This Washington, DC, Town House Dials It Back to the ’90s

Vaishnavi Nayel Talawadekar
·8 min read

For one Washington, DC, couple, both in their early 30s, being stuck at home during the pandemic prompted the making of some major life decisions. “Both our jobs went fully remote. At the time we were living in a small two-bedroom and wanted to have enough space for us each to have our own office,” says one husband, who works in employee advocacy. No sooner had the quarantine rules been lifted than they approached AD PRO Directory member and interior designer Zoë Feldman of her eponymous DC-based design studio (she had previously designed for one husband’s parents) to make the small space work for their needs. Then, weeks later, they did a volte-face. “We quickly realized that even though we loved our apartment, we’d be pouring too much money into a space we had already outgrown.”

A brick wall backdrops the living area, where a riot of color spills forth in the way of large photographs, a Junit pendant by Schneid Studio, and pillows dressed in Dedar’s whimsical Be Bop A Lula fabric. Zoë softened the built-in walnut sofa, custom-made by Fajen & Brown, with Looney & Sons cushions outfitted in Mokum’s Alpaca velvet upholstery and Samuel & Sons’s Swiss velvet piping. A bone white Crown table by 101 Copenhagen takes center stage. The couple’s prized Marantz turntable sits atop the custom storage unit. “The place is like a ’70s-era conversation pit, but on a smaller scale. Seeing it come to life was amazing,” says one husband.

It was a matter of time before their stars aligned. “This home was just the right size and in a similar neighborhood,” says the other husband, a government consultant, of their current abode, a perfectly flipped historic town house, although he admits that it might have been a little too perfect for their liking. “We were thrilled at the thought of so much space, but it also looked like every other flipped DC row house—sterile, devoid of personality, and just plain cookie-cutter.” That said, it had plenty of potential. The home had a big yard, a centrally located kitchen, and it was spacious enough to accommodate their ever-growing vinyl record collection and the antics of their two-year-old beagle, Poncho (short for Pontius Pilate), and four-year-old cat, Boris. And so, they took a leap of faith, bought the place, and redialed Zoë.

The kitchen is a kaleidoscope of retro chic. The tour de force is undoubtedly the sulfur yellow range and hood from Superior Marketing, although the checkerboard backsplash, characterized by four-inch tile in Clé’s Burnt Sugar and Weathered White, comes in a close second. The cabinets were custom-designed by Fajen & Brown and enlivened in Benjamin Moore’s Careless Whisper. Double Puck pendants by In Common With overarch the setting. The faucets are by Waterworks.
Who would have thought that the bubblegum pink chairs in the dining room were made of recycled plastic—or more precisely, from the upcycled plastic interiors of a standard-size fridge? Zoë, that’s who. She brought in the Chubby chairs by Kooij both as a conversation starter and as a playful counterpoint to the Fajen & Brown custom banquette outfitted in Kravet’s Rock Solid faux leather in the shade Patina. “They’re much sturdier than they look,” says one husband. The restraint of Loewen Design Studio’s Walnut Jarvis Racetrack Oval pedestal table offsets the surrounding palette. Artworks include a David Hockney lithograph (left) and an autographed portrait of Anna Nicole Smith. The pendant is the Alfred design by Always Welcome.

As they recall, they didn’t really have a vision. And as Zoë puts a finer point on the subject, “The brief was just a pastiche of different things that they liked, although they were keen on a space that incorporated modern furniture and bright colors, and which emphasized storage in an aesthetic way.” The couple was also inspired by a number of different travel destinations and Art Deco styles, as well as retro-futuristic imagery and motifs. “They wanted a design that was fun and modern but didn’t make them feel like they lived in a WeWork.” She, of course, viewed the lack of clarity as a good thing, because as she saw it, more unknowns meant more room for experimentation. “Both husbands are extremely fun and energetic, so they didn’t shy away from color and pattern; they wanted the space to be an extension of themselves.” So that’s what it became, thanks to conversations around music, art, fashion, and other things that inspire them, from which Zoë and her team took cues to conjure up an aesthetic lexicon that was equal parts breezy and bright.

