Two-Sided Fireplace Separates Dining & Living Areas

My clients decided to downsize from a large single family home in Chevy Chase, MD to a relatively new 3-bedroom condo on Connecticut Ave in Cleveland Park, DC. The condo was plain vanilla (see image below) and they asked me to customize it for their lifestyle.

The new space is approximately half of their existing home but in most ways their needs were unchanged:
- The wife works from home and she needed a home office that would also be large enough for her teenage daughter to join her when doing homework.
- The husband also needed space for a desk.
- They wanted a space large enough for their daughter to have friends stay overnight.
- They have relatively frequent overnight adult guests and needed a guest room.
- They wanted a “den” area for reading or for quietly watching TV.
- They wanted a separate daily eating space and a more “formal” dining space
- They weren’t thinking of jettisoning any clothing so needed fairly large closet spaces
- They were looking for a modern, clean-lined look.

This list was a tall order for the space available in the condo. The condo was vacant when they purchased it and spaces look larger than they are when empty. Without furniture it’s also harder to visualize how you’ll use spaces and their true size. For example, the “living room” space was quite small – especially relative to the dining and kitchen areas. The kitchen had a large separate pantry and separate wet bar areas. The bedrooms were fairly small. My clients liked the idea of a fireplace but really disliked the style of the ventless gas fireplace that came with the unit.

Dining & Living Areas BEFORE

 
Convertible Space – Office Cube: The final design relies on several convertible spaces. I created an “Office Cube” in the main living area. It takes the place of the original pantry and wet bar area. The office cube relies on almost 9 foot tall translucent glass doors to allow the office area to be closed to view when company comes but to allow the wife to have an open office with great view when she’s working from home.

 

View of Office "Cube" With Doors Closed

 

 

Office Cube with Doors Open -- Allowing Work From Home with Great ViewsView from Office Cube

Functional doors on either side create an axis with the hallway and the cooktop and range hood. A larger “door” facing the outside wall creates a window when open for the wife to enjoy the views. [The daughter's desk is on the back wall of the cube – image above.]

 

Separation of Living and Dining Spaces: Building upon one of the existing concrete support columns, we created a large double-sided, ultra-modern, vent-free fireplace to define living and dining as separate areas. You can see the ribbon of flame equally well from either space. We combined a large format porcelain tile, a smaller stone mosaic and stainless steel edging to create a unique sculptural piece. The palette is more refined than – but still coordinates well with – the original slate on the floor. The horizontal plane formed at the top preserves views while also providing a space for artwork.

 

Modern View-Through Fireplace

We stole space from one of the bedrooms to enlarge the living space – making the space feel better proportioned and better oriented to the door to the balcony. We added a large entertainment cabinet but made its presence in the living area minimal by recessing it into the adjacent room (making that room smaller still). When the cabinet doors are closed it projects a mere 3 inches into the living room and becomes – along with the ledge and lamp — almost abstract art. The small ledge is created from the same materials as the fireplace. When the doors of the entertainment cab are open, it’s a comfortable place from which to watch TV. The lamp hanging from the ceiling was a creative solution for hiding an inactive sprinkler pipe in a wall we removed when we enlarged the living area. We couldn’t remove the sprinkler pipe without coordinating with the fire department and draining the line for the entire building. So we camouflaged it as a hanging lamp. [ It's decorated for Christmas in the picture.]

Living Room with Entertainment Cab That Doubles as Abstract Art

 

That’s all for now — the next installment will be about the convertible space we created to solve several of my clients’ other needs.

The Big Idea In This Remodel Was to Bring the Views Into the Kitchen

 My clients moved into this close-in Bethesda, MD neighborhood in the mid 1990’s for the school system — particularly access to Walt Whitman High School.  They selected this particular mid-century house for the view from the living room.   They did almost nothing to the house for the next 15-plus years.  But the kitchen was falling apart and needed to be replaced so they approached me about a kitchen remodel.  They had already met with several designers – but nothing clicked for them. 

A Room With A View:  The big idea in this kitchen remodel was to open up the kitchen and breakfast room to the wonderful view that first sold them on the house.  Before the remodel, this kitchen (like all kitchens of the time) was completely blocked off from the rest of the house.  Instead of the view, my clients looked at a wall of closets and a desk (see first “before” picture, below). 

