Home & Design toasted its September/October 2023 issue on August 24th with a festive event at ABW—Appliances a Better Way in Rockville. Guests mingled and perused the showroom’s array of cutting-edge appliances.
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| STAR POWER The Mesa Starburst by Hammerton Studio aims to conjure the rugged landscape of the Southwest. Artisan-blown crystal shades contain striated diffusers and LED bulbs; both base and shades come in various metallic finishes. Pictured: a Novel Brass base with a Mesa Bronze shade. studio.hammerton.com |
| CRYSTAL CLEAR At 36 inches in diameter, Allegri’s Vezzo makes a bold statement. The nine-light fixture is elaborately layered for a waterfall effect with strings of octagonal crystals woven onto cast-brass loops; even the canopy is ornamented in crystal. Pictured in Winter Brass. allegricrystal.com |
| MAKING HISTORY Venerable glassmaker Barovier&Toso named the Bissa Boba chandelier after the Venetian word bissa, meaning snake. Fashioned from mouth-blown Murano glass, its sinuous arms wind out from a metal center. Find in a host of glass colors and two metal finishes; Olive glass is pictured. barovier.com |
| SUSTAINABLE STYLE The Flow chandelier by Varaluz presents a delicately detailed silhouette of twisting ribbons. Hand-forged out of recycled steel with a two-tone Hammered Ore finish, the fixture comes in a range of sizes; the eight-light version is pictured. varaluz.com |
| PERFECT CIRCLE The 10-light Trina Chandelier by Arteriors is designed to resemble a bracelet or earrings. Hoops of clear, seedy glass are punctuated by exposed bulbs around a ring made of iron in an Antique Brass finish. arteriorshome.com |
| IN THE ROUND Designed by Atelier Alain Ellouz, the Soho Chandelier is composed of hanging discs suspended from a gleaming metal structure. Each disc joins two alabaster rounds via a small metal ring. Find in a choice of sizes at Holly Hunt in DC. atelier-alain-ellouz.com; hollyhunt.com |
| FLOATING ON AIR The light and airy Bubbles chandelier assembles blown-glass bulbs clustered—and seemingly afloat—around a brushed-nickel or -brass frame. Designed by Ashley Stark with a single bulb at its center, the fixture is available in clear, blue or opaque glass. ashleystarkhome.com |
| DOUBLE DUTY Clean-lined and modern, Castro Lighting’s Rolland Round Suspension light features gold-plated brass bands supporting two rows of clear crystal tubes; 48 bulbs, hidden inside the circle, emit a soft glow. It also comes in a square format. castrolighting.com |
| | EASY BAKE Italian manufacturer Forza’s 48-inch dual-fuel range boasts a single, capacious oven cavity with six racks and room for two turkeys at once. An electric broiler spanning the width of the oven evenly distributes heat. Its chic exterior with race car-inspired lines comes in seven bold colors. forzacucina.com |
| COLD STORAGE The Series 9 74” Integrated Triple Zone Refrigerator from Fisher & Paykel introduces the brand’s latest innovation in cooling technology. Measuring 24 inches wide and 74 inches high, the fridge efficiently stores contents in three temperature and humidity modes: Chill, Fridge and Pantry. A freezer model is also available. fisherpaykel.com |
| PERFECT FINISH SMEG has debuted Nettuno, an understated blue-gray finish devised for ovens, warming drawers, coffee makers and select wine coolers. The finish is pictured above on the brand’s built-in coffee system, which serves up cappuccino, latte and more with a hot and cold milk frother. smegusa.com |
| MULTI TASKER Robam’s CQ762 Built-In Combi Steam Oven features 13 cooking functions including steaming, grilling and roasting with steam, as well as defrosting, sterilizing, fermenting and more. Fifty customized recipes are pre-programmed into the appliance, which is clad in black tempered glass and stainless steel; other finishes are on offer. robamworld.com |
| PURE GEOMETRY Arteriors’ sculptural Torrington Coffee Table explores circular forms in minimalist style. A round slab of leathered Toronto marble, 48 inches in diameter, rests atop two columnar pedestals crafted from ebony-stained oak. arteriorshome.com |
 | LIVING COLOR Designed by Joana Vasconcelos for Roche Bobois, Pirulito earthenware accessories are hand-turned in organic shapes and glazed in bright colors. To create Totem (pictured), each component was turned and enameled manually, then fused to create a whole. roche-bobois.com |
| AT REST Conceived during the pandemic with serenity in mind, Miranda Kerr Home’s Tranquility collection for Universal Furniture is delineated by restful neutrals and soft, organic lines. The Mantra sideboard combines reeded-wood door fronts finished in white and a mappa burl-finished frame with gold accents. universalfurniture.com |
