How does an architect orchestrate the renovation of a house when he becomes the client? The home of Stephen Vanze, a founding principal at BarnesVanze Architects, and his life partner Elizabeth Berardi answers the question with finesse.

A gracious, curving stair and a Federal-style fanlight over the front door give nothing away; since the two-story brick row house is located in the Georgetown Historic District, the street façade could not change. Inside, however, the three-level, 2,700-square-foot residence has been refreshed front to back in an ingenious makeover that hides as well as reveals. “We used every inch,” observes Vanze.

The property was acquired in 2021 from the estate of a friend. With four bedrooms and three-and-a-half baths (an independent unit occupies the lower level), the space suited a couple embarking on a later-in-life journey. Recently widowed, the architect was transitioning from a roomy residence in Chevy Chase, Maryland; Berardi hailed from a home in Martha’s Vineyard.

First, Vanze sized up the home’s architectural needs: The interior cried out for natural light, and an awkward layout required adjustments. “It was just so dark,” he says. “We tried to make it a space where we could really live.”

The project, completed in 2022, was restorative, not revolutionary. At roughly 20 by 50 feet, the footprint was not expanded. Construction gutted half the house, and systems and plumbing were renewed. Strategic interior walls were shifted. Throughout, the zeitgeist of the 1905 Beaux Arts dwelling, remodeled long ago in Federal style, was respected down to the wainscoting, which Vanze extended. “We both are comfortable with traditional details,” says Berardi. “We like the Federal sensibilities.”

In its previous iteration, the front parlor had been used for dining while the adjoining dining room was converted into a sizable but nearly windowless kitchen. Where the house narrows in a dogleg, a sitting room focused attention on a fireplace that had obstructed views of the patio.

Vanze’s plan repurposed rooms along the main-level stair hall, reclaiming the front room as a modern lounge-cum-library furnished with vintage Josef Hoffmann chairs. The old kitchen reverted back to a dining zone, with a perfectly sized round table acquired at a Vineyard estate sale and a breakfront from Berardi’s childhood home in Upstate New York. An original fireplace matching one in the living room was exposed during demolition and given the simplest of surrounds. Openings from the front entry to both rooms were widened to share light and improve flow.

Along the sisal-carpeted hall, a 10-by-10-foot area once occupied by the powder room and a wet bar was transformed into what the architect describes as “a highly efficient” kitchen. That cook’s corner—just wider than the couple’s eight-burner Wolf range—merges with the existing sitting room, now glowing with natural light after the fireplace was replaced with French doors. The back garden is undergoing a makeover in collaboration with Campion Hruby Landscape Architects. “The outdoor room will give us more living space,” says Berardi, “and fits our lifestyle.”

Traditional-style cabinetry conceals a multitude of necessities. A pop-up shelf delivers the coffeemaker. The microwave purrs in a cupboard. A paneled wall hides the fridge as well as an 18-inch-wide coat closet, with a narrow-but-adequate powder room behind it. Vanze demonstrates tolerances by opening the fridge door without striking the gleaming-white counter. He finds two inches to spare and jokes, “We could have picked up another inch.”

The counter material—ultra-durable Nano Glass, also used for the backsplash—was a worthwhile splurge. As Vanze points out, “You can do anything on it. It took 15 saws to cut it.”

Upstairs, a small bedroom, bath and closet were absorbed to create a primary bedroom overlooking the garden; there’s a small but elegant ensuite bath. Berardi was allotted the larger of two closets. A workspace was carved out of a street-facing bedroom that stretched the width of the house. The remaining space became one of two guest rooms; it shares an updated bath with an adjoining guest room. A laundry unit was installed nearby. The corridor is personalized with family photos.

The owners collaborated on furnishings with BarnesVanze interior designer Miriam Dillon. Spare window treatments and colorful headboards bear Berardi’s imprint. Vanze chose a calibrated palette on the main level, progressing from the pale-gray living room to the dining room clad in golden grass cloth and the white kitchen beyond. The primary suite is pale blue and the guest rooms creamy white. “Overall, the colors are subtle, welcoming and warm,” Dillon remarks. “There is nothing distracting to take away from the architecture.”

To Dillon, the attention to detail stands out. “It’s not a large home,” she points out, “but it’s designed to capture every little space.”

Vanze puts it another way: “Everything feels right-sized.”

Renovation Architecture: Stephen Vanze, FAIA, BarnesVanze Architects. Interior Design: Miriam Dillon, ASID, Associate AIA, BarnesVanze Architects, Washington, DC. Renovation Contractor: Falcon Construction, Rockville, Maryland. Landscape Architecture: Campion Hruby Landscape Architects, Annapolis, Maryland.