A simple, yet impressive entry, and an octagonal tower. The garage is cocked at a slight angle and is designed to look like the old barn that was converted. Note the way we designed the house to preserve as many trees as possible, giving the house an established feel.

Looking at this home today, you would never know that the project began as a poorly maintained duplex. Luckily, the homeowners saw past the worn façade and engaged our team to uncover and update the Victorian gem that lay underneath. Taking special care to preserve the historical integrity of the 100-year-old floor plan, we returned the home back to its original glory as a grand, single family home. The project included many renovations, both small and large, including the addition of a a wraparound porch to bring the façade closer to the street, a gable with custom scrollwork to accent the new front door, and a more substantial balustrade. Windows were added to bring in more light and some interior walls were removed to open up the public spaces to accommodate the family’s lifestyle. You can read more about the transformation of this home in Old House Journal: http://www.cummingsarchitects.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Old-House-Journal-Dec.-2009.pdf Photo Credit: Eric Roth

The clients’ vision was inspired by the French country manors of the Champagne region. BGD&C made this vision a reality and created a true “Art-de-Vivre” manor with its sophisticated exterior, hand-carved stone, a kitchen designed and exactly detailed with custom tiles from Monet’s kitchen in Giverny, France and interior detailing that exudes an early 20th century French ambiance. VHT Photography

Originally built in 1889 a short walk from the old East Falls Church rail station, the vaguely reminiscent gothic Victorian was a landmark in a neighborhood of late 19th century wood frame homes. The two story house had been changed many times over its 116 year life with most of the changes diminishing the style and integrity of the original home. Beginning during the mid-twentieth century, few of the changes could be seen as improvements. The wonderfully dominate front tower was obscured by a bathroom shed roof addition. The exterior skin was covered with asbestos siding, requiring the removal of any wood detailing projecting from its surface. Poorly designed diminutive additions were added to the rear creating small, awkward, low ceiling spaces that became irrelevant to the modern user. The house was in serious need of a significant renovation and restoration. A young family purchased the house and immediately realized the inadequacies; sub-par spaces, kitchen, bathrooms and systems. The program for this project was closely linked to aesthetics, function and budget. The program called for significantly enlarging the house with a major new rear addition taking the place of the former small additions. Critically important to the program was to not only protect the integrity of the original house, but to restore and expand the house in such a way that the addition would be seamless. The completed house had to fulfill all of the requirements of a modern house with significant living spaces, including reconfigured foyer, living room and dining room on the first floor and three modified bedrooms on the second floor. On the rear of the house a new addition created a new kitchen, family room, mud room, powder room and back stair hall. This new stair hall connected the new and existing first floor to a new basement recreation room below and a new master bedroom suite with laundry and second bathroom on the second floor. The entire exterior of the house was stripped to the original sheathing. New wood windows, wood lap siding, wall trim including roof eave and rake trim were installed. Each of the details on the exterior of the house matched the original details. This fact was confirmed by researching the house and studying turn-of-the-century photographs. The second floor addition was removed, facilitating the restoration of the four sided mansard roof tower. The final design for the house is strong but not overpowering. As a renovated house, the finished product fits the neighborhood, restoring its standing as a landmark, satisfying the owner’s needs for house and home. Hoachlander Davis Photography

Photo by James Licata

Westchester Whimsy This project was a two phase addition to a simple colonial house in Chappaqua, NY. Challenges for Daniel Contelmo included the hilly site, as well as the fact that the front entry lacked presence and the garage was the primary entry. Phase one added a family room, kitchen and breakfast room to the main level, and renovated a bedroom. New overhangs and brackets draw the eye away from the garage and place the focus on the house. Phase two completed the renovation and added space to the front of the house; this was an opportunity to add character to the bedrooms with a turret, and a vaulted ceiling in the bedroom over the entry. A new car pulloff allows visitors to view the front door rather than the garage. An open-air pool cabana with an outdoor fireplace and kitchen serves as a space for year-round activities. The final product was an exquisitely detailed and tastefully decorated home that integrates colonial and shingle style architecture with whimsical touches that give the house a more animated feel.

In keeping with the estate’s traditional English Tudor style 10,000 sq. ft. of gardens were designed. The English Gardens are characterized by regular, geometric planting patterns and pathways, with antique decorative accessories heightening their old-world feel. Special nooks and hideaways, coupled with the sound of cascading water in fountains, create a serene environment, while delicate lighting in planter boxes makes the garden perfect for early evening strolls.

The perfect girly master bathroom, custom cabinetry in black with two gold antique mirrors, a longer one that hangs over the makeup vanity area. The cabinetry has a linen tower and we worked around the beautiful stain glass window that sits at one end of the bathroom. The floor has hexagon marble tile and the shower is complete with a shower bench, niche and gorgeous metal gold inlay mosaic tile on the feature wall.

The home was built in the early 1920’s , and remodeled in the 1970s. It desperately cried to bring it back to its original century. We pulled out the old tub/shower combo and installed beautiful clawfoot tubs with a nice wainscot tile that really helped bring the crisp style to light.

Our first steampunk kitchen, this vibrant and meticulously detailed space channels Victorian style with future-forward technology. It features Vermont soapstone counters with integral farmhouse sink, arabesque tile with tin ceiling backsplash accents, pulley pendant light, induction range, coffee bar, baking center, and custom cabinetry throughout.

The Victorian period, in the realm of tile, consisted of jewel tones, ornate detail, and some unique sizes. When a customer came to us asking for 1.5″ x 6″ tiles for their Victorian fireplace we didn’t anticipate how popular that size would become! This Victorian fireplace features our 1.5″ x 6″ handmade tile in Jade Moss. Designed in a running bond pattern to get a historically accurate Victorian style.