Home & Design

Resource Furniture's Passo table at dining-table height. © Bob Narod

A marble-topped island in a closet by More Space Place. © Robert Meyers

A vanity tucked into the closet by More Space Place. © Robert Meyers

Shoes and handbags on display in the closet by More Space Place. © Robert Meyers

California Closets' attic space, redesigned for storage. © California Closet Company, Inc.

A Murphy bed by Closets by Design. © Bob Narod

The same space with the Murphy bed tucked into a wall of cabinetry. © Bob Narod

Resource Furniture's Passo table at coffee-table height. © Bob Narod

Perfect Fit

Pros weigh in on optimizing a tiny footprint with creative design and organization solutions

Flex Space 
In a two-bedroom Logan Circle condo, Resource Furniture of Georgetown collaborated with designer Theresa Boland to create a flexible space off the kitchen that could encompass a sitting area, office and dining room. The design team anchored the space with the company’s Passo coffee-to-dining table. Adjustable from nine to 31-and-a-half inches in height, and expandable from 50 to 93 inches, it is equipped with four hidden wheels and can seat up to eight. Lining one wall (not pictured), built-ins feature a sofa-cum-Murphy bed system, also by Resource Furniture. “Carefully considering how you live before buying your furniture will enable you to invest wisely in enduring pieces,” advises store manager Jennifer Scher. “Furniture in small spaces should do double duty.”

Touch of Glam
When masterminding a closet renovation in Leesburg, Virginia, designers with More Space Place listened to their client’s mandate to create “a Hollywood feel” while also fulfilling a wish list that included room for an extensive collection of shoes and handbags, space for seasonal clothing and accessories, and a large island with stacks of drawers and a countertop perfect for folding clothes or packing an overnight bag. To summon that glamorous vibe, “lighting her shoe collection was a must, so we added LEDs,” recounts principal Robert Meyers. “And we installed a hair-and-makeup station, so our client can get ready in the morning—start to finish—without ever leaving her closet.”

In the Attic 
Homeowners with a small, vintage abode in DC asked California Closets to optimize the storage in their attic. “When working with tight spaces, we sometimes need to think outside of the box,” says designer Jacalyn Ollivant. “A clean, finished attic can present the perfect opportunity to create a closet.” In this case, the challenge was determining how to work around the low, slanted ceiling, typical of an attic room. California Closets maximized the full height of the ceiling by using adjustable shelving, drawers and hanging rods, which can be installed to fit any irregular space.

Clutter Be Gone
A Woodbridge, Virginia, client wanted her guest room to serve multiple purposes: space for overnight guests, craft room and storage area. Closets by Design installed a double Murphy bed, flanked by built-ins, that folds back behind panels. Opposite, another wall of built-ins encompasses a desk and a drop-down table by the window. The layout ensures that the bed and desk can be open at the same time. The melamine storage system effectively keeps clutter at bay. “In fact,” says Closets by Design’s Dena Stansbury, who spearheaded the project, “the homeowner finds it so peaceful, she also uses it as a meditation room.”

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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.

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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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