magic happens where they meet in the Venn diagram.”