The 2016 DC Design House!

I recently got some exciting news! I have been selected to participate in the 2016 DC Design House, taking place this October. Specifically, I’ve been invited to create one of the upstairs bedrooms.

Interested designers submitted concepts and design boards a few weeks ago. I’m so happy that my concept for a girly, yet chic bedroom resonated with the selection panel (a who’s-who group of DC design notables). For creative inspiration, I imagined the inhabitant of the space…a teenage French girl with diplomatic parents and worldly sophistication beyond her years.

I’m a Francophile at heart. Participating in a design house gives me the license to create spaces inspired by the country I love. When I took part in the 2013 DC Design House, the City of Lights also served as the muse for the Modern French Bar and Side Hall I designed. I envisioned a jet-set DC couple, stopping to enjoy an apperitif before dinner. Here’s a look at the concept for a sophisticated wet-bar space that I submitted to the selection committee that year:

If you missed my posts last spring, check out the behind-the-scenes makings of — and final results for — the wet bar area and side hall.

Fittingly, the house chosen as this year’s site, which is right next door to the 2013 site, recently served as the temporary residence of the French Ambassador while his house underwent renovation — a fact that lends a bit of authenticity to my bedroom design. The abode — situated on a three-quarter-acre lot at 2509 Foxhall Road in DC’s Wesley Heights/Berkley neighborhood — was designed by GTM Architects and built in 2010 by Gibson Builders.

Listed for $10.8 million by Nancy Itteilag of Washington Fine Properties, the 11,242 square-foot, five-story home boasts 7 bedrooms, 8 full and 2 half baths, 5 fireplaces, and an infinity pool.

That’s a whole lot of empty space to transform, but this year’s designers are certainly up to the task. I’m in esteemed company, for sure. Here’s the complete designer line-up:

First Floor
Front Garden/Porch – Blake Dunlevy /D & A Dunlevy Landscapers, Inc.
Entry/Stair Hall/Upper Hall – Farrow & Ball
Dining Room – Jonathan Senner/Atelier Jonathan Senner
Family Room – Kelley Proxmire/Kelley Interior Design
Terrace – Country Casual
Library – Josh Hildreth & Victor Sang/DMG Interiors
Living Room – Pamela Harvey/Pamela Harvey Interiors, LLC
Sitting Room – Camille Saum/Camille Saum Interior Design, LLC
Breakfast Room/Kitchen – Betsy Barmat Stires/Frog Hill Designs
Butler’s Pantry – Nadia N. Subaran & Megan M. Padilla/Aidan Design, LLC
Powder Room- Lena Kroupnik/Lena Kroupnik Interiors

Second Floor
Master Suite – Victoria Sanchez/Victoria at Home
Bedroom #2 – Charles C. Almonte/Charles Almonte Architecture/Interior Design
Bedroom #3 – Andrea Houck/A. Houck Designs
Laundry – Allie Mann/Case Design/Remodeling, Inc.
Bedroom #4 – Rachael Dougan/ViVi Interiors

Third Floor
Balcony/Anteroom – Quintece Hill-Mattauszek/Studio Q Designs
Bedroom #5/Dressing/Bath – Barbara Brown/Barbara Brown Interiors, Inc.

Lower Level
Lower Garden – Stephen Wlodarczyk/Wheat’s Landscape

Farrow & Ball is the paint sponsor; Thos. Moser is also a sponsor.

Take a peek inside at the very nice, but nondescript dining room and entry:

And here’s a birds-eye view of the upstairs bedroom I will soon transform:

As you can see, it’s pretty much a blank canvas. In the background are the boards I prepared for the selection committee, providing just a small preview of my concept for the space (I’ll share more design details in future posts). As a participating designer, it’s so much fun to see my space take shape and to get a sneak peek as the other designers breathe new life into their spaces.

I couldn’t be more excited to be a participating once again in the DC Design House. And I can’t wait to share my vision with you for a teenager’s feminine, yet chic bedroom. Stay tuned!

The 2016 design house will run from October 1 to 30. General admission tickets are $35. The proceeds go to a fantastic cause, the Children’s National Health System.