Notice the Use of Drawer Cabinets for Efficient Storage and the Large Peninsula Countertop for Prep

A Whole-House Palette:  The second big idea was to build-on rather than eliminate or cover over finishes that they didn’t particularly like – such as the brick on the fireplace and the stone tile in the entryway.  Once the kitchen was opened to views throughout the house, it was important to have a single consistent palette of materials and color. 

The View From the Entry Highlights the Wonderful Living Room Windows

We did explore covering over or replacing these original finishes but my client decided, appropriately to my mind, that the additional cost didn’t really bring additional value.  So one my tasks was to identify a material and color palette that would make the original materials feel current and pleasing.  The original gold-toned color palette brought out the wrong tones in the original materials.  The grayed-taupe, grays, very deep eggplant, and honey-stained quarter-sawn oak cabinets bring out a completely different set of tones in the original materials making them feel much more current and coordinated. 

The House Now Has Long Sightlines Including of the New Front Door

I used a very dark accent color in the entryway to create a feeling of compression as you walk through the door.  The tones get progressively lighter as you move toward those wonderful large living room windows.  It evokes a feeling of movement through the house and of expansion as you move toward the lighter, larger areas.

Notice the Cohesive Palette of Materials and How Fresh the Original 1950's Brick Feels

The Inca Brown Marble & Glass Mosaic Backsplash Blends Perfectly with the Original Brick Making Both Feel Contemporary

The Inca Brown Marble and Glass Mosaic backsplash tile is a perfect foil for the original brick of the fireplace.  The two pencil edges – one at the countertop and one at the bottom of the wall cabinets helps create a pleasing and consistent horizontal line that echoes the horizontal lines of the brick.  The honey stained quarter-sawn oak euro-style cabinets work perfectly with the pickled oak flooring in the living and dining rooms.  The Alpina White Silestone helps tie the palette together.  The Granada Marmoleum on the kitchen floor helps hide dirt while blending in well with the rest of the palette. 
Better Natural and Artificial Light:  We created multiple layers of light that reinforce the modern lines of the home.  We avoided the more typical recessed lighting scheme for surface-mounted lighting.  We selected linear commercial lighting that uses high-efficiency lamps and that reinforces the modern lines of the home. 

We also replaced all the windows in the kitchen and breakfast room — enlarging the one between the kitchen counters.  We used casement windows that provide better ventilation and cleaner lines.  In the dining room (not shown), we restored a large picture window that had been bricked over by a previous owner. 

A Layout with Efficient Storage and Efficient Work Spaces:  We changed the U-shaped kitchen into more efficient Galley kitchen with the ovens and refrigerator moved out of the galley.  All the base cabinets are drawer cabinet – offering good storage for everything from pots and pans to dishware and foodstuffs.  The large peninsula – free of appliances or a sink – provides a great work area where the cook can face her family and guests.  Sequestering the double ovens and refrigerator into a single (close-by) but visually out of the way area, also makes the whole space feel larger. 

Attention to Detail:  Attention to detail is critical in a home without extensive molding and where view lines stretch from one end to the other.  It’s important that the surfaces come together cleanly and in a way that makes visual sense.  Notice below how the base trim, threshold, and wainscot come together. 

Attention to Detail Helps Make Everything Work

Attention to Costs:  While this neighborhood could have supported a much more expensive remodel, my clients wanted to contain costs.  We made specific choices in several areas with an eye toward cost savings.  Three decisions saved tens of thousands of dollars:  1) Using Marmoleum in the kitchen and keeping the doorway between the dining room and the kitchen the original size meant we didn’t need to refinish any of the hardwood floors that were in quite good shape.  2)  My clients kept relatively new appliances including the cooktop, ovens and refrigerator.  We replaced the refrigerator, range hood and had an ignition problem with the cooktop repaired.  3)  As mentioned previously, we  preserved rather than replaced many finishes original to this mid-centruy home. 

