How has the pandemic affected the future of design?
Our homes have become a place to work, learn, exercise and relax. Multi-use areas allow families to function together while also providing a retreat at the end of the day. These areas are not going away but are becoming more popular.
What is your philosophy on home as a sanctuary?
Our surroundings have a profound effect on our physical and emotional well-being. Home should be a place where we feel safe, calm and rejuvenated when we walk through the door. If you don’t have that happy-to-be-home feeling, it’s probably time for a redo.
What changes from the past year are here to stay?
Since the pandemic, I’ve noticed my clients wanting more and more color. The day of the all-neutral interior is ending and I think color is here to stay.
How has the pandemic affected the future of design?
New designs will emphasize wellness, integrating popular green designs with wholesome, feel-good products and architecture.
What changes from the past year are here to stay?
Enjoying more time at home with less commuting. The den will become a permanent home office.
Explain how entertaining at home will evolve?
The pandemic has made outdoor entertaining the new norm. Clients are seeing their outdoor spaces as extensions of their homes. We saw this in the explosion of popularity fire pits and outdoor heaters are experiencing. This trend is likely to continue, and to develop with better furnishings, pergolas, outdoor kitchens and pool pavilions in both residential and commercial projects.
The National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) Metro DC Chapter announced the 2021 Contractor of the Year Awards during a virtual ceremony on February 5. The awards go to remodeling projects in DC, Maryland and Virginia; this year, judges reviewed 110 submissions in 34 categories. Media sponsor Home & Design gave its Award of Excellence to a KohlMark Group project. A list of the award-winning projects appears on these pages and can be viewed on the chapter’s website, narimetrodc.org.
Residential Bath under $25,000
GRAND: HandyMensch Home Remodeling
MERIT: Balaton Builders
Residential Bath $25,000 to $50,000
GRAND: Capital Design, LLC
MERIT: Marks-Woods Construction Services, LLC
FINALIST: Tabor Design Build, Inc.
Residential Bath $50,001 to $75,000
GRAND: Landis Architects/Builders; Michael Nash Design, Build & Homes
MERIT: TriVistaUSA Design + Build
FINALIST: Schroeder Design/Build, Inc.
Residential Bath $75,001 to $100,000
GRAND: Lofft Construction Inc.; Michael Nash Design, Build & Homes
Residential Bath over $100,000
GRAND: Michael Nash Design, Build & Homes
MERIT: Sun Design
Residential Kitchen $30,000 to $60,000
GRAND: Michael Nash Design, Build & Homes
MERIT: Smiley Renovations
FINALIST: Balaton Builders
Residential Kitchen $60,001 to $100,000
GRAND: FineCraft Contractors, Inc.
MERIT: Blue Star
FINALIST: Tabor Design Build, Inc.
Residential Kitchen $100,001 to $150,000
GRAND: Bowers Design Build, Inc.
MERIT: Case Architects & Remodelers
FINALIST: Sun Design
Residential Kitchen over $150,000
GRAND: Bowers Design Build, Inc.
MERIT: Sun Design
FINALIST: Anthony Wilder Design/Build, Inc.
Residential Interior under $100,000
GRAND: Sun Design
Residential Interior $100,000 to $250,000
GRAND: Case Architects & Remodelers; HandyMensch Home Remodeling
MERIT: FineCraft Contractors, Inc.
Residential Interior $250,001 to $500,000
GRAND: Sun Design
MERIT: Michael Nash Design, Build & Homes
Residential Interior over $500,000
GRAND: Schroeder Design/Build, Inc.
Residential Interior Element under $30,000
GRAND: Blue Star
Residential Interior Element $30,000 and over
GRAND: HandyMensch Home Remodeling
Commercial Interior
GRAND: Coupard Architects & Builders
MERIT: Lofft Construction Inc.
Residential Addition under $100,000
GRAND: FineCraft Contractors, Inc.
Residential Addition $100,000 to $250,000
GRAND: Sun Design
FINALIST: FineCraft Contractors, Inc.
MERIT: FineCraft Contractors, Inc.
Residential Addition over $250,000
GRAND: Marks-Woods Construction Services, LLC
MERIT: Marks-Woods Construction Services, LLC
FINALIST: Bowers Design Build, Inc.
Residential Exterior under $50,000
GRAND: Presidential Exteriors
Residential Exterior $50,000 to $100,000
GRAND: Exterior Medics, Inc.
Residential Exterior $100,001 to $200,000
GRAND: Smiley Renovations
MERIT: TriVistaUSA Design + Build
FINALIST: Sun Design
Residential Exterior over $200,000
GRAND: Sun Design
MERIT: Sun Design
Entire House under $250,000
GRAND: Heltzelhaus, Inc.
MERIT: Michael Nash Design, Build & Homes
Entire House $250,000 to $500,000
GRAND: Moss Building & Design
MERIT: Abbey Design + Remodel
FINALIST: Michael Nash Design, Build & Homes
Entire House $500,001 to $750,000
GRAND: Finesse Design Remodeling
MERIT: Blue Star
FINALIST: Atlas Moran Construction
Entire House $750,001 to $1,000,000
GRAND: Winn Design + Build
MERIT: Blue Star
FINALIST: Michael Nash Design, Build & Homes
Entire House over $1,000,000
GRAND: Bowers Design Build, Inc.
