Home & Design

Joanne Fitzgerald’s keen design sensibilities stood her in good stead when she first saw the 1926 row house on Capitol Hill. With interiors painted from top to bottom in what she describes as “Pepto-Bismol pink,” the dark, outdated abode had never been renovated—yet she could see that it perfectly met the requirements she and her then-fiancé, Russell Banks, had for the home they hoped to find in DC.

“We bought it because it still had all the original architectural features,” she explains. “We wanted a house that hadn’t had the soul taken out of it.”

Fitzgerald and Banks, who works as a personal trainer, happily embarked on a yearlong renovation that would bring the three-bedroom house up to date while preserving the features they loved. Rooms were repurposed, doorways enlarged and the kitchen and bathrooms overhauled. A ramshackle, eight-foot-deep, two-story sleeping porch off the back was replaced with a 23-foot-deep, two-story addition comprising a family room on the ground level with a master suite above. These airy, open spaces brought much-needed light to the existing 1,250-square foot structure.

The couple was determined to hold onto architectural details—even reinstalling an exterior door and window in their original location in the kitchen, where they now overlook the family room. French doors that once opened to the sleeping porch upstairs now lead to the family room. Broken panes were replaced by old glass sourced from a salvage shop in Hagerstown, Maryland.

Banks stripped and refinished all the original window frames, doors (16 altogether), transoms and moldings. He painstakingly restored each architectural element by hand—including the banister and stair rail, “which took about 100 hours,” recounts Fitzgerald. It’s now natural-wood colored with a clear finish and a prominent design element in the foyer. “I focus a lot on the details,” Banks says of his labors. “It’s the restoration of everything to its original condition.”

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Visitors to the house walk through a front garden designed and planted by Fitzgerald, and past the white-trimmed porch, which provides a crisp contrast to the deep blue-gray brick exterior—once a dingy brown hue. Inside a modern front door of sapele wood and cross-reeded glass, the dining room (formerly the living room) lies to the right through a doorway that has been widened by 30 inches. A narrow hall leads straight ahead past the staircase to the kitchen and the family-room addition beyond. 

The original kitchen measured only six feet wide, so removing the wall that separated it from the adjacent dining room was imperative. The basement stairs also shifted from their location under the main staircase. “It was important we capture the stairway space for kitchen storage,” Fitzgerald notes. A low closet under the stairs is unobtrusively tucked behind a wallpapered door, and the built-in fridge occupies the spot next to it.

Fitzgerald paired UltraCraft cabinetry in a sleek, bamboo finish with crisp, white quartz countertops. However, the encaustic floor tiles are the star of the room. “I had been pining for them for years, since visiting Brazil where they’re everywhere,” the designer comments. “I chose a Moroccan pattern because it was a transitional look since our style is both traditional and modern.”

The bold, red-and-white floor meant Fitzgerald had to be careful with the backsplash, which combines marble subway tile with narrow glass tile in vibrant red. “I was going to do a random pattern on the whole wall, but with the floor, I realized it would be too busy,” she says. Instead, the red tiles, installed in a jagged-edge motif, create a focal point above the range. “The tile installer had to cut every single stone to fit the edges,” she recalls ruefully. “It was a big job.”

The family room now houses a stairway to the basement, as well as a wall of floor-to-ceiling French doors opening out to a Brazilian teak deck. Upstairs, the airy master bedroom boasts matching French doors opening to a false Juliet balcony of wrought iron.

Fitzgerald’s eclecticism is reflected in the home’s art, furniture and finishes, which blend antique, contemporary and ethnic pieces with a wonderfully collected result. “I like spaces to look evolved over time,” she says.

A plush, chenille wall covering by Romo in the dining room provides the backdrop for a contemporary Modloft table and transitional chairs in felt upholstery. Linen Romo draperies frame the windows. In the family room, an engineered-wood floor is a wire-brushed and stained dark to match the home’s original pine floors. A reupholstered sectional from Tomlinson and Baker chairs offer space to gather.

Art, sculpture, and textiles lend color, texture, and interest throughout. The collection speaks to Fitzgerald’s affinity for art and imparts a strong sense of her style. The house is exactly what the now-married couple wanted. “The goal,” says the designer, “was to feel at home.”

Photographer David Burroughs is based in Annapolis.

INTERIOR DESIGN & CONTRACTING: Joanne Fitzgerald, Gatéga Interior Design, Washington, DC.

RESOURCES

PORCH   Front Door: simpsondoor.com through twperry.com. Fish Sculpture: fragersdc.com. Address Plaque: Custom through modaindustria.com. Sconce: Pandora through ylighting.com.

FOYER   Art on the wall: Joseph Holston through holstonart.com. Bench: Chinese Antique. Rug: feizy.com. Wallpaper: romo.com.

DINING ROOM   Table: modloft.com. Chairs: aidangrayhome.com. Art on Wall: Gary Pettigrew. Sculptures in Corner: Antique Man/Woman Green through thephillipscollection.org. Chandelier: visualcomfortlightinglights.com. Wallpaper: omexco.com through romo.com. Drapes: markalexander.com through romo.com.

KITCHEN   Cabinetry: ultracraft.com through prokitchenandbath.com. Countertops: Snow White Quartz through alpinestoneusa.com. Bull Painting: katiepumphrey.com. Faucet: latoscanacollection.com. Pendant Lights: visualcomfortlightinglights.com. Stools: ericbrand.com. Stool Upholstery: kirkbydeisgn.com through romo.com. Cement Tile: villalagoontile.com. Appliances: thermador.com through abwappliances.com. Wall Tile: Royal Satin white marble through tileshop.com. Backsplash Tile: missionstonetile.com.

FAMILY ROOM   Blue Armchairs: americanleather.com. Upholstery: Lambswool through romo.com. Chair Pillows: leejofa.com. Painting over Blue Chairs: nancymcintyrestudio.com. Bench by Sectional. Antique. Sectional: tomlinsoncompanies.com. Sectional Fabric: romo.com. Drapes: markalexander.com for romo.com Throw on Sectional: Alpaca through imagine-home.com. Temple Figures by Stairs: antint.com. Floor Lamp: tracygloverstudio.com. Coffee Table by Sectional: globalviews.com. Rug: Owners’ collection. Figures by Window: Wood, papier maché. TV Cabinet: crofthouse.com. Metal-Framed Chairs: bakerfurniture.com

HALL BATH   Wallpaper: cole-and-son.com. Mosaic Stone Floor: tileshop.com. Vanity & Wall Sconce: restorationhardware.com. Countertop: wdstone.net. Mirror: feiss.com.

MASTER BEDROOM   Bedstead: restorationhardware.com. Bedding: callistohome.com. Starburst Mirror: arteriorshome.com. Nightstand to Right of Bed: Antique.Nightstand to Left of Bed: woodbridgefurniture.com. Bedside Lamps: curreycodealers. Walnut Floor: American walnut through lumberliquidators.com. Rugby Loveseat: Owners’ collection. Painting over Loveseat: Artist Unknown. Loveseat: Custom by stewartfurniture.com. Loveseat Fabric: romo.com. Drapes: markalexander.com for romo.com. Micro Welt: leejofa.com. Crystal Chandelier: nibahome.com.

 

Living History Sitting in the living room of his gracious 1891 home, interior designer Josh Hildreth glances out to a crape myrtle in a corner of the garden. In that spot—high above a busy street in Wesley Heights—a well once stood. “The lure that came with the house,” Hildreth relates, “is that Teddy Roosevelt was a friend of the owners. He used to go riding in Rock Creek Park and would come by to water his horse at that well.”