Before Pictures: 

Before - The View Was of Closets & a DeskKitchen Before

A beautiful Way to Solve Water Problems

Walls, Drainage Swells, & Drainage Areas Under the Correctly Sloped Patio

Rock lined swales direct water around the house.  A large gravel drainage field behind the back wall allows a lot of water to percolate back into the groundwater.  A drainage field under the stone patio on stone dust captures water from the correctly sloped patio.  The excess water from both drainage fields empty into the swales.  Both walls act to visually enlarge the space – creating a foreground, mid-ground, and background — making the yard feel much larger.  The front wall also acts as a sitting wall for entertaining larger groups.

 

The “Before” picture, below, shows the steep slope that brought water directly into the house — not slowed at all by the poorly sloped concrete pad.  I’ll provide a more extensive discussion after we finish the project.  

 

"Before" - Water flowed directy down the hill into the house

 

 

A Compact, Elegant Kitchen

This is a continuation of the previous article describing how we reconfigured my client’s home for a new life with creative friends and music in Silver Spring, MD.

Re-Sculpted for Function and Light

We radically re-sculpted her home within the existing footprint starting with the kitchen.  By moving the kitchen into the old dining room we created a light-filled kitchen with a much better connection to both the outdoors and to the music and living rooms.  (View before and after floor plans in the first article.)

Kitchen is Well Connected to the Garden & Flooded With Light

And Also Well Connected to the Rest of the Home

Efficient, if Somewhat limited, Storage

The kitchen is very small but better configured than its darker, cut-off predecessor.  Valuable storage space was sacrificed for even more important windows and doors.  The cabinets we used, though, were configured for maximum storage and utility.  The base cabinets are all drawer cabinets (not easily seen in the photos).  While my preference is for 30” wide drawer cabinets, for this project, we had to compromise and accept several narrower base cabinets to maintain counter space where needed.   One 30” base cabinet, one 33” base cabinet and one 30” pantry cabinet provide great flexibility for storing everything from pots and pans to dishes and platters.  We gained valuable drawer space in the work area by using a cooktop with drawers below instead of a range.  The single oven is placed out of the main work area.  We gained a little additional storage space – and saved money – by using a single oven instead of two ovens often found in higher-end kitchens.   A smaller microwave sits on a shelf above the single oven.  Putting the oven in a cabinet with a drawer below also puts the over at a better height for our aging bodies. 

Using a Single Oven Plus Microwave Instead of Double Ovens Saved Money & Space

We made up for the lack of storage space in the kitchen proper by building a long pantry closet in the music room between the kitchen and living room.  The Pantry is only 18” deep – deep enough to hold small appliances and big platters but shallow enough that nothing gets lost.  A light in the pantry makes sure items can be located quickly.  The bypass doors don’t take up floor space in the passageway. 

A Shallow, Long Pantry Closet Supplements Kitchen Storage

The Pantry (White Bypass Doors) is Tucked Into Music Room and Conveniently Located Alongside Kitchen

 Eating Nook

We even fit an eating nook into this small kitchen.  It’s perfect for my client when she is without guests.  It also makes an intimate setting with one to three guests and provides space for a buffet for larger gatherings.  The backless bench to the left is on casters and can be rolled out of the way for additional seating in the living room or to provide a wider passageway during large gatherings. 

We even fit a cozy eating nook in this compact kitchen

Design Decisions to Lower Costs

There were a myriad of design decisions that kept costs down including 3 primary decisions:

1. Working within the existing footprint.  The decision to work within the existing footprint means that the window over the sink looks across the areaway to the basement at the brick wall that forms the original L wing housing what’s now the master suite.  In the future, we’ll use stained glass or an art window film to hide the view of the brick while still allowing in light.  This decision, of course, saved tens of thousands of dollars. 
2. Using laminate countertops.  This decision saved at least $3,000.  Everyone wants stone these days.  Personally, I think granite is a bit overdone.  One of the big objections to laminate is the inability to use an under-mount sink.  The sink we used is a micro-edge sink that all but eliminates that objection.
3. The Lighting Scheme.  We used surface-mounted ceiling lights instead of the ubiquitous recessed lights.  Go back to the 2nd photo in this article to see the surface-mounted fluorescent lights that provide ambient light.  These lights are augmented with another surface-mounted light over the sink, undercabinet lights, and a single (large) pendant over the eating nook.  The lighting scheme, again, saved more than $3,000.
4. The selection of appliances.  We used a relatively narrow, full-depth refrigerator that appears built-in.  The 30” width allowed us to recess it into an existing header in the brick wall.  The full-depth results in a lot of storage space.  We sacrificed a little bit of space in the new hall bath and the Pantry to accommodate the full-depth.  As mentioned earlier, we selected one oven instead of two.  The hood, while modern and attractive, was much less expensive than most similar models on the market.  We re-used the relatively new dishwasher. 