| VERY VERSATILE The low-slung Curve modular sofa by Resource Furniture presents a crescent-shaped profile. Its generous seat is equipped with backrest cushions that can be rearranged to suit the moment. A host of sizes, configurations, fabric and leather options is offered. resourcefurniture.com |
| FLUID FORM Italian maker Turri has partnered with Monica Armani to create Roma, a collection of furniture notable for its soft, rounded lines. Pictured: The Roma cabinet comes in glossy lacquer, walnut or leather; printed decoration on the doors is optional and legs can be finished in gold or graphite. turri.it |
| SIMPLE LINES The diminutive, curvaceous Bisou chair by Portuguese brand Mambo Unlimited Ideas marries comfortable foam cushions with a base of solid stained or lacquered wood. Available as a swivel chair and in a wide range of fabrics; Palm Beach is pictured with a beechwood base. mambounlimitedideas.com |
| A LITTLE ASKEW Shewekar, an Egyptian studio designing interiors and furniture, has dubbed its D-shaped dining table Divine. Crafted with hand-laid strips of straw in a bronze finish, the piece is defined by an asymmetrical surface and three asymmetrical legs that accent its off-kilter charm. shewekar.com |
| SOFT SELL Saba’s Wabi bed was devised by Alain Gilles with an upholstered headboard padded with foam and an additional soft insert for comfort. The frame is supported by solid ash feet, blanched or stained dark; they can be installed on the sides or ends of the bed. sabaitalia.com |
| NEAT SEAT Ares, a dining and lounging collection by JANUS et Cie, brings clean-lined style to al fresco spaces. A driftwood-finished teak frame, offered in a Fossil or Cocoa finish, supports a rope back and mesh seat. Cushions come in various colors. janusetcie.com |
| NAP TIME The densely braided ropes used to moor boats inspired Bitta (which means mooring in Italian), an outdoor collection by Rodolfo Dordoni for Kettal. Aluminum frames are wrapped in polyester cords to create soft, comfortable seating; Daybed Bela Rope is pictured. kettal.com |
| ON A CURVE Patricia Urquiola conceived the curvaceous Trampoline sofa for Cassina. A backrest of hand-knit polypropylene-and-nylon cord attaches to a painted, stainless-steel frame; recycled-fiber cushions are upholstered in water-repellent polyester. A two-seat sofa and three flexible modules create a variety of seating possibilities. cassina.com |
| ROPED IN Traditional chairs found on Brazilian balconies inspired Alfio Lisi’s Amado collection for Tidelli Outdoor Living. A powder-coated aluminum structure is bound in polyester rope to form the seat and back. The frame comes in 52 colors and the rope in 62. tidelli.com |
 | DINING OUT Ethimo’s Pluvia dining chair by Luca Nichetto features an aluminum structure with a tightly woven seat and back in a Natwick Sand Beige colorway. Pictured here with Nichetto’s Esedra dining table, made of WarmWhite aluminum and topped with pickled teak. ethimo.com |
| PERFECT PERCH Poltrona Frau has expanded its outdoor offerings with Leplì Outdoor—a line of poufs, stools and benches originally designed by Kensaku Oshiro for indoor use. Each piece intertwines polypropylene string around an aluminum base; the Taupe, Ecru and Rust color palette complements the brand’s other outdoor collections. poltronafrau.com |
| CLASSIC COOL The Panama Berger Armrest was designed by Ludovica + Roberto Palomba for Talenti Outdoor Living. Echoing the lines of a classic French Bergère chair, it extends nautical rope over an aluminum frame. Find in a wide range of colors and cushion fabrics. en.talentispa.com |
| COMFORT ZONE Designed by Radice & Orlandini for Potocco, the Ola armchair boasts an enveloping backrest framed in tubular metal and softened by supple, hand-woven lines of rope; the legs are made of lacquered, stainless-steel pipe. Removable cushions are filled with polyurethane foam and polyester padding. potocco.it |
Pristine Acres devised an extensive plan for a compact lot in McLean, ensuring that the landscape would reflect the contemporary style of the newly built custom home on site. On the wish list: a swimming pool with a spa and sun shelf; a flat-roof pavilion housing a fire pit and outdoor kitchen; cedar fencing; and underground stormwater management. “Retaining walls are clad in porcelain tile to echo the architectural character of the home,” explains the landscape architect, Kevin Kurdziolek. A sheer-descent water feature anchors the pool scape.