Layers of history burnish every corner of this elegantly mellow home. Adapting it for contemporary living, Hildreth has introduced grace notes in harmony with its heritage. The blend of old and new reflects the interests of the designer—a lifelong devotee of the history of architecture and the decorative arts—and those of his husband, Rick Robinson, the chief operating officer of an association, who favors mid-century and modern design.

In carefully composed rooms, fragments of personal history mingle with antiques culled from auctions and house sales, along with modern art. A color-saturated portrait by contemporary photographer Tina Barney in the dining room stands atop a quirky 1930s Italian commode, inset with historical portrait engravings and flanked by 19th-century candelabras that Hildreth discovered blackened and in pieces at an estate sale. “What drives me is the pursuit of unlikely things that go together in interesting ways,” he says. “To design in a way that’s not predictable, that offers an element of surprise.”

When the couple bought the house six years ago, they realized it suited them perfectly. “We loved its history and how it had evolved,” says Hildreth. Known in the neighborhood as The Old Farmhouse, the property had been remodeled twice. In 1976, modernist architect Hugh Newell Jacobsen had removed the wall separating the double parlor, creating a great room with added light and views of garden greenery through a solarium across the back of the house. Twenty-five years later, a new kitchen was designed in the home’s original farmhouse style. On their first visit, Hildreth recalls, “Rick walked through the ’70s side, and said, ‘This is wonderful.’ I looked at the other side and loved it.”

While they left the layout intact, the great room was a major obstacle. “It had ’70s glamour, but felt oppressively narrow, like a bowling alley with a fireplace coming in at an angle,” Hildreth says. They ruled out removing the fireplace due to cost—a decision that proved fortunate. “Constraints are good because they focus you,” observes the designer, who recognized over time that the great room needed to be divided into two separate spaces and the fireplace provided that divide.

The formal great room occupies the front, anchored by tall, stately mahogany cabinets and a refined satinwood sideboard. The light-flooded back invited a more casual, family-room approach. To unify the spaces, all walls and ceilings were painted Benjamin Moore’s Marble White. That same creamy color, thinned with turpentine, lightened the reclaimed-oak flooring that Hildreth felt suited the home’s farmhouse past.

With shared light and outdoor views, the overall living area now feels like a large, welcoming garden room. Since the couple entertains often, Hildreth selected airy, lightweight chairs and small tables that can be easily moved around to handle groups of different sizes.

One 18th-century armchair with a sculptural presence holds special meaning for the designer. It once belonged to a member of the Buffalo, New York, family, for whom Hildreth’s grandmother worked as a housekeeper in the grand style of “Downton Abbey” after emigrating from Ireland. “She knew how to set a table to perfection, and developed an eye for furniture,” Hildreth relates of his first mentor, who took him to estate sales and taught him what was best. “I was the only six-year-old who turned plates upside-down to see if they were Limoges,” he remembers, smiling.

Hildreth has enjoyed visiting historic houses ever since. While a student at Virginia’s Randolph-Macon College, he made pilgrimages to Mount Vernon and Monticello, historic Williamsburg and the great homes of Newport, Rhode Island. But, he states emphatically, he would not want to live in any of these. “They are too stiff and formal, too perfect,” he declares.

Seated in his warm, inviting sunroom, Hildreth looks approvingly at the cracked paint on a lacquered Chinese cabinet, at the chips on a centuries-old Persian vase. “Those imperfections give character,” he notes. In his view, what matters most is not the perfection of a room or the provenance of pieces, but rather “the people who live inside the home, and the experiences of those coming in and having great conversations there,” he says, adding a time-honored coda: “When you create a space, it is about more than creating static beauty within a room. You are creating a catalyst for memory-making.”

Tina Coplan is a Chevy Chase-based writer. Photographer Stacy Zarin Goldberg resides in Olney, Maryland.

INTERIOR DESIGN & CONTRACTING: JOSH HILDRETH, Josh Hildreth Interiors, Reston, Virginia.

 

RESOURCES

GENERAL  Floors: Reclaimed random-width oak through cochranslumber.com.

SUNROOM  Walls: farrow-ball.com. Sisal Rug: starkcarpet.com. Chandelier: 19th-century French bronze through weschlers.com. Lacquered Cabinet: 18th-century Chinese; tkasian.com. Carved-Wood Floor Lamps: Vintage Portuguese through darelldeanantiques.com. Cane-Backed Barrel Chairs: Mid-century through Maine Coast Exchange. Barrel Chair Upholstery & Sofa Pillows: raoultextiles.com. Sofa: ef-lm.com. Coffee Table: 19th-century French through freemansauction.com. Ceramic Elephant Garden Seats: Mid-century Italian:  Brooke Astor estate through sothebys.com. Cast Plaster Tortoiseshell Sconces: westendantiqwuemall.com.

DINING ROOM  Wallpaper: Old World Weavers through hinescompany.com. Chandelier: davidduncanantiques.com. Photograph over Cabinet: Tina Barney through sothebys.com. Rug: Bessarabian through dorisleslieblau.com. Cabinet: 1930s Italian through eburytrading.com. Dining Chairs: Vintage Italian. Chair Upholstery: Leather through mooreandgiles.com. Round Dining Table: 18th- century English through rogerwinterantiques.com. Silver Tureen on Table with Malachite Inlay: emiliacastillojewelry.com. China: Dodie Thayer through toryburch.com. Silver Flatware: Vintage Christofle.

FRONT GREAT ROOM  Sofa: ef-lm through hinescompany.com. Sofa Upholstery: rosetarlow.com through hollandandsherry.com. Coffee Table: Vintage Phillip & Kelvin Laverne through wright20.com. Moroccan Pouf: Vintage. Leather Upholstery: mooreandgiles.com. Armchairs: Schumacher.com. Upholstery: peterfasano.com. Trim: samuelandsons.com. China Cabinet: 18th-century English through carolinefaison.com.

REAR GREAT ROOM  Built-in Sofa: Custom by joshhildrethinteriors.com. Upholstery: champalimauddesign.com. Vintage Kilim Pillows: dransfieldandross.com. Orange Lacquered Stools: megbraffdesigns.com. Ottoman: schumacher.com. Ottoman Upholstery: peterdunhamtextiles.com. Painted Chest: 19th-century French through kevinstoneantiques.com. Mirror: 19th-century Italian, owners’ collection. Lamps on Chest: Tulipieres fitted as lamps through brunschwig.com. Rugby Chest: Vintage.

KITCHEN  Woven Rug: Hella Jongerius for maharam.com. 19th-century Swiss Table & 19th-century Italian Chairs: paulbert-serpette.com.

LIBRARY:  Wallcovering: kravat.com. Chandelier: 19th-century carved alabaster from Italy. Rug: 19th-century Oushak. Drapery Fabric: katieridder.com. Trim: samuelandsons.com. Sofa: Antique. Sofa Fabric: Mulberry Home through leejofa.com. Yellow-Wood Chair: English Regency. Chair Cushion: rosetarlow.com. Side Table: 18th century French through sothebys.com. Coffee Table: Owners’ collection.