The Micro Edge Works Well with a Laminate Countertop While The Large Deep Sink Hides Dirty Dishes & Drying Clean Dishes Helping Keep the Counter clear

A Regular Depth Fridge Looks Built-In And is Recessed Into The Bath & Pantry Behind

Special Design Features:

Even while controlling costs, there were many special features to make the design special. 

Integration between rooms – Note how by integrating the cabinetry with the door jamb separating the kitchen from the music room, we help bring those rooms together.  You can see this in the photos above and below.

Tiled wall – Rather than a simple tiled backsplash we tiled the entire walls behind and beside the counters.  We used large format 12 x 24 concrete-look tile with a brushed aluminum trim.  This maintains a clean, modern look. 

Deep, Wide Sink – The sink, in addition to having a micro-edge, is very deep and wide.  This keeps dirty dishes and drying dishes off the countertop.

Original ceiling beam details – These details were maintained but painted while to keep some of the original feeling that the client liked but made for a less busy treatment. 

Deep Door Jamb Integrated Into Cabinety Helps Integrate Rooms

Large Format Tile Wrapping the Walls Provides a Relatively Low-Cost Wow-Factor

 
Before

"Before" From Same Angle as Picture 2

Original Kitchen "Before"

The Remodeled Kitchen is Well Connected to the Home & the Music Room

My client came to me because she wanted to create the next phase of her life.  She is a relatively recent widow with grown sons — and with the completion of the remodel has retired from her job.  She lives in a post-WWI brick rambler in the Forest Glenn neighborhood of Silver Spring, MD.

Her life has been filled with music, friends and family.  She envisions her new home as a French-style Salon – a place where her creative friends and their friends would meet to share music and discuss art, literature, and politics.  She wants a seamless transition from home to garden to entertainment space in her basement. 

In addition to the grand vision, she also wanted:

• A master suite with an in-suite bath
• A guest bath that is fully wheelchair accessible for when her mother visits
• A new kitchen
• A wider hallway for wheelchair accessibility

And to make the project even more challenging, my client’s budget was quite limited and the lot small so the magic had to be performed within the existing footprint. 

The discussion of this project will cover several articles. 

1.  This article covers the overall plan and the changes to the foyer.
2.  The second one will cover the kitchen.
3.  The third will cover the new guest bath.
4.  The fourth will cover the master suite.
5.  The final will cover the new exterior rooms.

The original room configuration was typical of houses built in the early 1950’s with small rooms and unconnected with each other and unconnected with the out-of-doors.

Floor Plan - BEFORE

As you can see from the floor plan, above, the kitchen – while in the middle of the house – was cut off from everything.  The dining room has a solid door and windows to the back yard but felt unconnected.  The hallway was too narrow for a wheelchair and the single hall bath was small and hard for everyone to use let alone someone with any physical impairment. 

Floor Plan - AFTER

The back wall of the kitchen in the remodeled home is wide open to a new patio and to the music and living rooms.  The now open hallway is wide enough for easy transit and helps make the whole home feel more expansive.  It also offers a more visible connection between the entertainment area of the basement and the first floor.  The old kitchen was reconfigured into a wheelchair accessible bath and a large pantry.  The new master suite – while not fully wheelchair accessible has many universal design features. 

Kitchen is Well Connected to the Outdoors

The Stairway Was Opened On All SidesOpen Floor Plan Connects The Basement to the Living room

Open Floor Plan Connects The Basement to the Living room

 

Read more about the details of this remodel as I post the rest of the series in the next few days. 

