Before and After: A Doctor’s Office Becomes a Rental Property Filled with Secondhand Finds
Anna Weaver and her family are only the fourth owners of their 1933 Art Deco home in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, DC. And while the home stands out for its architecture, it’s also distinctive for its past: From 1933 to 1996, the garden level of the home served as a doctor’s office, tying it to generations of Washingtonians.
The original owner, the doctor, lived upstairs with his seven children. So, when Weaver moved in with her husband and three daughters, they saw no reason why they couldn’t do the same. These days, though, they thought the first floor would be best used as a rental property.
“This address, like so many on Capitol Hill, became a boarding house in the ‘60s, ‘70s, and early ‘80s,” Weaver says. “Creating a short-term rental felt like honoring that history.”
Her family had been on the hunt for a home in the area for some time, and when they saw this one’s original details, they went all in. “This home was so lovingly cared for by the previous owners, who also valued its old bones and quirks,” Weaver adds.
At the time, she was debating whether or not to launch a new career either as a vintage seller or an interior decorator, so when they got the keys, Weaver saw this guest quarters as a chance to do both. “I had visions of selling vintage pieces out of our rental apartment, in the same manner as big hotel chains sell their robes and shampoos,” she says.
The project took nearly a year to finish — after they’d already waited seven months for permits — so Weaver had plenty of time to put her spin on every detail. “I was able to be really intentional and slowly decorate the space, as it took so long to complete the renovation,” she says. “My goal was for it to be a reflection of my aesthetic, along with a showcase of how to decorate with secondhand items, from the furniture to the dishes.”
She imagined that guests would want to feel as if they lived in this city, so creating a cozy atmosphere was a top priority. In fact, the difference between her own home and this rental isn’t that stark. “I wanted the first floor to feel like it was my house, so that when I go in or welcome guests it doesn’t feel like this cut-off space,” Weaver says.
She typically starts designing a room with a pattern in mind, and in this case, the palette was pulled from a collection of Art Deco Chinese rugs she already owned. “And because I am fairly regular about sourcing, I had no problem finding pieces that fit within the colors and style of those rugs,” Weaver adds. She found coordinating pieces from estate sales and antique shops, and brought everything together in a way that tells a story of the neighborhood’s long-ago locals.
One of her favorite pieces is a pair of mid-century modern chairs on casters, as one example. “You see a lot of mid-century modern in this area, but chairs recovered in their original ‘80s chintz? All I could think about was the extraordinary person who had them,” she says.
The daybed room is another design moment that makes Weaver proud. She knew the apartment would benefit from a flex space intended for a child, but she didn’t want to close this area off from natural light. Luckily, pocket doors with window panes were a clever solution, with an iron daybed positioned beyond.
“To make it nice and dark in there, I hemmed a very large set of curtains that I hauled back from Atlanta, where my family lives,” she says. “I call them my ‘coffin curtains.’” She wanted to make the room feel like a jewel-box, so she painted it in a chocolate brown shade with a high-gloss finish for shine.
Weaver did face big challenges, even in the midst of those permit delays. By the time the bathroom was the main focus of this overhaul, the renovation had exceeded its initial budget. Suddenly, Weaver couldn’t afford the historic materials she had her hopes on. She spent weeks trying to find something that looked like it belonged in a 1930s home, and happened to spot a checkerboard tile at an estate sale. Her contractor installed it, and also created a vanity out of an Art Deco dresser she found at a secondhand shop in Baltimore. “It fits like a glove,” she says.
Now that the renovation is behind her and this new seller-meets-designer career has gained speed, Weaver has discovered just how much her love of the past has resonated with present guests — and her family and friends, when they’re in town.
“We thought being so close to the Capitol would be the reason guests love the apartment,” she says. “Instead, they always mention how beautiful the space is and how they love the little touches.”