MASTER BEDROOM  Wallpaper: farrow-ball.com. Ceiling Stencil: studioartistica.com. Ceiling Fixture: davidduncanantiques.com. Sconces: visualcomfortlightinglights.com. Sconce Shades: Custom by Madina Upholstery & Drapery; 703-455-3627. Rug: Custom by mitchelldenburg.com. Fabric for Draperies, Bed Alcove and Bed: pennymorrison.com for evansandsheldon.com. Fabrication: gretcheneverett.com. Shades: conradshades.com. Bed Linens: timothypaulhome.com. Burl Veneer Slant Top Desk: 18th-century English. Print over Bed: Peter Doig through phillips.com.

 

 

Urban Refuge When their landlord suddenly decided to sell the Logan Circle apartment they were renting a year and a half ago, designer Michael Hampton and his husband David Kantor had to find a move-in-ready place quickly. Fortuitously, a newly renovated floor-through in an 1885 Dupont Circle row house had just come on the market. The location, just three blocks from Hampton’s office, was perfect—and so were the bones of the two-bedroom, two-bathroom condominium. The finishes, cabinetry and soft-gray walls appealed to the designer, who determined that carefully curated, elegant furnishings (and a lot of crown molding) could make up for what the narrow, 1,700-square-foot space lacked in architecture.

Entering Hampton’s home, it is immediately clear that the designer is a big fan of neoclassicism, especially French Empire influences. “Modern classicism is an overused term, but that is my style and vision,” he says. “I’m inspired by the past but looking for ways to reinterpret it, mixing old and new.”

Hampton was born and raised in Northern California’s Bay area. He attended the Academy of Art University in San Francisco with the intention of becoming a fashion designer, but a class in architectural history changed his course. He earned a degree in interior design in 1994.

Two designers were particularly influential mentors: Steven Volpe, for whom Hampton worked in San Francisco for 10 years, and Thomas Pheasant, whose offer of a senior designer position compelled Hampton to move to Washington in 2004. “Steve took me to Paris and Rome and exposed me to things that continue to inform and inspire me. And I learned from Thomas how to manage large-scale projects, but also to pare things down to their essence,” explains Hampton, who launched his own firm in 2009.

His living room combines comfort, élan, and practicality. The central seating area, in various shades of taupe and beige, is defined by a patterned sisal rug, on top of which lies a smaller Oriental reproduction by Stark. “I like to layer a rug that’s too small for a room on top of a larger one,” Hampton explains. A velvet-covered davenport is flanked by two stately columns serving as pedestals for French urns that contain tole agave plants. Behind the sofa hangs a stunning William Curtis Rolf black-and-white photograph of a 17th-century André le Nôtre garden at a chateau near Paris. After purchasing the photo for the library he created in the 2015 DC Design House, Hampton wound up keeping it himself.

Evidence of the designer’s admitted chair obsession includes 18th-century French Empire chairs with carved caryatid heads, 18th-century Italian walnut side chairs with exquisite caning and four late-19th-century Klismos chairs set around an André Arbus-style mahogany dining table near the home’s large front window. Other favorite pieces gracing the living room are a French Empire console table (c. 1810) and a late 18th-century mantel clock and French mirror.

Hampton has cleverly maximized space throughout the home. He can easily seat 16 when entertaining in the main living area, which includes an open kitchen with four aluminum stools lining a sleek counter. “I like to create a buffet in the kitchen, put out some little plates and let everyone graze. That’s my favorite way of entertaining,” he says.

Behind the kitchen is the guest bathroom. There, as well in the master bath, Hampton installed crown molding, stopping short of the shower so he could mount a curtain on a track. “It looks like proper drapery,” he explains, “and gives a nice softness to the room so you don’t just walk in and see ‘shower!’” Other appointments include vinyl Phillip Jeffries wallpaper in a herringbone pattern and 19th-century prints found at Goodwood on U Street.

A guest room, with a comfy sofa that converts to a bed, does double duty as a cozy sitting room. Hampton and Kantor, an investment advisor, like to read and relax in the space. Ecru grasscloth on the walls lends warmth, as do draperies made of printed Elizabeth Hamilton fabric edged with trim by Samuel & Sons. Behind the sofa hang antique postcards depicting Roman emperors, which Hampton discovered on eBay and framed. Architectural watercolors, including some by Hampton himself, adorn the room, which also features a black Paul László chest and an early 19th-century English Regency convex mirror with ebony detailing.

In the master bedroom, a wooden Buddha resting on a Plexiglas pedestal enhances the sense of Zen that the room’s peaceful light-gray and taupe palette imbues. The bedroom and master bath feature Phillip Jeffries textured wall covering applied in a subtle basketweave pattern made by cutting the paper in squares and installing them in alternating directions. “It’s kind of becoming my signature,” Hampton admits.

For a touch of drama, the designer opted for an architectural canopy bed in natural steel from Room & Board. To make it feel more luxurious, he had an upholsterer fabricate an insert to fill one end of the frame (actually the foot of the bed), creating a custom headboard. Thick, ripple-fold window draperies impart a cocoon-like atmosphere when closed.  “Here I am in the middle of the city,” Hampton marvels, “but when I’m in this soft, enveloping room, I don’t feel like I am.”

Writer David Hagedorn is based in Washington, DC. John Cole is a photographer in Silver Spring.

INTERIOR DESIGN: MICHAEL HAMPTON, Michael Hampton, Inc., Washington, DC.

 

RESOURCES

LIVING ROOM   Sofa: Custom. Sofa Fabric: calvinfabrics.com. Coffee Table & Armchair: kelloggcollection.com. Chair Fabric: perennialsfabric.com. Greek Key Ottomans: Michael Hampton Collection for salvationssaf.com. Columns, Urns, Console, Gilt-Framed Mirror, Console Clock, Wood-Framed Chair, Klismos Chairs: Antique. Photograph over Sofa: williamcurtisrolf.com. Rug: starkcarpet.com. Sisal: carpetimpressions.com. Decorative Objects on Coffee Table: Contemporary marble specimen obelisks. Throw Pillows: clarencehouse.com, larsenfabrics.com. Drapery Fabric: cowtan.com. André Arbus-Style Round Dining Table: Custom through Antonio’s Antiques; 415-781-1737. Floor Lamps: restorationhardware.com. Brass Occasional Table: maisonmeilleur.com. Bookshelves: lillianaugust.com.

KITCHEN   Stools: crateandbarrel.com. Pendants: restorationhardware.com. Countertops & Backsplash: Honed Carrara Marble. Picture over Peninsula: Thierry Mysius.

SITTING/GUEST ROOM   Sofa: crateandbarrel.com. Coffee Table/Chest: marstonluce.com. Rug: Moroccan. Sisal: carpetimpressions.com. Drapery Fabric: elizabethhamiltoncollection.com. Drapery Trim: samuelandsons.com. Shades: conrad.com. Zebra Art: williamcurtisrolf.com. Art over Sofa: Framed postcards. Architectural Art Propped on Floor: michaelhamptoninc.com. Wood-Framed Chairs & Convex Mirror: Antique. Black Cupboard: Paul Laszlo through 1stdips.com.

MASTER BEDROOM   Bedstead: roomandboard.com. Upholstered Headboard: Travers through zimmer-rohde.com: Headboard Fabrication: TK. Nightstand: hickorychair.com. Table Lamp: mrbrownhome.com. Bedding: restorationhardware.com. Rug: carpetimpressions.com. Wall covering: phillipjeffries.com. Wood-Framed Chair & Wall Brackets: Antique. Chair Fabric: markalexander.com. Occasional Table: Jean Michel Frank. Wardrobe: julianchichester.com.