 

 The 2 “BEFORE” pictures, below, are from the same camera angle as the first image and the hallway image. 

"BEFORE" From Same Angle as 1st Image

 

"BEFORE" From Same Angle as Hallway Image

 

A Colorful Craftsman Bungalow

The small Takoma Park, MD Craftsman bungalow, on a hill above the street, faces north, and is surrounded by mature trees.  In the shade and low sunlight, the house can easily melt into the background.  Previously the owner addressed that problem with a warm yellow gold main color accented with a brick orange and sage green (see before pictures, at end).  The roof is a deep brick-red. 

My client, a friend and neighbor, was ready for a change.  I had previously consulted on her interior palette – replacing her off-whites with cool, sophisticated tones of greyed green (see interior colors).  Delighted with the varied, soft transitions of her new interior, she found that the exterior colors didn’t really mesh with them.  So she came to me again for an exterior color consultation.  While still wanting a bright, welcoming feel to the exterior, she wanted the palette to extend seamlessly from the outside to inside.  

 

A colorful palette -- Blue/Grey Primary, Sage Green Secondary, Firey Red/Orange Accent

If you’ve followed some of my other color conversions, you know that I usually prominently incorporate a “near-complement” accent color.  Instead her interior is composed exclusively of tints and tones of a single complex greyed-green.  The exception is a warm off-white color on all the wood trim.  I used this subdued, sophisticated palette in her interior because she has a lot of reddish/orange artwork and antique furniture with a reddish patina.  Thus, the artwork and furniture became the “near-complement” accent. 
 

Accent Windows With Color Instead of Typical White Trim

The exterior palette gave me the opportunity to highlight a near-compliment accent — a fiery red/orange (Benjamin Moore 077) — alongside colors analogous with the interior shades (blue/green) but much more saturated than her interior.  The main color is a saturated blue/grey (Benjamin Moore 2129-40) – analogous to the interior greens but more saturated.  The secondary color is a greyed green that I used as the deep accent  color in the interior.  It’s more saturated that the other interior colors and is sufficiently saturated to coordinate well with the exterior shades. 

The Firey Red/Orange is a Near-Complement to Blue/Grey Primary Color -- which makes both more vibrant.

 
Note that I also had the pleasure of doing this with a Takoma Park bungalow – a community and a house style that welcomes bright colors.  This exterior color combination would not be welcome in many communities and house-styles. 

The blue and green fit well into the shady environment while the fiery red/orange makes these colors more vibrant and sets the home apart from the shade.  The blue and green exterior provides a vibrant echo of the interior tones.  Blue and white pottery visible as you enter bring the exterior blue indoors.  The red-orange is picked up in flashes of the vivid, warm colors of the owner’s folk art collection.

Exterior Colors Coordinate with Interior Accents

 

My client says:  “My humble little house is as beautiful as any palace.  Marvelous, harmonious colors turn the inside and outside into one glorious whole.  The outside is more vibrant and welcoming, and the inside more calm and relaxing, just as I would want them to be.  I wouldn’t trade it for all the granite countertops and stainless steel appliances in the world.”

 

Before - View 1

 

Before - View 2 - Notice How much more Vibrant The Red Roof Looks with the New Blue/Grey Than the Original Yellow/Gold

Indoor/Outdoor Connection with great views & play of light and shadow

We added a mere 70 square feet to this 1930’s Tudor revival but dramatically increased the livable space and its connection to the outside.  The house is in Silver Spring, MD – a neighborhood that’s just a mile from the border with Washington, DC with a great neighborhood feel – where everyone knows everyone else and get-togethers are frequent. 

Seamless Blend of Old & New:  Previously the home had a tiny foyer – you basically walked right into the kitchen.  A tiny coat closet wasn’t even deep enough to hang coats – hooks were all that was available.  Now when you walk in you have a welcoming foyer with large coat closet and desk area.  Divided Lite Glass Pocket doors provide a view straight through to the garden but also let you visually divide the foyer from the kitchen.  The 1980’s kitchen we removed was of a style that was at odds with the original Tudor revival home.  In this remodel, we took pains to make the remodeled areas blend seamlessly into the original home.  But we lightened the space with less stained wood and more painted wood.  The images below are “After” and “Before” images from approximately the same viewpoint.