MERIT: KohlMark Group
Residential Historical Renovation/ Restoration $250,000 and over
GRAND: Marks-Woods Construction Services, LLC
Basement under $100,000
GRAND: Alair Homes Arlington
MERIT: Spectrum Design Build, Inc.
Basement $100,000 to $250,000
GRAND: Michael Nash Design, Build & Homes
MERIT: Moss Building & Design
FINALIST: Spectrum Design Build, Inc.
Residential Detached Structure
GRAND: Lofft Construction Inc.
Residential Landscape Design/ Outdoor Living $100,000 to $250,000
GRAND: Sun Design
MERIT: Rust Construction
FINALIST: Michael Nash Design, Build & Homes
GRAND: Superior Construction Services LLC
MERIT: Michael Nash Design, Build & Homes
Landscape designer Lisbeth Prins conceived a plan for a series of gardens. A pleasure garden features a lawn framed by crape myrtle. A path of pea gravel bordered by boxwood divides it from another garden partitioned by holly. A lower tier, separated by a 30-inch-high wall of stone excavated from the site, contains a vegetable garden. An octagonal garden house is modeled on one at Mount Vernon.
The hardscape contains large-format elements such as 100-by-125-by seven-and-a-half-foot-tall garden walls built using handmade Jefferson Oversize Bricks in a Flemish bond pattern similar to The Governor’s Palace in Williamsburg.
Plant-A-Plant is a full-service landscape company specializing in custom residential design/build since 1982. With 35 years’ experience, our knowledgeable staff can tailor a maintenance program to your new garden or the garden you have.
25283 Lightridge Farm Road, Aldie, Virginia 20105
703-327-6844 — plantaplant.com
Multiple fire elements and sheer-descent water features enliven the landscape while trees provide screening from the neighbors. A water-management issue was solved by relocating the sceptic tanks and installing an extensive drainage system.
In a separate project, while spearheading a four-story addition to a house, they overhauled the five-acre lot, adding a pool house, pool and spa, tennis and basketball court, paver driveway and brick patio. The three-year project features stone retaining walls, gardens and a pergola for entertaining. A log cabin on the property dating back to the Revolutionary War era now boasts a garden surrounding it.
Founded in 1997, Williams & Williams is a family- and veteran-owned pool and landscape design/build company offering a wide array of structural and design services.
1315 Rock Chapel Road, Herndon, Virginia 20170
703-444-0024 — wandwlandscaping.com
The job also entailed creating an expanded deck area on the side of the house that would accommodate a hot tub and incorporating a vegetable garden within the front terraced area.
Principal Ed Ball and his team addressed drainage issues in the front with a retaining wall that handles runoff; they also enlarged the terrace so that it now encompasses the vegetable garden adding drainage in the front yard and by the garage. A cedar fence along the side of the house affords privacy by the hot tub without eliminating views.
The planting palette is anchored by evergreen shrubs that create architectural bones in the yard, augmented by flowering shrubs and perennials for seasonal interest.
Ed Ball Landscape Architecture (EBLA) is landscape architecture and construction firm with over 25 years of expertise in landscape design & construction.
1800 Jonathan Way, Reston, Virginia 20190
703-433-1863 — landscapearchitectnorthernvirginia.com
The team correlated their design with the clean lines of the home, which was designed by Artisan Builders. Owen and Syed crafted an entry walk out of large-format mirage ceramic tiles offset by turf strips to focus on the central vestibule. The rear garden is visible from the front entrance; it features a rectangular reflecting pool bordered by three laser-cut aluminum panels and a linear fire trough. Entertainment spaces are delineated by modern and linear concrete pavers. Crape myrtle and varied species of multi-trunk holly frame the space.
Fine Landscapes, Ltd. specializes in imaginative and luxurious outdoor spaces customized to fit your individual style.
21558 Stonetree Court, Sterling, Virginia 20166
703-421-7441 — finelandscapes.com
On the wish list: a new pool, spa and pool house, patios with fire pits and extensive landscaping.
Contending with a significantly sloped lot, Surrounds’ Chad Talton, PLA, conceived multiple patios; his plan elevated the west-facing pool to create a negative edge that captures beautiful sunset views and a panorama of rolling hills.
The landscape features columnar trees, crape myrtle, holly and magnolia, punctuated by boxwood, hydrangea, drift roses, nepeta, astilbe, amsonia and more. “Focusing on elements such as views or architecture create impact,” Talton says. “They add to the experience.”
Surrounds, Inc., is a design-build and garden-management firm producing thoughtfully planned and meticulously crafted outdoor-living environments that settle into place, take root and thrive.