 

Subtle Patina When a May downpour dampened Jodi Macklin’s plans to host a pre-prom dinner for her son’s senior class in her Chevy Chase backyard, the designer quickly switched gears.

She whipped out placemats, set up a buffet in the dining room and invited the 200 guests into her gracious home. “It was fast and furious,” recalls the unflappable host. Two days later when she opened her doors to a magazine photography crew, the only clue that prom night had taken place was her son Cooper napping on the screened porch.

Macklin’s house rolls with the punches—and has aged gracefully since she and her husband overhauled the tiny 1930s Colonial Revival they acquired in the coveted Somerset neighborhood 16 years ago. Though four times the size of the original, the house doesn’t overwhelm its shady lot. Inside, a clever layout with generous proportions gives it staying power. When you factor in Macklin’s design smarts, it’s no accident that the home continues to evolve.

Macklin began her career in marketing at Estée Lauder in New York. But when she moved back to her hometown of DC with husband Rodd, now CFO of a private equity firm, just before their first son was born in 1991, she had an epiphany. “I didn’t want to be at work from 9 to 7 every day,” she recalls. “I decided I was going to do what I’d always had a passion for.” She enrolled in Mount Vernon College’s interior design program, earned a degree, then landed an internship with “a great mentor,” designer David Mitchell.

By the time she and Rodd bought the Somerset property, Jodi had launched her own design firm and their fourth and final child was on the way. The couple tapped architect David Jones to design a larger residence for their growing family. Since the home was deemed historic, his plan had to build upon the original. “The question was how to make this very small housework as though it had grown over time,” Jones recalls. A large new wing containing the living and family rooms solved the dilemma by suggesting that the smaller, original wing housing the dining room and kitchen came later. Called “a Colonial Revival with finesse” by the architect, the new home boasts a slate roof and hand-troweled stucco walls that reinforce his built-over-time narrative.

From the entry, guests see straight through the foyer and rear stair hall to the garden. Stairs to the upper-level run parallel to the rear wall of French doors so that, explains Jones, “the family is always looking at the beautiful backyard when going up and down the stairs.”

The interior architecture creates a perfect backdrop for Macklin’s artistry. “David nailed the proportions,” she says of the 10-foot ceilings and generous openings between rooms. “He made the house feel bigger than it is.”

Her original goal—to design a “livable, kid-friendly house”—still holds true today. “It should not feel too precious, yet it should be pretty and feel like a home,” the designer reflects.

A relaxed, understated elegance prevails in spaces where Macklin mixes classic appointments with modern furniture and art. “Traditional pieces bring a warmer feeling,” she explains. “It’s fun to have ‘found’ things that have meaning and history, mixed in with newer, more contemporary ones.

“I’m looking for beautiful lines—and I love to mix textures,” Macklin continues, pointing to her family room’s shagreen table, wooden chairs and tufted-leather ottoman. She offsets a neutral palette with pops of color in accessories, pillows, and art—such as the Ellsworth Kelly painting in the living room.

Macklin likes to host intimate dinners in her “timeless” blue-and-white kitchen, originally designed by kitchen designer Jennifer Gilmer. “I wasn’t a cook,” she says, “but then my kids grew up and over the years I learned how.” She recently tapped Gilmer’s associate Meghan Browne to update the space. Browne created more storage and workspace in the form of a large, new island made of hot-rolled steel.

On holidays, when the guest list typically tops 40, Macklin sets up a buffet in the dining room, graced by a glamorous Porta Romana chandelier and geometric hide rug. “I’m really into tabletop,” she says. Macklin favors Kim Sybert linens that “go from very casual to very dressy.”

With their two oldest sons and a daughter off to college or beyond, the Macklins still have one son, Luke, at home. On an early May evening, he and his dad play catch in the yard while Macklin relaxes on the screened porch. “This is my happy space. Once everything’s green,” she says, motioning to the springtime landscape, “I feel like I’m in France.”

Meanwhile, her home is always a work in progress. A few years after they moved in, David Jones designed a free-standing office for Macklin’s growing firm, adding on a conference room later. And in the main house, she is now transforming an empty room next to the master bedroom into a luxurious bath suite and closet.

“As a designer,” Macklin says, “there’s a lot that you see that you love. You’re constantly evolving.”

Photographer  Geoffrey Hodgdon is based in Deale, Maryland.

Architecture: DAVID JONES, AIA, Jones & Boer Architects, Washington, DC. Interior Design, JODI MACKLIN, Jodi Macklin Interior Design, Chevy Chase, Maryland. Builder: RICHARD ZANTZINGER, Mauck Zantzinger & Associates, Washington, DC.

City Glamour Architect Carmel Greer, principal of the six-year-old firm District Design, doesn’t impose a particular style on her residential projects. Instead, she lets a home tell her what it wants to be. “I never fight a house,” says Greer. “The house will always win.”

Her design approach is to play up the best architectural features of a home while creating spaces for contemporary living. In a recent DC row-house renovation, she salvaged the old floor joists and turned them into bedroom wall paneling. For another townhouse redesign, she converted the library into the dining room, but preserved the wood shelving and repainted it. “I try to leave some of the original characters of a house intact,” says the architect.

Greer treated her own home the same way, enhancing the good bones of a 1950s brick colonial in DC’s Kent neighborhood that she and husband Dan Baum, CEO of a public relations firm, purchased and remodeled in 2016. “It had been on the market forever,” she recalls. “No one else wanted it because it was so bizarrely chopped up and had not been updated since the 1970s.”

With its six bedrooms and five-and-a-half bathrooms, the center-hall colonial was spacious enough for the couple, their four children and dog Aida without the need for an addition. “It is fundamentally a sturdy, well-built house and on a tremendous amount of land for the city,” notes Greer.

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In renovating the home, her biggest move was to reconfigure the rooms along the rear of the main level to create a family zone. The original kitchen was expanded by taking over a former bathroom, closet, and hallway. Greer then updated the space with custom Shaker-style cabinets and a marble-topped island. Brass fixtures and hardware were chosen “to create a warm and glamorous look,” she says.

Next, to the kitchen, a walk-in closet and a bathroom were demolished to create a casual dining area. A custom-built corner banquette provides storage under the seats and a bar fitted with a wine cooler is topped by a walnut shelf.

The library next to the dining area was repurposed as a TV lounge and hang-out space. In contrast to the cream-colored rooms in most of the house, its walls and shelving are painted a deep blue. Modern pony-skin chairs, a tufted-leather sofa, and a brass drum coffee table reflect Greer’s eclectic decorating style. “I like a dark, intimate room that can be cozy at night,” says the architect, who helps most of her clients design their interiors.

In the front of the house, the living and dining rooms were largely preserved intact with only cosmetic changes. Furnishings in gray and neutral colors combine with a mix of textures—including metals, marble, velvet, and fur—to create a moody atmosphere in the living room.

Linen slipcovered chairs and a wooden table in the dining room rest on a practical rug designed for outdoor use. Among the artwork in the space is The Rattlesnake, a bucking bronco sculpted in bronze by Frederic Remington.

Greer established a more gracious introduction to the home by combining two small chambers into a single entrance foyer. She moved the original dining room’s crystal chandelier to this space and mounted brass fleur-de-lis-shaped hooks on one wall for hanging coats. Plastic “marble” tiles were replaced by wood flooring in a herringbone pattern to complement the original oak floors in the living and dining rooms.