View From the Front Door Through House to Back Garden

"Before" From Same Camera Position

View of Remodeled Foyer

"Before" View of Foyer From Same Camera Position

Additional View of Foyer - Including a Place to Place Mail and Packages.

Kitchen as the Center of the Home: 

A Centralized Kitchen for Multiple Cooks

 
The original kitchen was cut-off from the rest of the home and cut-off from the outside.  The new kitchen acts as a central hub for both everyday living and entertaining.  We added 70 sqft of new space by extending the enclosed porch to the original garage (converted several decades ago to a large storage area).  This allowed us to change the traffic patterns and view lines connecting the porch to the kitchen and the kitchen to the outdoors. 

We also annexed a portion of the old garage into the kitchen.  The very old boiler and hot water heater were both replaced allowing us to remove the chimney serving these appliances to dramatically open up the space.  Gable windows added to the old garage area bring in abundant light and a wonderful play of light and shadow. 
[See before and after floor plans at the end of the article.]

While we used cabinetry and hardware that coordinates well with the original style of the home it is more modern in line and style.  For example, the stain colors match almost exactly but the original wood is pine while the cabinets are cherry.  The use of glass tile for the backsplash clearly modernizes and brightens the kitchen.  So while the style blends with the original it is also distinctly modern.

The new kitchen provides prep areas for multiple cooks – which occurs during large family gatherings while still working well for a single cook.  Note that the ovens are out of the main work area. 

Kitchen - A Blend of Original Stains & New Touches Like Glass Tile

 
Large, Stylish pantry:  Notice the frosted glass doors to the right of the gable windows.  Inside is a wide, shallow pantry that provides a tremendous amount of storage. 

Stylish Frosted Glass Doors Hide Hard-Working Pantry

Hard-working Pantry Behind Frosted Glass Doors

 
Indoor/Outdoor Connection:  Before the remodel, the family spent a lot of time on the drafty enclosed porch.  One of the main goals of the remodel was to make the porch more comfortable and better integrated into the flow of the home but to also retain the original feel of an outdoor space.  The next 2 images – After & Before – are taken from the same point.  You can see the small area that we added – the brick wall you see in both images is the same wall – the outside of the original garage.    We raised the floor to the same height as the rest of the house and used the same oak as used throughout.  We also added hydronic radiant heat to the floor, vaulted the ceiling and added skylights.  We thought about replacing the old steel windows with new steel windows but the price was prohibitive.  Instead we used stained wood. 

Expanded All-Season Porch

"Before": Porch - From Same Camera Point - Brick Wall in Background Now Enclosed in Porch

Remodeled Porch - Another View

The furniture arrangements are still evolving and the client is waiting for some new furniture.  The placement of the table moved from the design phase and we will either move the pendant light or replace it with a swag light that can be centered over the table. 

Porch Details:  Notice the foundation wall that we left exposed inside the porch.  The custom stained glass window “looks” into the storage area of the garage.  To give a sense of light, we installed a mirror about 3” behind the window. 

Stone Foundation Wall Exposed as Interesting Detail

Stained Glass Window with Mirror Backing Looks Like View to Outside

Formal Dining Room:  The client wanted to retain the formal dining room – in part because of their lifestyle and in part to retain the original formality of the home.  The further that aim, we designed and installed a new coffered ceiling stained to main the original molding. 

Coffered Ceiling in Formal Dining Room

“BEFORE” & “AFTER” Floorplans:

Floor Plan - BEFORE

Floor Plan - AFTER

Curb Appeal, Comfort and Safety

My client, in Silver Spring, MD – a close-in, older neighborhood outside Washington, DC — had already done some modest interior renovations before I was referred to her by her neighbor.  About a year before I had done extensive interior, exterior and landscape renovations for her neighbor a few doors down the street (see that work:  interior renovations; exterior renovation front, exterior renovation back). 

