mastery of RESTRAINT

A CHARMING DWELLING, ONE OF THREE ROW HOUSES BUILT IN 1790, IS BROUGHT BACK TO LIGHT AND LIFE. BY PETER B. THOMSEN / PHOTOS BY ANICE HOACHLANDER

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LEFT The narrow house is one of several in a row dating to 1790.

OPPOSITE A wider, arched opening between front and rear rooms brings light to the interior. A modest rear addition made the kitchen functional.

this little gem in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, was built around 1790, as worker housing. While it had been added to (with delicacy) over the centuries, it functioned as little more than a one-bedroom apartment—that is, until BarnesVanze Architects got involved. Given that the house is merely 14 feet wide and sistered in a row of historic houses, there was little room to grow. By stealing a few feet from the back garden and making clever layout decisions, BVA was able transform this “one-bedroom” into a full-scale home ready for hosting.

ABOVE Designed by the owner, the warm-white cabinetry and polishedbrass hardware match the customized Lacanche range. RIGHT The refrigerator has been tucked away behind full-height cabinets near the garden door. Counters are marble. Fittings are unlacquered brass. BELOW The rear addition transformed the functionality of the first floor, allowing for a dining room and streamlining the kitchen layout.

Before intervention, the first floor offered just a kitchen and a den, with a narrow connection between them. By bumping the kitchen back, BVA created a spacious dining room connected to the kitchen by a generous peninsula. A sleek set of white, Shaker-style cabinets streamlines the look, assuring that the focus is on the garden just beyond the wall of windows, beyond any potential cooking chaos.