The entryway basks in cool tones, courtesy of a pale blue Iris mirror by Concrete Cat, sourced via Coming Soon, and a cobalt sofa. Zoë counterbalanced the calm with a tangerine lamp from Etsy and a checkered micro rug from June + Blue. Benjamin Moore’s Simply White mutes the walls.
A built-in dog crate for the couple’s Beagle, Poncho, was top priority. It sits in the same spot that housed his first puppy pen.
A built-in dog crate for the couple’s Beagle, Poncho, was top priority. It sits in the same spot that housed his first puppy pen.

The end result? A daring space with eclectic motifs and statement design pieces inspired by the 1990s and early 2000s pop culture. Make no mistake, Zoë may have sought inspiration from the past, but she created for the future, making room for things that were important to the couple, such as comfortable seating areas and high-end electronics, including a turntable and home theater, and two distinct home office spaces. In a bid to undo past renovations, and to help make the home feel less sterile, the design team, in collaboration with contract company Fajen & Brown, also incorporated sleek arches and curvatures that felt organic and timeless, and quirky art, including a nude portrait of Anna Nicole Smith (Zoë’s all-time favorite artwork), which they designated to the dining area. Other curiosities of note include a sulfur yellow kitchen range and hood, round-edged sofas, and glossy zellige tiles in the primary bath.

The primary bedroom is a haven of cool tones and cooler details—chief among the latter a Puck pendant by In Common With, Urban Outfitters’s Alonzo nightstands, and horns from the clients’ personal collection. Atop the Shinola Runwell King bed by Crate & Barrel are pillows dressed in Pierre Frey’s Tigris and Levanto weaves. Benjamin Moore’s Hilton Head Cream and Baker’s Dozen respectively ginger up the top and bottom half of the walls.
In the primary bath, Zoë dialed up the drama with outré details. One case in point? The floor, which she embellished with four-inch zellige floor tile from Clé, in the shades Golden Henna, Burnt Sugar, Cindered Olive, and Glazed Earth. She repeated the latter shade on the walls, in two-by-six tile by the same brand. “We love the palette of the tile against the marble, the elegant brass fixtures, and the luxurious steam unit. It’s a serene oasis where we can completely unwind,” says one husband. The custom walnut vanity by Fajen & Brown serves as a warm antithesis to the Calacatta Monet counter and surfaces. The wall sconce is Gallery L7’s Concha light.

Ask the couple if the home turned out as they’d imagined, and pat comes the answer. “We were able to turn some really crazy ideas into real designs that worked within our budget, so Zoë did a great job of bringing a method to the madness,” says one husband. As music lovers who love to cook and entertain, the home checks all their boxes, and then some. Evidently, the pandemic—or importantly, their version of it—had a silver lining after all.

Zoë kept things simple in the study, with a Haller desk by USM, Design Within Reach’s Eames molded plastic task armchair, and Roderick maple wall shelves by Shelfology. An All Hands rug by Nordic Knots tames the hard-lined surroundings, while a Mushroom table lamp by HK Living lends a subtle sheen.
The basement lounge pops in jewel tones, thanks to a James sectional from Interior Define, a blush pink Akara Rugs carpet, and a Quinn large storage ottoman by Joy Bird that wears Pierre Frey’s Rochambeau fabric. Araceli brass side tables by Lulu and Georgia give the room a glam spin.
The powder room is a meditative hideaway that conjures its own version of the outdoors. As the owners tell it, Flavor Paper’s Placebo Effect wallpaper wasn’t the first choice. “It was supposed to be in a warmer colorway, but we didn’t think that the oranges, reds and blues worked with the cool tones we had decided on for the room. Then, Zoë and her team showed us a recolored version of the wallpaper, paired with a surface-mount Herbert basin by Nood. Suddenly the room became one of our favorite moments in the entire house,” says one half of the couple. A Farren mirror by CB2 emblazons one wall. The sconce is Cedar & Moss’s Stanton marque.

Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest

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