Show House Installation
Gorgeous
& Green
Carbon-neutral housing is a hot topic right now, so the folks at
CharityWorks decided to build a carbon-neutral show house to prove
that green and luxurious do not have to be mutually exclusive. For
more than a decade, CharityWorks has been channeling millions of
dollars to community organizations to help break the cycle of poverty
By Kelly Sweeney
plaguing our nation’s capital. Proceeds from the GreenHouse, the first
carbon-neutral show house on the East Coast, will further help Char-
ityWorks in their mission to end poverty.
CharityWorks selected acclaimed designer and veteran show house
chair Barry Dixon to chair the event as well as design a space in the
house. Dixon reveals he “enjoys the combination of celebrating ac-
complishments and aesthetic vantage points of celebrated tried-and-
true designers” as well as “sharing with new talent that is just getting
their start.” The house, built in McLean, Virginia, was built green from
the ground up, both inside and outside. Dixon explained that the green
standards for the house were strictly policed and that not even the tini-
est accessory made it into the house unless it was green.
The house features four bedrooms, an expansive great room with
open kitchen, a private library, office and study space, a wine cellar
and a media room encompassing approximately 3,800 square feet of
living space. Nineteen D.C.-area designers were selected to design the
18 spaces in the home.
Dixon designed the great room and kitchen, which are architectur-
ally one large space. His purpose-driven design created a trio of usable
spaces: cooking, dining/studying and living areas that are focused on
the outdoor terrace and pool. A large metal mesh screen from Avrett
and a custom high-backed banquette divides the space while allowing
visual openness and airflow. Dixon chose a decidedly contemporary
design for the great room and a sleek, modern design for the kitchen.
He wanted to show that green design can be über-contemporary, mini-
malist modern or any point in between, and dispel the notion that a
traditional design or upholstered wingchair can’t be green.
As green design is a fairly new concept, Dixon reveals working on
this project was incredibly educational for him. His training preceded
the green movement, so the fundamentals of eco-design were com-
pletely unknown to him. He was pleased to discover that the Siematic
kitchens he has been specifying for years are all green by design. The
German kitchen giant manufactures all of their products to meet Eu-
rope’s more stringent standards, so Dixon quips, “They’re beyond
Photos: Gor
green in the U.S.” He admits, “Some designers are designing green
and don’t even know it.” He believes that is the true litmus test — to
rade
deliver a beautiful and luxurious installation and then add, “and by the
don Beall
way, it’s green.”
Design T
An interior designer for 13 years, Dixon had never done a com-
pletely green installation before and thought it was going to be more
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