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EDGEMOOR SUNROOM :: THE REVEAL!
The Edgemoor sunroom has been installed! Installation days are such a highlight for interior designers. They represent the culmination of months of hard work, careful planning and patience. Considering this project started in the summer of 2015, we were thrilled to see the room finally come to life. So it is with great delight that we report that the room is even more beautiful than we expected. We always have an idea of how an interior will look, but we can’t necessarily anticipate how it will feel. Being in a space where the architecture, the decor and the surroundings truly sing makes all the trials and tribulations of the previous months disappear. We’re thrilled and our clients are thrilled. Santa couldn’t have brought us a better present for the holidays. Enjoy!
|| Pre-Install Site Review ||
We scoped out the site the day before to ensure that there were no surprises on install day. Thanks to the contractor, all of the construction debris had been removed and the floors and glass were clean. This is a small, but important detail when delivering a room full of fresh, new [and valuable] furnishings. And with a blank slate before us, we were finally able to appreciate all of the beautiful architectural lines and the gracious volume of space.
|| Design is [not] glamorous ||
Installations requires a mix of muscle, troubleshooting and finesse. Pillows get fluffed, furniture placement tweaked, and motorized curtains programmed and dressed. One of the trickier exercises of the day was hanging the porcelain Fenella Elms artwork. Both delicate and heavy — and weighing in at well over 100 lbs — it took four men and two very nerve-wracking attempts to hang it on the wall. Needless to say, we all gave a cheer and a generous sigh of relief once it was in place.
|| A Beautiful Finish ||
Just as we were finishing the installation, the sun came out and cast an ethereal light into the room giving it a magical sparkle. The shadows danced off the porcelain artwork, the plaster walls, and the mother of pearl inlay on the pedestal table top. Simultaneously, the light saturated the drapery with warmth and illuminated the dramatic skylight overhead. Enveloped by so much natural beauty, it’s easy to envision spending hours in this space lounging, reading, socializing or napping.
|| Taking Care ||
Our work here is done! Well, almost. Installations require guidance regarding the care and maintenance of the space. We strive to ensure our client’s satisfaction by giving them the tools they need to enjoy their homes for years to come. Our care packages vary depending on the scope of a project and specific needs of the client. However, they generally include care and maintenance instructions, mechanical specifications and a paint+finish schedule. In this particular case, we also included a separate artwork care package. The art we installed is fragile and valuable, so we provided our clients with handling instructions along with extra porcelain pieces. And of course, we packaged it beautifully in a Huntley & Co. box with ribbon – something befitting the showstopper art piece itself.
We hope you enjoyed following our Edgemoor series. In case you missed anything, check out each phase here, here, here and here. We will be signing off for the next few weeks to enjoy some R&R. We will post again in 2017 with new installations, discoveries and our behind-the-scenes adventures. Until then, Huntley & Co. — and our mascot Nina — wish you and yours the happiest of holidays!
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EDGEMOOR SUNROOM :: PART IV
The Edgemoor sunroom has required patience, perseverance and plenty of blood, sweat and tears (and bones, but I’ll get to that later). After nearly a year of design and planning, construction finally began in early spring. Starting work was both a relief and a thrill.
With a schedule as protracted as this one, there are plenty of progress photos to share.
From start to finish there hasn’t been a dull moment!
— Breaking Ground —
Construction crews arrived at the end of February to dig, set drainage lines and pour the slab for the sunroom. The most dramatic transformations start with a lot of dirt!
— Movin’ on Up! —
Once July arrived, the building finally started to take shape. Remember that patience we mentioned? This phase of the project is all about oversight and troubleshooting as needed. We made several site visits and met everyone from the tile installer to the drapery fabricator to review drawings and inspect details. It may seem unusual to discuss softgoods in a room without drywall, but spotting architectural modifications early allows us, and our workrooms, to modify plans accordingly.
— Finishing Touches —
As you can see in the pictures below, work continued into the Fall. Still, we were happy to have a room with walls, trim, windows and doors — not to mention a massive, one-of-a-kind skylight overhead. With the space enclosed, we were ready for paint and decorative finishes. We enlisted Julia from Monkton Studios (below) to dress the room in a beautiful knockback plaster, adding warmth and subtle dimension to the envelope.