After removing skimpy, builder-grade trim, Greer installed more substantial moldings and raised the doorways between spaces to make the main-level rooms feel taller. “Enlarging these openings sounds like a small thing,” she observes, “but it makes a big difference in the house not feeling claustrophobic.”

Upstairs, part of an oversized bedroom became a large closet serving the master bedroom, which is simply furnished with a streamlined canopy bed and mirrored nightstands. The master bathroom was enlarged by incorporating a former sewing room into space. The same Calacatta Vagli marble used in the kitchen clads the shower and tops the vanities, which feature hammered-metal sinks. The architect added a sculptural, freestanding soaking tub, but admits that her three-year-old daughter Gracie is the only one who regularly uses it.

While Greer, who studied architecture at Yale, respected the formality of the original house, she didn’t take it too seriously. Whimsical vintage pieces, stripped-down furnishings, and abstract artwork keep the design upbeat and modern. As she notes, “I wanted to take the stodginess out of the colonial.”

Writer Deborah K. Dietsch is based in Washington, DC. Stacy Zarin Goldberg is a photographer in Olney, Maryland.

ARCHITECTURE & INTERIOR DESIGN: CARMEL GREER, AIA, LEED AP, District Design, Washington, DC. RENOVATION CONTRACTOR: Quality Carpentry Group, Rockville, Maryland.

RESOURCES

LIVING ROOM   Sofas: tovfurniture.com. Klismos Chair: Owners’ collection. Coffee Tables: dwr.com. Photograph over Fireplace: Michael Bonfigli; mbonfigli.com. Wire Chairs: dotandbo.com. Corner Bench: Antique. Rug: therugcompany.com. Side Table: Owners’ collection. Table & Floor Lamps: Vintage.

ENTRY   Chair: restorationhardware.com.

DINING ROOM   Sideboard: luckettstore.com. Sculpture on Sideboard: Frederic Remington. Art above Sideboard: Artist Unknown, from Maine. Green Vase: Vintage from Paris. Dining Table & Chairs: Owners’ collection. Rug: dashandalbert.annieselke.com.

KITCHEN   Cabinetry: Custom. Countertoplasermandg.com. Pendants: circalighting.com.Desk Chair: Vintage. Range: lacornueusa.com through williams-sonoma.com. Microwave: bosch-home.com through ajmadison.com. The painting above Desk: Owners’ collection. Painting, Right of Desk: christchilddc.org. Ceiling Lights: industriallightelectric.com. Sink Fixture: rohl-home.com through ferguson.com.

BREAKFAST AREA   Chairs: dwr.com. Pillow Fabrics: Owners’ collection. Art: Lithographs by Juan Miro and Alexander Calder. Table: Saarinen Tulip Table through knoll.com. Pendant: circalighting.com.

LIBRARY   Sofa: westelm.com. Coffee Table: anthropologie.com. Glass Table: eileengray.com through dwr.com. Floor Lamp: Vintage. Art: Carmel Greer. Cowhide Chair: Vintage, Le Corbusier LC2 collection. Rugs: Cowhide from Argentina. Paint Color: Clark & Kensington’s Midnight Oil; acehardware.com.

BATHROOM   Floor & Shower Tile: marblesystems.com. Sconces: feiss.com. Vanities: Custom. Bath Fixtures: vintagetub.com.

MASTER BEDROOM   Bed: roomandboard.com. Bedding: horchow.com. White Rug: overland.com. Black Rug: dashandalbert.annieselke.com. Large Painting: Artist unknown. Nightstand & Lamp: horchow.com. Small Sketch: Carmel Greer. Wooden Stool: Eames through hermanmiller.com.

 

 

 

 

Hot Talent: Paul Miller When he was growing up, Paul Miller’s mother “was always playing with color and creating tableaux in our home,” he recalls. This inspiration led the Virginia native, who also considered a career in acting or writing, to study interior design. “It would more immediately give me a creative outlet,” he reasoned.

Miller completed the design program at Lord Fairfax Community College and later apprenticed to designer Deborah Langfitt—an experience he found invaluable. “She was a good macro-view person,” he says, “and really helped me see the big picture.”

In 2004, Miller went out on his own, opening MakeNest Interiors, a Winchester, Virginia, design studio and home furnishings boutique. Now tackling residential and commercial projects throughout the DC Metro region, he and his team aim to “create working solutions in an artful way to inspire joy,” he says.

“We focus on sustainability, functionality, and beauty, exclusively sourcing made-in-America furnishings,” the designer continues. He often augments new, sustainable finds with clients’ existing collections and antiques—scavenging around to find one-of-a-kind objects.

“I’m a big believer in mixing design styles, like combining a Hepplewhite piece with a Lucite cocktail table,” Miller says. “The best rooms are a weird, wonderful mix that makes you feel homeowners have had diverse experiences.”

Interior Design: Paul C. Miller, MakeNest Interiors, Winchester, Virginia. Architecture: Frazier Associates, Staunton, Virginia.

Hot Talent: Katie DeStefano On a recent trip to Texas, Katie DeStefano brought home the unexpected: an old taxidermic pheasant. “When I go to another city, I love picking through flea markets,” enthuses the Baltimore designer, who says she might combine the vintage specimen with a 17th-century tapestry, an English upholstered piece, and an Oushak rug for a timeless look.

“I’m into green design,” says DeStefano, who contends that 90 percent of the furnishings consumers are looking for is “out in the world”—and she intends to find them. “I like to hunt down old pieces and learn their history,” she says. “Clients love having a story to tell.”

The Annapolis native first honed her skills at the University of Alabama, where she studied interior design with a minor in art history. “I’m a traditionalist at heart,” she says. Following stints with Dream House Studios, Mona Hajj, and the late Amanda Austin, she launched her eponymous design practice and Curiosity, an eclectic home-furnishings boutique in Baltimore’s Federal Hill, at the age of 25. Seven years later, she runs her shop—now in tony Harbor East—and has completed homes for clients ranging from a 25-year-old bachelor to a retired couple in their 70s.

DeStefano starts each project by divining a homeowner’s innate style. “There’s always room to grow,” she says. “I want clients to contribute when they’re traveling or when they have a beautiful epiphany. It’s a very organic process.”

Interior Design: Katie DeStefano, Katie DeStefano Design, Baltimore, Maryland.

Hot Talent Sallie Kjos Sallie Kjos grew up working in her aunt’s antique store and listening to her father, a master builder from England, discuss his craft. Today as a designer, the Virginia native brings to her work a great respect for history and craftsmanship—coupled with a fresh eye and a lively, clean-lined aesthetic. “I believe your space should have a story because we all have a story,” she says. “I like to be inspired by something existing and figure out how to change a look while honoring what my clients already have.”

Kjos, who graduated from Marymount University’s interior design program, launched GreyHunt Interiors (named for her sons, Greyson and Hunter) in 2009. She worked part-time until 2014 when her kids were a little older and it was time for the single mom to shift into high gear. GreyHunt Interiors now boasts a roster of 15 clients and two design assistants. Project locations range from Ashburn and Chantilly to Fairfax and Great Falls.

According to Kjos, psychology plays a big role in her work, determining color palette—the first thing she considers when beginning a project—among other factors. “My job is to get in my clients’ heads,” she comments. “My choices depend on their situation and what best suits them. Do they need calming colors or bright ones?

“My joy,” she adds, “is to change how they feel in a space.”

Interior Design: Sallie Kjos, Sallie Kjos Interiors, LLC, South Riding, Virginia.

