Project Lead

“I love creating spaces that have a transformative effect on how people live. Going beyond their expectations and having an impact on their day-to-day lives in ways they weren’t anticipating is incredibly satisfying.”

With a career spanning nearly twenty years of residential design, much of it in custom home design and build, Chris has unrivalled technical experience in space planning and creative acumen in ground-up design, full renovations and concept development. He understands fully how a house gets built, never losing sight of the practical elements that become the basis of creative, livable design. “I take inspiration from a client’s site and ideas,” he explains. “I want to create spaces that are a true representation of who the client is and how they live.”

Reflecting the client is Salt Design Group’s founding principal; Salt Design has the creativity, personal touch and collaborative experience of a small firm with the technical know-how of larger firms. “We are a pool of a wide range of skills and talents that can all get behind a project regardless of its scale and apply those skills and talents abilities to create a project that is truly reflective of the client.”

Project Lead

“I love guiding our clients through the whole process…help them understand and keep their vision front of mind from start to finish.”

With over fifteen years successfully designing and project managing residential, commercial and hospitality interior design projects, Julie has finely honed her leadership skills. Among a wide, diverse range of design projects, she designed the multi-stage renovation of Toronto’s prestigious Adelaide Club, infusing this executive fitness club with a sense of modern luxury. And she was prime design consultant on the renovation of a 30,000 sq. foot office.

Julie loves the uniqueness of each project and finding opportunities to draw upon her life experiences for her work. Inspiration from travel, history and other forms of design can find their way into her work for Salt Design clients. “It could be the color of a door I saw in Venice or the details on a classical molding. They’ll come to mind and I’ll find a way to make them new and fresh for our clients.”

To Julie, great design is in the details. “It’s often in the things that aren’t immediately apparent that elevate a design and take it to the next level,” she explains. “It can be in the reveal on a piece of cabinetry or in lighting that’s designed so that you don’t notice it, or using certain materials that don’t draw your attention right away. These are the little things that create a sense of luxury.”

Project Designer

“My ideal client? Someone who’s engaged in the process and excited by design ideas. I love being able to surprise them with something better than what they may have been hoping for.”

As an architectural designer with a Masters in Architecture and a Bachelor of Fine Arts, Matthew brings his particular skills and unique point of view to Salt Design. He loves what he calls ‘thoughtful design’ and his background in art (he’s an avid painter) and fashion merchandising influence his design process. “I’ll look at a building or space and analyze it in a way that helps the client really understand the space planning or style issues we’re trying to resolve,” he explains.

Matthew loves every aspect of the Salt Design process. “I like working with clients at the beginning of a project to understand how they're going to use it, and then the initial concept design phase where we sort through what it’s going to look like. I’m also very detail oriented and love working through all the little parts of the project, the things our clients notice and appreciate when they’re actually living in the space.”

Project Designer

“Our focus is whole home and construction-based design and I love sourcing with clients…going with them to a showroom that sells hardwood or plumbing materials and making what can be an overwhelming process easy – and fun!”

It was while working as a visual merchandiser in the fashion industry that Jeff Palmeter realized interior design should be his future career. “I loved creating displays and vignettes, both the creative concepts and the details,” he says. A university degree in interior design followed, during which he interned with a television home makeover program. Now a fifteen-year industry veteran, Jeff has managed multiple model home projects and overseen complex residential designs.

“I love the process of design,” Jeff asserts. “It’s incredibly satisfying to pull ideas from different people with different knowledge, whether it’s a fellow Salt designer or an electrician, and put it together and create a beautiful result for our client. That’s what makes me happy.”

Of Salt Design Group, he says, “We fit together very well, and we all have different skills. One of mine is project organization. My attention to detail is second to none. And I have a very good eye for materials and creating a vision to pull a space together.”

Project Designer

“I love building relationships with our clients. We’re lucky that we have such great clients to work with and we have the opportunity to bring their dreams to reality.”

Carly Hurwitz always knew she wanted to be an interior designer. “I had a passion for design, a knack for it,” she says. “I love being able to see a space and recognize its potential and then bring that to fruition.”

After studying interior design, Carly went to work for one of Toronto’s largest condominium developers where she worked with a hugely diverse clientele from first time home buyers to downsizing empty nesters. “I learned about construction and being creative when there are limitations and working with clients to personalize their home.”

To Carly, Salt Design Group offers the clients the best possible interior design experience. “What differentiates our work is that we all have our individual strengths and specialties. We truly collaborate depending on what our expertise is. That ensures our clients get the best of what we can offer.”

Technical Lead

“As technical lead, I love what I do: taking the designs apart to make sure everything is going to work perfectly for our clients.”

As Technical Lead, Caroline Love is a professional problem solver. “I’m the spoiler,” she laughs, “but it’s a necessity. As I develop the technical drawings, I ensure that the structural elements are thought through when we’re designing a space.

Fluently bilingual with 16 years experience, Caroline worked for architects and landscape architects in Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto and Halifax drafting permit and construction drawings for a wide range of major commercial and residential projects including custom residential and prefabricated homes. It’s not surprising that Caroline chose this line of work as she has also designed and built her own home.

As for being behind the scenes, Caroline is more than satisfied; she excels at picking the design projects apart to ensure they’re really going to work for Salt Design clients. “When I hear from the electrician or the carpenter saying, ‘thank you’ for detailed drawings and clearly marked revisions – that’s my congratulations.”