Landscape Architecture & Installation: Steve Waldron, owner; Kevin Kurdziolek, PLA, ASLA, Pristine Acres. Builder: TriCrest Homes.
Clients living on a rural Woodbine, Maryland, property hired D.A. Dunlevy to design and build an outdoor-living zone in their backyard. One priority: to create a swimming pool that would inspire conversation. A retrofitted shipping container—currently a popular alternative to traditional pools—answered their wishes. “We set it into an existing slope so its glass viewing window is visible below,” recounts principal Blake Dunlevy. An expansive ipe deck surrounds the pool, flowing out from the farmhouse-style residence.
Landscape Design & Construction: D. Blake Dunlevy, D.A. Dunlevy.
| SURFACE STYLE Conceived by Patricia Urquiola for Agape, the Bloque countertop and storage system supports the brand’s washbasins, including the designer’s clay Cenote vessel, pictured here. Flat, intersecting stone or wood surfaces are configured in an open design and can be combined in larger dimensions. agapedesign.it/en |
| LIVING COLOR Italian bath-product maker Bleu Provence has debuted the True Colors Lite collection, which enhances classically shaped vessels with bold, novel hues. Buyers can choose among 30 glossy or matte colors and an array of vintage-style faucets. Pictured: a double sink in Verde. bleuprovence.it |
| NATURAL STONE A spacious, rectangular form delineates Stone Forest’s Ventus, available as a console, wall-mount or stand-alone sink. The basin, in Carrara marble or honed Antique Gray limestone, is supported by an industrial-style base in a range of finishes; limestone is pictured with an Aged Bronze base and matching tray. stoneforest.com |
| WORK OF ART Michelangelo’s Piéta inspired Kreoo’s Nami washbasin by Enzo Berti, which mimics the drape of the sculpture’s veil. To achieve the effect, the designer scanned velvet laid atop an oval bowl in 3D, then created a digital image to be reproduced in marble and finished with hand-chiseling. kreoo.com/en |
While building a modern carriage house on their property, the owners of a Federal-style Capitol Hill row home hired Studio AKA to reimagine the backyard, which would serve as a connector between the old and new buildings. “Asymmetry drove the design,” observes principal Danielle Alexander, who used dynamic paving patterns and irregular jointing to create an organic patio space bordered by billowing plants. A refreshed, vine-covered stucco wall on one side and a fence festooned with wisteria envelop what Alexander deems “a secret garden.”
Landscape Architecture: Danielle Alexander, Studio AKA. Carriage House Architecture: Fowler Architects. Contractor: Cooper Renovations.
Robert Gurney was tapped to put a modern spin on a 1931 Federal-style residence in Northwest DC’s Observatory Circle. He and colleague Kara McHone incorporated the home’s original brick structure into the composition, adding dynamic contemporary volumes beside and above its front façade. The additions, rising three stories, employ solid and glass planes to dramatic effect. “The project is an arrangement of simple, intersecting volumes, rendered in varied materials combining solids and voids,” explains Gurney. “A linear volume is inserted through the existing masonry shell, extending beyond and connecting the new and existing volumes.” Now painted gray, the original brick offsets stucco, mahogany and fiber-cement panels. A new, glass-enclosed front entrance lets in the light.
Renovation Architecture: Robert M. Gurney, FAIA; Kara McHone, project architect, Robert M. Gurney, FAIA Architect. Renovation Contractor: Steven T. McCaughan. Landscape Design: Campion Hruby Landscape Architects.
While revamping a vintage dwelling in Chevy Chase, Maryland, Donald Lococo addressed the home’s exterior when he and his team conceived a 221-square-foot addition on the front of the house. “We followed the rooflines of the existing gables, taking architectural cues from the size, language and scale of the historic neighborhood,” Lococo notes. Brick siding was replaced with HardiePlank; beneath a Dutch Colonial-style gable, the front entry commands attention with additional windows and a series of columns.