Hot Talent Byron Risdon Although Byron Risdon earned a graduate degree in education and later taught school, interior design was always in the back of his mind. “I used to do small projects for friends,” he recalls. “At first I didn’t realize I wanted to do this for a living; I just knew I liked creating. But finally, I decided I had to try.”

Then based in Atlanta, Risdon, who originally hails from South Carolina, applied for a design-assistant position at New York’s venerable Crain & Ventolo Associates—and got it. Subsequent jobs sprang up with other boutique design firms. “I’ve taken something away from every job I’ve had—new resources, vendors, sensibilities,” he reflects. “There is always more to learn.”

Risdon eventually relocated to DC, launching Byron Risdon LLC in spring 2016. Currently running a one-man operation, he laughingly describes himself as “bookkeeper, designer, mover, measurer, and draftsman.”

Though just embarking on his solo career, Risdon offers years of experience—and a strong design philosophy. He begins every project with the rug—even if it is an existing element—and he refuses to see clients’ artwork until the end because he doesn’t want it to influence his choices. “Art is personal and often not part of the design,” he explains. “We will make it work.” When it comes to creating interiors, he advises, “Do what makes you feel good.”

Interior Design: Byron Risdon, Byron Risdon LLC, Washington, DC. Renovation Architecture & Contracting: Paul Locher, Locher Design Build, Silver Spring, Maryland.

Hot Talent Laura Fox After working in the design industry for more than 10 years, Laura Fox “hit the ground running” when she decided to launch Laura Fox Interior Design two years ago. “I had lots of contacts and experience,” she says. “I thought it was worth taking the chance.”

Clearly, she made the right choice. A docket of 10 to 15 projects, in a range of sizes and scopes, keeps her busy enough to employ a project manager and an interior designer on staff. And Fox recently moved the firm from her own 700-square-foot Silver Spring apartment to a studio in Kensington, Maryland.

Originally from Chesapeake, Virginia, Fox began her career in interior merchandising and still relishes the business side of the profession—researching the market and design trends, for example. A practical side comes through in her work as well. “I don’t want clients to spend an arm and a leg,” she explains. In fact, she offers a “Design in a Box” package that includes a space plan and a list of furnishings and accessories—all available through retail sources—that clients then purchase themselves.

While Fox is personally drawn to a “farmhouse/industrial-chic” look, she is ready and able to design in any style and at any price point. “I am a people-pleaser,” she notes. “The biggest challenge for me is making sure everyone is happy.”

Interior Design: Laura Fox, Laura Fox Interior Design, LLC; Kensington, Maryland. Architecture & Contracting: Castlewood Custom Builders, Bethesda, Maryland.

Hot Talent This issue marks the 10th year H&D has spotlighted a group of young local designers producing outstanding work in firms of their own. After meeting this professionals-to-watch at BoConcept in Georgetown for interviews and portraits, we’re proud to share their work. We predict you’ll be seeing more of these rising stars.

 

Paul Miller

READ MORE

 

 

Laura Fox

READ MORE

 

 

Byron Risdon

READ MORE

 

 

Sallie Kjos

READ MORE

 

 

Katie DeStefano

READ MORE

 

Applause West End Revival

The Fairmont Washington, DC is a quintessential “Washington” spot—a stately, limestone-clad hotel with a venerable history located in fashionable West End. Now, a revitalization of the interiors has given this upscale hostelry a fresh look and an open, functional layout.

Spearheaded by ForrestPerkins, the makeover updated the lobby, where a central lounge flows into a loggia. “The goal was to energize the public spaces with a current, modern aesthetic,” says president and designer Deborah Lloyd Forrest. In its former state, a series of steps impeded movement through the lobby. Forrest and her team eliminated all but one step connecting the entry and reception to the lounge and the loggia, which opens out to a refurbished courtyard. Clusters of plush seating and an elliptical bar occupy the lounge, while a grand staircase beyond the bar ascends to a mezzanine that overlooks the lobby.

Creating a sense of intimacy within the spaces was critical, says Forrest, who accomplished this with area rugs and seating options ranging from wing chairs and ottomans to a huge, u-shaped banquette. Screens made of translucent resin squares embedded with gold, silver and copper leaf enclose the staircase and delineate the bar/lounge. 

A remarkable light installation above the lounge incorporates hanging geometric mixed-metal shapes and small, star-shaped lights. References to the nation’s capital crop up in handwoven rugs by Tai Ping that together form an abstracted map of the Potomac River by the entry, and in a brass-and-chrome display table with hand-painted Portuguese tiles depicting DC monuments and leaders. The original marble floors and limestone cladding are enhanced by walnut accents for a chic, sophisticated effect.

RENOVATION ARCHITECTURE & DESIGN: DEBORAH LLOYD FORREST, FASID, ISHC; LAWRENCE ADAMS, AIA; AMANDA JACKSON, RID; EMILY WOODS, AIA, ForrestPerkins, Washington DC. CONTRACTOR: Sigal Construction Corporation, Arlington, Virginia. PHOTOGRAPHY: VRX Studios.

Inside Atelier Takagi Jonah Takagi tinkers away in the converted attic of a Depression-era row house in Washington’s Glover Park. He sketches ideas, builds models and refines 3D drawings of objects ranging from furniture and lighting to desk accessories—and even a sculptural shaving brush that wobbles.

Though the Japanese-born Takagi travels under the radar in DC design circles, he has created pieces for Design Within Reach, Kvadrat, Umbra Shift, and Matter, among others. Just back from showing his new work at the 2017 Salone del Mobile in Milan, he caught up with Home & Design in early May.

Pausing first in the dining room of the house he shares with girlfriend Mary Timony, who fronts the indie band Ex Hex, he pointed out unfinished wooden boxes scattered across the table. “I moved my studio to the attic, but it’s a pain to get stuff up there. Much to Mary’s chagrin, there are constantly things on the table.” Nearby, a rare, self-produced table awaits a final coat of lacquer, while an upturned bicycle under construction also vies for attention.

But with only a couple of weeks to go before his boxes, pendant lights, shaving brush and other “half-done” creations would be on view at NYCxDesign, New York’s annual Design-a-palooza, Takagi had more pressing projects on his plate.

Up a “treacherous” stairway, one end of his attic studio houses a photography station where he shoots his work; a desk at the other end is topped with computer monitors. Paper and clay models and finished designs, from candleholders to measuring instruments, cover shelves along the walls.

Sketches on a center table trace the trajectory of Takagi’s shaving brush—one of 13 designs commissioned by the online shaving brand Harry’s as a modern spin on nostalgia. “I was doing all this math to make it work,” said Takagi of the weighted steel sphere that counterbalances his brush. “It seems simple, but there was no room for error.” After completing a mass study and models made of plastic Easter eggs and clay-like plasticine, Takagi sent his drawings off to a 3D printer in Europe and hoped for the best. “Luckily,” he sighed, “it worked.”

Whether he’s conceiving a lamp or sculptural pieces for the summer residency he’s accepted at a glass-blowing studio in France, the lanky, laid-back Rhode Island School of Design grad embraces challenges with a disciplined eye and a fresh, modern aesthetic. In addition to solo work for his own Atelier Takagi, he contributes to Field, a brand he co-founded in 2012 that creates made-in-America tabletop and desk accessories. And he frequently collaborates with Hallgeir Homstvedt, an Oslo-based friend, and colleague, on pieces ranging from pendant lights for Roll & Hill to a forthcoming, four-piece upholstered-chair collection for a major client that remains under wraps.