After upgrading and relocating an outdated septic system, the team employed a range of hardscape materials to create the garden’s framework, including precast Tudor-style balustrades that complement the home’s architecture; Carderock stone retaining walls, columns and lawn step risers; chiseled, monolithic bluestone slabs for water-feature coping, rill trough and steps; and Pennsylvania flagstone walkways, pathways and step treads. Reclaimed granite cobblestone paves the drive. Foundation plantings include boxwood parterres and cloud formations, Dwarf mondo grass borders, hellebores, pachysandra, geranium, wisteria and climbing hydrangea.
Award-winning Wheat’s offers design, installation and maintenance solutions with a premium on personalized attention, creativity, craftsmanship and lasting relationships.
8620 Park Street, Vienna, Virginia 22180
703-879-2631 — wheats.com
When clients purchased a rundown Soapstone Valley property, it was hidden behind undergrowth and dying trees, and a sloped front yard channeled water into the home’s foundation.
On the wish list: a flowering front garden and a landscape design that would frame the house instead of concealing it.
Fine Earth elevated the basement window well and installed a stacked-stone wall to raise the grade along the foundation. A stepping-stone path conceals a French drain that carries water via the driveway to a rain garden.
A Carderock stone planter by the door matches the stone wing of the house. Climbing roses, peonies and hydrangea mix with deer-resistant perennials, while summer camellias dot the front lawn.
Award-winning Fine Earth Landscape, Inc., offers stability, reliability and a breadth of resources to meet your landscape needs, creating and maintaining delightful outdoor environments.
16815 Budd Road, Poolesville, Maryland 20837
301-972-8810 — fineearth.com
Hidden behind privacy walls, a courtyard scheme devised by principal D. Blake Dunlevy encompasses an upper-level dining/living space and lower-level parking court. Materials include blended-granite cobblestone driveway pavers; Ashlar stone retaining walls and steps; and travertine pavers for the approach and living spaces. Boxwood partitions separate the outdoor spaces while hornbeam pillars anchor the courtyard and a Japanese maple is a focal point. Perennials like catmint and coral bell soften the garden’s edges. A custom steel water feature provides a tranquil vibe. Complete with lighting and irrigation, the plan honors the home’s historic context while incorporating modern luxury—a striking balance between form and function.
Since 1982, D. A. Dunlevy has designed and built some of the finest outdoor living spaces in the DC region. Elegant design solutions and exacting craftsmanship are our hallmark.
P.O. Box 70, Barnesville, Maryland 20838
301-977-7593 — dadunlevy.com
They requested a landscape plan with space for both intimate and large-scale entertaining. They wished it to enhance and complement the traditional aesthetic of their new house, which is prominently situated on a corner in downtown Vienna. During the process, principal Josh Kane and his team demolished existing stone walls and protected large mature oak trees, implementing substantial remediation to meet storm-water runoff requirements; compost absorbs heavy rains, preventing water from entering the town’s storm-water system. Kane Landscapes designed and constructed a pool, deck, patio and pavilion. An existing shed at the back of the yard became an attractive pool house housing a bathroom.
For over 25 years, Kane landscapes has inspired, created, and sustained award-winning landscapes for area residents.
105 Douglas Ct, Sterling, Virginia 20166
703-803-3146 — kanelandscapes.com
 | McHale Landscape Design, IncDecade Award of Excellence for Residential Maintenance |
 | Walnut Hill Landscape CompanyA weekend retreat on the Wye River becomes a mecca for entertaining |
 | Grow Landscapes, Inc.A Grow pool is designed to be a destination within your property |
 | Kane Landscapes2020 Honorable Mention Award, Outdoor Living Area Design/Build |
 | D. A. DunlevyGrand Award for Outdoor Living Area/Design-Build |
 | Fine Earth Landscape, Inc.Winner of over 150 Regional and National Awards |
 | Wheat’s Lawn and Custom LandscapeProviding high-quality work at great prices to discerning homeowners |
 | Surrounds Landscape Architecture and ConstructionGrand Award-Winner: Total Residential Contracting/Design-Build |
 | Fine Landscapes, Ltd.A restrained, modern landscape plan enhances a McLean show house |
 | Ed Ball Landscape ArchitectureDedicated to translating clients’ ideas into outdoor realities |
 | Williams & Williams Landscaping Inc.Williams & Williams is a firm synonymous with high–end landscaping and design in the DC area |
 | Plant-A-Plant CompanyAn award-winning landscape company specializing in residential design/build |
The project’s major challenge was how to fit all the desired elements within the limited lot; multiple outdoor living areas and pleasing views from disparate parts of the home were part of the wish list.
The design team began by establishing the sight lines from inside the house, then aligned the pool and water features with the front entrance to create a primary focal point. Additional elements expand out from that starting point, including a linear fire pit that’s integrated into the hardscape, a natural-look waterfall and a chic wood-paneled kitchen with a waterfall quartz countertop.
Grow Landscapes designs and builds impressive outdoor living spaces that integrate every aspect of your project into both your lifestyle and your environment. The possibilities are limitless.
Leesburg, Virginia
703-771-1003 — growlandscapes.com