My new client’s meticulous interior wasn’t matched by the exterior.  Erosion on a relatively steep hill just off the street was tamed with ivy and periwinkle.  But as you can see from the “Before” picture, below, that’s about the only benefit of the invasive ivy.  The stairs were narrow and uneven.  The straight brick walk got you to the porch but without much interest in the journey.
 

Before Work Started

The new landscape tames the hill with a curving brick retaining wall with blue stone cap.  The deep, wide curve of the wall allows plantings both below and above the wall – helping to soften the look and to invite visitors up the stairs and onto the porch.  Too often walls create boundaries that scream “keep out – you’re not invited”.  This one does the opposite.  The clear foreground, mid-ground and background help make the home feel more private and protected from the street even though no fence or privacy plantings were used. 

Property as Viewed from Left - See Before Picture at EndThe use of small boulders throughout the plantings help ground the landscape and make it feel natural. New trees include a young purple-leaf plum, a willow oak, and 3 river birch. Right now, the shrubs, perennials, and grasses have center stage. As the trees mature, the feel of the yard will change dramatically but the trees will complement -- not overwhelm the space. The other plantings were places such that most of them will either tolerate the new shade well or will continue to receive adequate sun. Eventually, the roses might have to be moved as well as some of the grasses -- but not for many years. And much sooner than that, the trees will offer welcome shade in Washington's brutal summers. Property Viewed from Right - See Before Picture at End

The curved walk slows the approach to the house and puts the plantings on center stage.  The walk is regular flagstone on concrete.  This stable surface provides easy walking even with heels.  It also provides a good base for shoveling snow.  However, it’s retains a natural look that will feel even more natural as the plantings fill-in.  This fall, the bare spot by the stairs to the porch will be filled with a Carol Mackey Daphne that provides both a delicious scent in the early spring and delicate variegated leaves throughout the summer months – sometimes, you have to wait to find the plant you want at your local nursery.

View Back to Street - The Curved Walk Helps Slow the Entrance

A focus on Foliage Yields Year-Round Interest:  The plantings were selected to present foliage, bark and flower interest year-round.  You can see some of mid-summer interest in the photos below: 

Foliage Detail Makes the Garden Pop All Season Long

Folliage Interest and Rocks Create An Inviting Tapestry

More Examples of the Tapestry Created by Striking Foliage

Computer Renderings At the Conceptual Design Phase:  To give you a sense of what the client saw during the conceptual design phase that allowed her to move forward with this extensive front landscape remodel, I’ve included 2 of the design renderings she viewed of this option.  This was one of 3 design options I presented.  Note that we changed many details of materials and plantings while still retaining the overall feel of the design.

Computer Rendering of Concept During Conceptual Design

Additional Rendering of Design Concept

Additional “Before” Pictures:

"Before" - View from Right

"Before" - View from Left

The Glass Countertop is the Centerpiece of the Bath

We just completed an unabashedly modern bath in this 1864 row house in the Dupont Circle neighborhood in Washington, DC.  The bath had been allowed to deteriorate badly (see before image at end). 

Glass Countertop Is A Dramatic Centerpiece:  The centerpiece of this bath remodel is a custom glass countertop with integral glass sink.  The unit is very large – the countertop measures 88” long with a sink formed as part of the countertop that measures 28” x 15” x 6” deep.  The glass — 3/4” thick – has been sandblasted on the back.  The glass is standard float glass – like what you have in your windows.  We don’t see the green tint unless you look at the glass on edge or you sandblast it as we’ve done here.  The glass is raised 1/2 “above the vanity with chrome standoffs (the round discs you can see through the countertop in the image below).

Wall-mounted soap and cup holders help keep clutter off the countertop – as does the large 52” high 8” deep cabinet above the toilet. 

The Custom Sink is Large & Deep

Roomy, Light-Filled Shower:  Large format (12” x 24”) porcelain tile used for the backsplash and for the shower almost perfectly matches the tint in the glass.  The tile has slate blue and grey veining which is repeated in the grout color and the custom grey stained cabinetry. 

Light-Filled Shower

The Shower measures 48” x 36” and features a multi-function shower head and 2 body sprays.  My client can use just the shower head, just the body sprays or both.  A recessed niche has separate shelves for soap and for bottles.  The l-shaped end wall allows the bather to see the window and helps the long, narrow room feel more porous. 

