Peek Inside a Classic Tudor Home Updated With Fresh Style
Watch and read how a designer carefully enhanced a 1936 home to add openness, natural light and personality
Mitchell Parker
October 27, 2024
Houzz Editorial Staff. Home design journalist writing about cool spaces, innovative trends, breaking news, industry analysis and humor.
Houzz Editorial Staff. Home design journalist writing about cool spaces, innovative... More
A Washington, D.C., family of four asked designer Sara Swabb of Storie Collective to update its 1936 Tudor-style home in a way that honored the home’s roots while bringing it into the modern era. In the entry, Swabb, who uses Houzz Pro business software, opened things up by widening doorways to keep sightlines clear to the kitchen and dining areas and allow natural light to be shared between the rooms.
In the kitchen, a warm green cabinet color, an arched range alcove and handmade terra-cotta tile flooring in a herringbone pattern create a fresh style that nods to the home’s past. A zellige tile accent wall spans the room, helping visually connect the main cooking area to a nearby zone containing a paneled fridge, a secondary sink and a built-in coffee machine. Textured wallpaper and patterned draperies energize the dining room, and midcentury modern furnishings perk up the living room.
In the kitchen, a warm green cabinet color, an arched range alcove and handmade terra-cotta tile flooring in a herringbone pattern create a fresh style that nods to the home’s past. A zellige tile accent wall spans the room, helping visually connect the main cooking area to a nearby zone containing a paneled fridge, a secondary sink and a built-in coffee machine. Textured wallpaper and patterned draperies energize the dining room, and midcentury modern furnishings perk up the living room.
Photos by Stacy Zarin Goldberg
House at a Glance
Who lives here: A family of four and its dog, Ralphie
Location: Washington, D.C.
Designer: Sara Swabb of Storie Collective
At the entry of the home, Swabb widened doorways to allow more views through to the kitchen and dining areas and to pull in natural light from windows. An original staircase with an iron railing curves up to the second floor. “We just adorned that with a textured stair runner,” Swabb says.
The walls are painted in an off-white plaster finish (Figueroa by Portola Paints). The team applied scraping details to mimic the look of the original plaster walls. Wall sconces and old-style brass-plate light switches add period details.
Watch now: Step inside this home in the latest episode of Houzz TV
House at a Glance
Who lives here: A family of four and its dog, Ralphie
Location: Washington, D.C.
Designer: Sara Swabb of Storie Collective
At the entry of the home, Swabb widened doorways to allow more views through to the kitchen and dining areas and to pull in natural light from windows. An original staircase with an iron railing curves up to the second floor. “We just adorned that with a textured stair runner,” Swabb says.
The walls are painted in an off-white plaster finish (Figueroa by Portola Paints). The team applied scraping details to mimic the look of the original plaster walls. Wall sconces and old-style brass-plate light switches add period details.
Watch now: Step inside this home in the latest episode of Houzz TV
For the kitchen, Swabb took down a wall where the peninsula now sits to open the space up to the dining room. A warm green cabinet color (Aegean Olive by Benjamin Moore), an arched range alcove and handmade terra-cotta tile flooring in a herringbone pattern create a sophisticated English style. A wood countertop cabinet adds a collected-over-time look.
Handcrafted zellige tile covers the rear wall, helping to visually connect the main cooking area to a secondary zone. (See below.) “The kitchen itself is at the rear of the home, so it’s spanning the entire width of the home, and so what we wanted to do was bring some continuity, and the tile really does a good job in spanning the entire back wall,” Swabb says. Terra-cotta tile in a hand-painted pattern forms the range backsplash.
The countertops and sink apron are Taj Mahal quartzite. “It’s very natural-looking,” Swabb says. “It’s this light brown, minimal movement, and we wanted it to just feel natural and at ease. Not really screaming, ‘Give me attention.’”
Eight alabaster flush-mount light fixtures adorn the ceiling. “They really line the ceiling beautifully,” Swabb says. “They are something to look at and they really diffuse light much differently than a recessed light would.” A pendant hangs over each sink. “The client was thinking, ‘Oh, I always need a little bit more lighting when I’m washing my dishes or when I’m getting veggies ready.’ Some people would opt to do those right at the peninsula, but we really thought we’d rather have the pendant lighting at the sink here.… Having attention at the peninsula wasn’t something we wanted to do because we can see this beautiful tile if we’re not distracted by lighting.”