Renovation Architecture: Donald Lococo, AIA; David Moore, project architect, Donald Lococo Architects. Renovation Contractor: Acadia Renovations.
Land & Water Design, Inc. conceived a naturalistic pool scape on an Ashburn, Virginia, property. “The vision included a three-season screened porch, a fire pit, travertine pavers, custom lighting and a landscape that would promote privacy,” recounts landscape architect Don Nesmith. The plan incorporated these elements around an irregularly shaped pool and a custom waterfall made with boulders. “They’re placed to provide a sound that will disguise noise,” notes Nesmith. “And the pool is deep enough to jump into from the boulder beam wall.”
Landscape Architecture: Don Nesmith, PLA; Vivian Myers; Michael Minh Tran, Land & Water Design, Inc.
A gracious row house in DC’s Kalorama neighborhood had become outmoded with time. When new owners entered the scene, they hired Fowlkes Studio for an update that would marry the dwelling’s grandeur with modern elements. The team replaced the dated kitchen with a sleek one by Poggenpohl; installed an open staircase of white oak; and converted a second-story sleeping porch into a home office topped with a roof terrace. The now-finished basement features guest quarters, a prep kitchen and a wine cellar.
Refined finishes spoke to the owners’ aesthetic vision. “Interior walls are clad in rugged materials like brick and Venetian plaster for a sense of monumentality and timelessness,” architect VW Fowlkes points out. “Wood and stone elements are layered in dialogue.”
Renovation Architecture: VW Fowlkes, AIA; Catherine Fowlkes, AIA; Martin Locraft, AIA; Josh Eager, Fowlkes Studio. Renovation Contractor: Added Dimensions, Inc.
Architects Robert Gurney and Kara McHone dramatically reimagined a 20-foot-wide Queen Anne row house in Northwest DC, transforming choppy, dilapidated interiors into four floors of open, airy living space. The redo is organized around an open-riser stair of steel and white oak, with a skylight above. A one-story rear addition of brick, steel and glass provides extensive daylighting. Lowering the basement floor by 16 inches increased ceiling height.
A distinctive material palette includes reclaimed-white oak plank flooring and walls; hot-rolled steel; brick; copper; welded-wire fabric; and concrete countertops and tiles chosen for durability and ease of maintenance. “The goal was to yield a composition both restrained and polished,” says Gurney. “The project is a duality of old and new.”
Renovation Architecture: Robert M. Gurney, FAIA; Kara McHone, project architect, Robert M. Gurney, FAIA Architect. Interior Design: Therese Baron Gurney, ASID, Baron Gurney Interiors. Renovation Contractor: Peterson + Collins, Inc.
THEN | NOW |
| The bathroom was poorly laid out, with a toilet occupying center stage and a small pedestal sink stuck in a corner behind the tub. | The soaking tub and shower are combined in a wet area at one end of the room. Appropriating an adjacent walk-in closet made room for a double vanity on the former tub wall as well as a private WC. |
| Limited light came through narrow windows at each end of the space. | Double casement windows replaced the narrow ones, admitting more light into the room. |
| Boring white wall tiles and dark tile floors made the bathroom feel dingy and dated. | An eye-catching material palette includes glazed, green ceramic Zia tiles on two walls. Floors and other walls are clad in random-cut, terrazzo-look porcelain tile from Vives by Grof. A walnut vanity sporting brushed-brass hardware is topped by a quartz counter. |
Bath Design & Contracting: Eric Goetz, Blue Star, Washington, DC.
THEN | NOW |
| A traditional Cape Cod, the original house sat awkwardly on the site. Its stye didn’t reflect the owners’ taste. | Designed around a beautiful old maple tree, the home enhances and respects its natural environment. It embraces a Mid-Century Modern aesthetic with clean, unadorned lines. |
| The abode lacked a strong indoor-outdoor connection. | Large expanses of sliding glass and both picture and clerestory windows connect the interiors to the large front yard and smaller rear yard. Interiors spill out onto ipe decking and serene, Japanese-style courtyards. |
| White-painted asphalt shingles seemed out of harmony with the surroundings. The front façade held little visual interest. | Gray-painted, horizontal Hardie siding complements the colors of nature; fir-clad overhangs and privacy screens made of ipe and cedar lend warmth and interest. |
Renovation Architecture: James Rill, AIA, Rill Architects, Bethesda, Maryland. Builder: Woodhaven Contractors, Ijamsville, Maryland.