Interior design is often associated with drama. True, but we usually try to avoid it if we
can. Unfortunately, at one of the many site visits, Lindsey fell into an open floor vent
(ahem, a hidden open floor vent that is). Thanks to a broken fibula and fifth metatarsal,
the Edgemoor project is officially going out with a CRASH-BOOM-BANG!
(L) the offending floor vent sans cover; (C) post site visit x-ray; (R) masterful use of the Rollator Walker
… Installation day is TODAY.
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EDGEMOOR SUNROOM :: PART III
Developing a thorough drawing set is critical to the success of all Huntley & Co. projects. It’s the technical backbone of the design, ensuring precision and accuracy. The Edgemoor sunroom features two expansive nano walls, a seamlessly integrated reflecting pool and a dramatic skylight. With fenestrations composing 90% of the room, it was important to consider the furniture and its arrangement carefully. We worked through an endless stream of floorplans to maximize circulation, engage the views and allow for both conversation and lounging. And we selected pieces that spoke to a luxurious “camp” style (think Out of Africa or Lawrence of Arabia). An abundance of comfort promises a room that is open, yet absolutely intimate.
— The Floorplan —
It always starts with the floorplan; a birds-eye view provides a wealth of knowledge. Drawing everything (walls, windows, doors, floor vents, etc.) to the exact measurement is critical. Because an inch can be the difference between a flawless installation and a costly mistake.
As shown in the floorplan above, pulling the furniture into the center of the room creates circulation space.
— The Study of Furniture & Lighting —
Each and every piece that goes into our projects is vetted for size and scale. We collaborate with our vendors to verify, and sometimes adjust, dimensions down to the 1/16″ — ensuring the best possible function and fit.
Drawings above include the custom console and sofas, pedestal table and the Huntley sconce from Urban Electric Co.
— The Perspective Drawing —
Perspectives are exciting because they allow us to “pull a design up” and study the relationship between architecture and décor. The Edgemoor sunroom is visually complex – from the dramatic skylight to all those windows – so it was important to implement décor that would complement, not compete with the envelope. A neutral palette, low slung furnishings and layers of softness add the right amount of quiet.
Our perspective drawing illustrates how open the sunroom becomes when the nano doors are retracted. The layered rugs and sheer drapery panels at the perimeter help create intimacy.A room like this is, without a doubt, a design challenge. Generating meticulous drawings allowed us to tackle the project in an informed, confident manner. With that, seeing our drawings “go vertical” during the construction process is when the real fun begins. Well, typically. Our next post will include on-site progress photos replete with a little unexpected drama. Stay tuned!
xo, Huntley & Co.
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EDGEMOOR SUNROOM :: PART II
Our Edgemoor clients are long-time residents of Bethesda, a neighborhood of beautiful homes, large backyards, and gracious sidewalks. A variety of architectural vernaculars decorate each tree-lined street thereby giving us license to explore a pastiche of design styles. We devoted countless hours and many team meetings to perfecting the architectural and decorative intentions of their sunroom in order to craft a space with the perfect blend of traditional and modern styling. It was especially relevant for us to carefully study how the new sunroom would meet and interact with the landscape, establishing a strong indoor/outdoor feel.
— NEIGHBORHOOD VERNACULAR & INSPIRATION —
The sunroom addition is quite modern and acts as a counterpoint to the traditional envelope of the house. Because of the room’s strong geometry and metalwork, it was key that our interior selections complement and soften the space.
— FABRICS & FINISHES —
Textured linens, verdigrised metal, hand-molded porcelain and mother-of-pearl inlay are layered into the space. Plaster walls, cerused oak, and embroidered trims also add to the tactile, warm design.
This project has seen seasons come and go and reminds us that projects, especially of this caliber, take time. Dozens of hands, ours included, have touched this space. From architects and builders, landscape designers and decorative finishers, to a variety of workrooms and the clients themselves — the phrase “it takes a village” has become especially relevant. We look forward to sharing more with you next week as we get one step closer to the big reveal!
xo, Huntley & Co.
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THE MUSINGS OF DESIGNER TRICIA HUNTLEY
