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For the Cicconi family, home is where you put your feet up. When Jim and Trisha Cicconi hired Designer Andy Staszak to outfit their new McLean, VA, house, they were emphatic about one thing: They didn’t want fine finishes impeding their fuss-free lifestyle. With three grown daughters and an expanding tribe of grandkids, every room in the house had to be livable space, where the family could gather and sprawl out during holidays and long weekends.
“This is their house and they use all of it,” Staszak says. Deciding on a designer was easy. “Talking with Andy felt very comfortable. He’s proactive but not pushy,” Trisha Cicconi says. Jim, who is senior executive vice president of external and legislative affairs for AT&T, happily followed his wife’s lead on most of the design choices. “I love her taste in things… casual with some touches of elegance,” he says. They settled on a fairly traditional aesthetic, incorporating warm colors, lush textures, diverse cultural influences – and nothing floral.
Layering Spaces
Staszak describes building interiors as similar to how oil painters build up an image in several layers – there are early sketches, a palette is set, and when the lines are right, he brings in a lean layer of furniture and lighting. The real alchemy happens with the finishes: fabrics, art, and accent pieces.
The Cicconis, who are originally from Texas, went for Staszak’s suggested palette of gold, beige, and café au lait with aqua and terracotta accents. “We took that palette and spun it throughout the house,” Staszak says. “It walks the line between ‘home-y’ and sophisticated – my favorite line to walk.”
The Cicconis don’t do florals, and they don’t do wallpaper. Staszak called local artist Molly Allen to paint a delicate Chinese ink-wash motif on red Venetian plaster in the powder room and a tone-on-tone damask wall treatment in the dining room. “In flickering candlelight, the walls are breathtaking,” Staszak says.
Layering Art
“The Cicconis had never really bought art before,” Staszak says, so he used the “layers” concept in that category as well. He focused first on a handful of spaces in the home that could use strong pieces of art – above the fireplaces, for example. He brought in a mix of diverse paintings to try in those areas, from abstracts to seascapes to the large orange peony that landed above the owners’ bed. (“It’s just one flower!” Trisha argues.)
The second art “layer” consists of three-dimensional works; glass art features prominently on the dining room table and another sculpture just outside the living room adds dramatic contours to the ultra-soft lines and colors nearby.An extremely rare Henri Matisse textile hangs in the lower level.
The collection’s third layer is an array of beautifully framed 20th-century works on paper from Galerie Lareuse, which Staszak says are surprisingly affordable and will continue to gain value.
Mixing Influences
Having worked in the White House for both the George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan administrations, Jim Cicconi has traveled extensively, always bringing different things home for the family. Staszak used these objects as a starting point to bring in some multicultural elements to enliven the muted colors and lilting patterns.
“He nudged Trisha toward Oriental touches,” Jim says, which include the faux painting in the powder room, fabric and rug choices throughout, and the geometric light fixtures on the lower level.
“Everything doesn’t need to be in the same genre,” Staszak says. He explains that the soft, nappy texture of chenille benefits when placed next to the sheen of a fine silk, and that stripes often strengthen (rather than compete with) botanicals. “Everything you add to a room changes the nuance, pushes it in a new direction.”
