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Aside from location, a condo’s value is in the soundness of its construction, the building’s amenities, and finally, what it can become. This unit at Lionsgate Bethesda, while drenched in light and centrally located, was not an obvious dream – the balcony is more of a glorified ledge, and the second bedroom was quite small. Designer Wendy Danziger of Danziger Design Group says, “There was a lot of manipulation of space.” The owners brought Danziger in at the blueprint stage, so the unit could be tweaked to precision.
They gave Danziger the criteria: Surreptitious sleeping space for their grown children, and an integrated media room that didn’t make it seem like the television was the only thing going on. Danziger designed built-ins (created by SCB Custom Woodworking) for nearly every room to optimize space. The second bedroom was opened up into a study, and a tiny room off the main area was converted into an unlikely guest bedroom when Danziger found a stylish sleeper sofa that fit perfectly within the tight dimensions.
Danziger had designed the owners’ previous residence, a large home in Potomac, MD. This was a formidable downsize, but Danziger was able to refurbish and incorporate a few key pieces, such as a stately Donghia sofa, into the new design.
The Right Mood
The owners have a second residence in a sunnier climate, so they wanted their Bethesda, MD, perch to be a little more sophisticated, a little more “East Coast.” They craved color, but not too much, and they wanted the finishes to feel grand – but also comfortable.
Light-hearted artwork helped achieve that end. A collection of bright works on paper by Craig Cahoon lines the main hallway, and a painting and collage by Flora Kantor brighten the living room. Danziger hired Chris Zill of Faux Interiors to doll up a few pieces of furniture – she added heavy texture to a chest, and metallic floral detailing to a console in the owners’ bedroom. Friendly polka-dotted draperies in Kravet fabric lighten the mood of the guest sleeping quarters.
The palette is on the cooler side of neutral, very soft on the eyes. “The simple backgrounds allow you to accessorize in a more striking way,” Danziger says.