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Handcrafted zellige tile covers the rear wall, helping to visually connect the main cooking area to a secondary zone. (See below.) “The kitchen itself is at the rear of the home, so it’s spanning the entire width of the home, and so what we wanted to do was bring some continuity, and the tile really does a good job in spanning the entire back wall,” Swabb says. Terra-cotta tile in a hand-painted pattern forms the range backsplash.
The countertops and sink apron are Taj Mahal quartzite. “It’s very natural-looking,” Swabb says. “It’s this light brown, minimal movement, and we wanted it to just feel natural and at ease. Not really screaming, ‘Give me attention.’”
Eight alabaster flush-mount light fixtures adorn the ceiling. “They really line the ceiling beautifully,” Swabb says. “They are something to look at and they really diffuse light much differently than a recessed light would.” A pendant hangs over each sink. “The client was thinking, ‘Oh, I always need a little bit more lighting when I’m washing my dishes or when I’m getting veggies ready.’ Some people would opt to do those right at the peninsula, but we really thought we’d rather have the pendant lighting at the sink here.… Having attention at the peninsula wasn’t something we wanted to do because we can see this beautiful tile if we’re not distracted by lighting.”
Find an interior designer near you
A brass sink pairs with a modern black faucet. “Mixing metals is our favorite thing to do,” Swabb says. “Everything from the cabinetry hardware to the plumbing fixtures to the sink — anything that’s metal, even the range, we think about how is this going to impact the space?” A paneled dishwasher sits to the left of the sink.
Watch now: See more of this remodel on Houzz TV
Watch now: See more of this remodel on Houzz TV
Pantry cabinets and a small breakfast area connect the main kitchen area to a secondary prep zone that contains a paneled fridge on the left, a fireclay sink and a built-in coffee station. Below the coffee station is a refrigerator drawer and below that a freezer drawer.
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The dining room is on the other side of the kitchen’s peninsula. A textured wallpaper wraps the room. “How you see it is small squares and that really does give a nice nod to the zellige tile in the other space,” Swabb says. Nature-inspired draperies add color and personality.
A custom dining table in a custom finish has an old look and feel to it. “And then we brought in these vintage chairs from the 1950s and really rounded out the space,” Swabb says. An oil-rubbed bronze light fixture has opaque glass shades. “It is a little nod to the past with it being a contemporary option,” Swabb says.
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A custom dining table in a custom finish has an old look and feel to it. “And then we brought in these vintage chairs from the 1950s and really rounded out the space,” Swabb says. An oil-rubbed bronze light fixture has opaque glass shades. “It is a little nod to the past with it being a contemporary option,” Swabb says.
Trending Now: 10 Popular New Dining Areas
Midcentury furnishings, including a teal sofa, add character and personality to the living room. “It’s just one of those spaces that feels earthy and organic,” Swabb says. “It has a little bit more emphasis on color because we do have these really high vaulted ceilings.” A lime wash on the fireplace subdues what was once a heavy-looking stone surface.
Of Houzz Pro software, Swabb says it “streamlines our entire process for us from start to finish. From our first message to our client to communicating with our vendors and then sending our final invoice to our client, we’re always doing everything within Houzz Pro. And it’s also a really great tool for when we need to pay taxes or do our bookkeeping. It communicates with all of the other systems that we work with and keeps things organized for us.”
Watch now: Tour this home and get more details on Houzz TV
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Of Houzz Pro software, Swabb says it “streamlines our entire process for us from start to finish. From our first message to our client to communicating with our vendors and then sending our final invoice to our client, we’re always doing everything within Houzz Pro. And it’s also a really great tool for when we need to pay taxes or do our bookkeeping. It communicates with all of the other systems that we work with and keeps things organized for us.”
Watch now: Tour this home and get more details on Houzz TV
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The foyer reminds me of houses in Old Phoenix of the same era. Many things about the kitchen were lovely. I liked the mix of tile, the pendant over the sink, no lighting over the island. Lots of thought went into the long view. Clever stuff!
Can you give me dining room chandelier details, including where to purchase. Perhaps it’s one of a kind?
Love the textural runner for the stairs. Truly, as other commenters have noted, lots of thought went into this execution as well as the design. Beautiful result. If there are details on the textual runner, I would appreciate having them.