A corner bench and end grab-bar makes it easier for my client to wash her feet or shave her legs.  The shower pan is a solid surface material. 

Well-Fitted Shower

Vanity with lots of drawers for storage. 

The custom vanity is 57” wide with 6 drawers.  It size and spare lines are quite modern – and it certainly pushes the boundaries of what’s feasible.  The top and middle drawer boxes are cut out around the sink basin and plumbing.  The selection of drawer pulls continues the modern lines but also helps make opening these large drawers effortless.  
 

Custom Vanity with Lots of Storage

A Modern Jewel Set in an Historic Home.

Notice the 5” wide original moldings around the door and window.  The scale and details work well with the modern lines of the new bath.  We restored the transom over the bath door but replaced the original flat panel door with a frosted glass door with sticking that matches the sticking in the original flat panel door. 

Modern Lines Within Historic Framework

Several Levels of Lighting

The bath has 5 layers of lighting:
- Two Skylights – one original and one matching new one
- Dimmable Sconces on both sides of the bath
- Low-Voltage Cans to Illuminate the Glass Sink
- Ceiling Lights
- A Dimmable Shower Light

Color Palette

The color palette is at once serene and vibrant.  The main elements of the palette include the green of the glass and the tile, slate from the veining in the tile and flooring and the stain of the cabinetry, white of the fixtures, polished chrome, and red Marmoleum sheet flooring.  The ceiling is a very light violet to complement the greens.  The color palette helps the modern lines blend with the historic home. 

Before Picture - Looking from Doorway

A dramatic palette of aubergine, grayed green, grey and creamy white

3 Elements – color, furnishings and lighting – turn a row house in the Glover Park neighborhood of Washington DC into a stylish new home for a young professional couple.  The photos were all taken by the owner – Margaret Allen – a very talented photographer .  Margaret and her husband were equally involved in the selection of the furnishings and accessories.  It all happened in the course of a few months over this summer while the couple took turns traveling overseas on business.  I developed the color palette and made suggestions about fabrics, furnishings, coordination, and tradesmen.  [Note: the “before” pictures are from before the couple purchased the home.]

The palette complements the tile of the fireplace and natural oak flooring

Living Room “Before” the Couple Purchased the house

My Clients Achieved the “West Elm” Look They Wanted Without Cookie-Cutter Selections

This palette conforms to my usual prescription:  Entries and transitions should be deep tones.  This reinforces the sense of arrival and passage through the home.  The tones become lighter as you move through the house and toward the daylight of larger windows and doors on the back of the house.  This creates a much greater sense of space.  While each room is a different color, the colors blend into a harmonious palette that complements the wood of the floors, the tile in the fireplace and the tones and textures of the other “built-in” features.  The walls are all a Matte texture.  The matte sheen absorbs more light yielding richer tones and hiding imperfections on the wall surface.  The accent color – in this case a very deep purple – acts to both accentuate the space and delineate purpose.  It is such a deep tone that in many lights it almost reads as a neutral color.  A mixture of textures and subtle patterns keeps the palette exciting.  A white-toned trim color highlights the architecture of the space especially the stairway and bookshelves.  New recessed lights in the living room and soffits help accentuate the wonderful photography and provide a delightful ambiance. 

The Deep Purple Accent Color on a Duct Chase Helps Accent the Transition Between Rooms

The deep purple is used again to accentuate the transition to the family room & kitchen

The Family Room Has the Most Natural Light and is the Lightest Color

Notice how the Dining Room Rug Reflects the Accent Color and Blends it with the Natural Oak Flooring & the Lighter Tones of the Upholstery in the Adjacent Living Room

The Deeper Tones of the Living Room Wall Are a Perfect Foil for the Wife’s Photography

Notice How the Deep Tone on the Walls and the White Risers Create An Architectural Statement in the Entry

The Stairway & Entry “Before”

Remodeling Doesn’t Always Mean Moving Walls and Renovating Kitchens.  It can be a simple refreshing of surfaces with paint and fabric to yield a remarkable “new” home.