“Chairs are the ‘holy grail’ of furniture,” Takagi asserted with some trepidation, noting that often in collections, one piece is a standout while the others merely “force a typology on an existing design. They all need to be great,” he insisted.

The process takes years. After extensive research and planning, Takagi and Homstvedt have finally entered the design phase where they are refining the lines, joinery, and stance of each piece via screen-sharing apps and daily phone calls.

“Right now, there’s a lot of sketching and computer models. These were all over the floor yesterday,” said Takagi, rifling through a heap of sketches on tracing paper. “My work starts in my sketchbook then slowly moves onto the computer.”

A plasticine model on his side table approximates one of the chairs—sleek, with a Scandinavian-style profile—but he and Homstvedt won’t see an actual prototype until later this year. The chairs should hit the market by 2019.

When work gets overwhelming, Takagi heads to the basement, which doubles as a recording studio, to play the drums. A long-time musician who started with the cello in high school, he has played bass guitar and drums for various rock bands over the years. “Music is a good foil because design work can be tedious when you’re butting your head for a while,” he said.

Born in Tokyo, Takagi moved to Connecticut with his mother at the age of 18 months, after his parents split. As a boy, he loved to build things with Legos and Lincoln Logs—and received encouragement from art teachers. His father, an architect in Japan, was also an inspiration. “I like the technical side of architecture and the way spaces can make you feel,” Takagi said. “But I also like making stuff myself.”

He earned a degree in fine arts at RISD and in 2003 moved to DC with a former girlfriend. He started out building sets for the Folger Theatre and the Kennedy Center, playing in bands and designing furniture on the side. Then he exhibited his American Gothic table at the 2009 ICFF in New York and his design career took off. Soon, he was showing at the big furniture fairs in Cologne and Milan. “There was a lot of press surrounding my work, and two products I showed in Milan were picked up by an American manufacturer,” recalled the designer, who’s focused on product design full-time ever since.

Frequent visits to Japan have no doubt influenced Takagi’s spare style, which emphasizes simple, geometric forms. “There’s so much appreciation for craft, form, proportion and detailing there,” he marveled. “Everything’s very considered. I think that’s really stuck with me and is a big source of inspiration.”

Though he’s lived in DC for 13 years, most of Takagi’s clients are elsewhere. “I never applied myself here, but I’d like to,” he said. One exception: The Line hotel, opening soon in Adams Morgan, has tapped Takagi to design guest-room accessories, a large coffee table and a glass-enclosed deejay booth for the lobby.

“I’ll really design anything,” said Takagi. “If someone asked me to design a car or a missile, I’d do it.”

For more information, visit ateliertakagi.com.

Portfolio Beach Chic After years of renting houses and descending on relatives in Bethany Beach, Delaware, a Potomac couple finally decided to build a vacation home of their own in that popular beach town, where they could spend entire summers with the doors open to friends and extended family. Maryland designer Erin Paige Pitts and architect Christopher Pattey, frequent collaborators, created a residence that leveraged its beachfront environment to accommodate the owners and their three teenagers in comfort.

“It’s an upside-down house,” Pitts explains, noting that the main living areas and master suite are on the top floor where the views are best, while the kids’ rooms and hangout spaces are below. As for the interior design, she adds, “they wanted the subtlety of the beach without overt references like shells.”

Using a palette of pale blue and beige, Pitts incorporated an understated ocean feel throughout the home. Just inside the front door, she enlisted Baltimore-based Twin Diamond Studios to paint wavy lines of blue and tan on the wall. “You know it’s an oceanfront house, even if at that moment you can’t see the ocean,” the designer says. A blue Venetian plaster treatment on the dining area wall, layered with silver dust, makes the surface dance like water. Pitts asked builder Timothy O’Hare to carve waves into the millwork over the living-room fireplace, so the ocean would be present even after sunset. Meanwhile, the kitchen’s reflective glass-tile backsplash evokes the light and color of the sea. Says Pitts, “The clients gave me a lot of poetic license in terms of the selections.”

While she channeled the outdoors with finishes and fabrics, Pattey (pronounced PAY-tee) designed a floor plan that would frame vistas both large and small. “It’s not only the ocean horizon,” he explains, “but it’s the views up and down the beach—we had to capture those.” He interspersed large windows with smaller ovals and squares, which add character while offering vignettes of the shoreline and neighborhood. He also capped the open living/dining area with large “eyebrow” windows that admit volumes of light—from east to west— into the home’s central core. “I just love natural light. It makes you feel good and it makes space feel good,” he observes. A cupola over the screened porch fills that area with light from above.

On the top floor, soaring ceilings enhance the master bedroom and open living and dining areas, while a coffered ceiling and beams define the kitchen. Pattey also created an enclosed observation deck capping the stair tower on the north side; it offers dramatic, 360-degree views of the Bethany Beach community and the ocean beyond.

The new getaway replaces a mid-century-era, ranch-style home; Pitts salvaged siding from the latter and incorporated it into the new home’s stairwell paneling. She carried the weathered theme through the house, ensuring nothing was too precious. “Durable can be beautiful,” says the designer, who chose an indoor-outdoor upholstery and stress-free furnishings, such as a stone-topped coffee table and a distressed-wood dining table that is forgiving of spills. Even the dining room host chairs are slipcovered for easy clean-up. “No muss, no fuss,” Pitts quips.

The clients first hired Pattey of Becker Morgan Group, which has several offices on the Delmarva Peninsula, because of his expertise with shore-side architecture. “It’s an awareness of the conditions we deal with, weather-wise,” he explains. “You have to build the house as if you’re building a boat.”

And that “boat,” while standing up to moisture and storm surge, also had to be sensitive to its site. Environmental requirements dictated that the foundation couldn’t infringe on the fragile dunes, so Pattey worked with structural engineer Jim Baker to design a steel structure that would cantilever the house beyond the setback line, giving the owners additional square footage and protecting the dunes at the same time. “There’s a big, steel superstructure that holds the house in midair over the dune line,” Pattey says. “The entire first floor can wash away, but the two upper floors will stay intact.”

Whether it’s storming or sunny outside, the home Pitts and Pattey created remains inextricably linked to its surroundings—from the huge screened porch with prime views of the beach to a sunset deck on the west side. “We were trying to make the seamless transition between the interior and the exterior,” Pitts says. “It all just kind of blends with the sand and the sea as you look out.”

 Jennifer Sergent is an Arlington-based writer. Photographer Geoffrey Hodgdon lives in Deale, Maryland.

ARCHITECTURE: CHRISTOPHER L. PATTEY, Associate AIA, Becker Morgan Group, Salisbury, Maryland. INTERIOR DESIGN: ERIN PAIGE PITTS, Erin Paige Pitts Interiors, Gibson Island, Maryland. BUILDER: TIMOTHY O’HARE, Timothy B. O’Hare Custom Builder, Inc., Ocean View, Delaware.

Private Tour Dutch Treat In April 2017, a blooming array of more than 10,000 tulips was dispatched from Holland to festoon the Dutch ambassador’s stately Kalorama residence. Though Dutch Tulip Days fell by the wayside 10 years ago, this Washington tradition perfectly embodied one of the goals of Ambassador Henne Schuwer’s diplomatic mission: the celebration of things quintessentially Dutch to create moments of connection among people. He decided to bring it back. “It gave us an opportunity,” he says of the three-day event that took place once again at his residence. It encompassed receptions, meals, and talks on subjects ranging from tulip care to world hunger with leaders in business, politics, and agriculture in attendance. “You try to play to your strength—and tulips are our strength.”

