Set in the Kent neighborhood of Washington, D.C., the Craftsman home had been ruthlessly remodeled over the years. Inappropriate Victorian touches on the exterior, including street-facing dormers, a bay window and a tacked-on front porch had stripped the 1929 structure of its original character. Nonetheless, the family of five purchased the house, basing their decision on its generous 4,736-square-footage and its proximity to their kids’ school. Yet they also knew the house would have to be thoroughly modernized for family life
Architect Elizabeth Emerson, of Washington, D.C.-based EL Studio, recognized the inherent challenges of the project right away. In order to reconcile all of the earlier renovations – executed in a hash of styles and at different times (which resulted in an often-incompatible mix of old and newer construction methods and materials) – she said, “Our strategy was to edit, edit, edit and create clean, open spaces.”
Clearing the existing kitchen of its strangely angular cabinets and choppy interior walls was the first step in making a commodious kitchen and dining area. The next move was to annex a dark and too-deep screen porch on the rear of the house, which yielded the open, modernized kitchen the homeowners wanted.
Emerson chose Henrybuilt to craft the cabinetry in the kitchen, pantry, bar and primary bath. From the company’s proprietary finishes, she selected stained walnut for the millwork and blackened steel for detailing, moody material complements.
Throughout the house, the EL Studio design team used a layered palette of deliberately mutable Farrow & Ball paint. It’s especially effective in the kitchen space. “Depending on how the light is hitting the walls, the appearance of the kitchen can go from gray to green to blue,” said Emerson. “The dark tone captures the light and offsets the backyard garden beautifully.”