Schuwer and his wife, Lena Boman, began their diplomatic stint in Washington in September 2015. They had lived in DC with their four children from 1997 to 2002 when Schuwer served as deputy of the mission, so their return—now as empty nesters—felt like a homecoming. “It’s wonderful to come back to Washington,” says Boman, who is Swedish. “We are coming back to happy memories.”

Designed by Washington architect Ward Brown in Neoclassical Revival style and built in 1929 by Wilmar Bolling—brother-in-law to Woodrow Wilson—the residence was purchased by the Netherlands in 1944. Henne Schuwer is the 15th ambassador to occupy it. A renovation in the early 1990s restored original elements that had been altered over the years, and in 2015 the public rooms were refurbished to incorporate modern Dutch design.

“The thinking was, we are known for our 17th-century art, but we also want to be known as innovative and modern, so we wanted to express that,” Schuwer explains. “We do not live our own history all the time; we are a forward-looking country.”

Dutch interior designers Mariet Hendrikx and Heleen van der Gugten embraced the building’s neoclassical style while introducing modern art and furniture by Dutch artists, designers, and manufacturers into a traditional setting replete with Flemish antiques and classical paintings. “The Dutch residence is intended as a stage for classic and modern Dutch art and design,” notes van der Gugten. Inspired by the work of Dutch photographer Bruno van den Elshout, its color scheme of blues and sandy hues turned out to be similar to the one at Mount Vernon. “It was a nice coincidence,” observes the designer.

Curator Philippine Noordam of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs selected pieces from the ministry’s collection that, she says, “would offer a connection between the old and new art, a dialog between modern and classical.” For example, a modern portrait by Mary Alacoque Waters above the mantel in the library pays tribute to the 17th-century Portrait of a Lady by Paulus Moreelse, which hangs on the first floor. And 17th- and 18th-century antiques are juxtaposed with modern pieces by Marcel Wanders, Studio Kalff, and others. The Phillips Collection provides art- and furniture-restoration services to the residence when needed.

Tucked away on Linnean Avenue by Rock Creek Park, the Netherlands Embassy, says Schuwer, “is good for work but a bit out of the way for receiving people.” In contrast, the Ambassador’s residence stands front and center on Embassy Row, across the street from the Woodrow Wilson House and a stone’s throw from the Obama and Kushner homes. This prime location means that much of the hosting required by the embassy happens in the residence.

“It is nicer and more intimate to have gatherings here than at the embassy,” reflects Schuwer. “It feels relaxed, open and festive. We don’t want to be exclusive, but it has to be a nice invitation to come to the residence. That creates goodwill and makes people feel special.”

The Ambassador and his wife host gatherings ranging from breakfast meetings and seminars to dinners for 60 in the home’s open, elegant public rooms. A highlight for Schuwer was a dinner in February 2016 honoring Nicholas Kristof and Cindy McCain—winners of the Anne Frank Award for Human Dignity and Tolerance for their work combating human trafficking. “We had tables for 10, to bring people together who might not know each other but might benefit one another,” Schuwer recalls. “For example, we invited someone who trains airline personnel to recognize trafficking situations and introduced her to airline executives.”

Boman agrees. “That’s the whole point of the residence,” she says. “Here, with good food and drink you make connections you sometimes didn’t count on. Our guest lists are very well thought-out.”

A live-in staff of four includes a butler, who has been with the residence for many years, and a young Swedish chef, Joakim Söderberg, who was cooking at a restaurant in Stockholm when Schuwer and Boman enjoyed a meal there and offered him the job. He agreed immediately, though it meant uprooting his life to come to the U.S. “We are very happy with him,” Boman says. “He is hard-working and cooks delicious food, all different cuisines. He has never served the same thing twice.”

The staff occupies the fourth floor, while Schuwer and Boman enjoy private quarters on the third floor that encompass a sitting area, dining room, and kitchen, plus three bedrooms. One of these is currently occupied by one of their daughters, who is pursuing graduate studies at Johns Hopkins. The other kids are scattered over the globe, but “they love to come back here,” says Boman.

“Americans are friendly and welcoming,” observes Ambassador Schuwer. “They are exceptionally positive and appreciative.” He adds, “There is a saying that if you break bread with somebody, you cannot leave the table as enemies. We have learned that there is no problem that can’t be solved over a good meal.”

Bob Narod is a photographer in Herndon, Virginia.

 

Cream of the Crop The 2017 Kitchen & Bath Awards, organized by the Baltimore-Washington Chapter of the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) and sponsored by Home & Design, welcomed 89 entries from area designers. This year’s panel of local judges included architect Bruce Wentworth of Wentworth, Inc.; designer Victoria Sanchez of Victoria at Home; Meghan Fox of Fox Design Studio, LLC; and Home & Design editor in chief Sharon Jaffe Dan.

Winning entries, shown on the following pages, suggest that gray and white kitchens are here to stay (for now), brass is back—but in a matte finish—and leathered surfaces are all the rage. Smoothie bars and indoor herb cultivators reflect an emphasis on health. And organic materials reveal a desire to create spaces that soothe homeowners and guests in au naturel style.

1st PLACE

Brass & Glass—Large Kitchen
Kitchen Design: Sarah Kahn Turner, Jennifer Gilmer Kitchen & Bath, Chevy Chase, Maryland

Treetop Aerie—Large Bath
Interior & Bath Design: Mary Douglas Drysdale, Drysdale, Inc., Washington, DC.

Retro Vibe—Medium Kitchen
Kitchen Design: Paul Bentham, Jennifer Gilmer Kitchen & Bath, Chevy Chase, Maryland.

Moment of Zen—Medium Bath
Bath Design & Renovation: Jonas Carnemark, CKD, Carnemark design + build, Bethesda, Maryland.

True Blue—Specialty Room
Scarlett Breeding, AIA, Alt Breeding Schwarz Architects, Annapolis, Maryland.

2nd PLACE

Minimalist Makeover—Large Kitchen
Kitchen Design: Sarah Kahn Turner, Jennifer Gilmer Kitchen & Bath, Chevy Chase, Maryland.

Bathed in Light—Large Bath
Bath Design: Paul Bentham, Jennifer Gilmer Kitchen & Bath, Chevy Chase, Maryland.

Old World Style—Medium Kitchen
Kitchen Design: Shannon Kadwell, CMKBD, Allied ASID, Anthony Wilder Design/Build, Cabin John, Maryland.

3rd PLACE

Modern Update—Large Kitchen
Kitchen Design: Davida Rodriguez, CKD, Davida’s Kitchen + Tiles, Gaithersburg, Maryland.

Honorable Mention

Industrial Edge—Large Kitchen
Kitchen Design: Paul Bentham, Jennifer Gilmer Kitchen & Bath, Chevy Chase, Maryland.

HOME&DESIGN, published bi-monthly by Homestyles Media Inc., is the premier magazine of architecture and fine interiors for the Washington, DC, Maryland and Virginia region.

The company also publishes an annual H&D Sourcebook of ideas and resources for homeowners and professionals alike. H&D Chesapeake Views is published bi-annually and showcases fine home design and luxury living in and around the Chesapeake Bay.

The H&D Portfolio of 100 Top Designers spotlights the superior work of selected architects, interior designers and landscape architects in major regions of the US.

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