Rachel and Zachary Rodman thought their 1963 Arlington colonial was mostly complete after BOWA, a design-build firm based in McLean, remodeled their first and second floors in 2017. “Then came Covid,” Rachel says. “We needed home office space.”
Zack, a teacher, commandeered an upstairs guest bedroom, but Rachel needed a set up for her work as an attorney. The other bedrooms in their 2,800-square-foot house were occupied by their two teenage boys.
That left the dark basement, where the only available space was a narrow area measuring 26 feet by 10 feet with low ceilings. The few small hopper windows that sat high on the walls added little light, plus they leaked.
BOWA returned in 2021, partnering with D.C. designer Joe Ireland to solve what seemed like an impossible ask. Within those awkward dimensions, the Rodmans wanted not just an office, but also a guest room, game area and TV lounge.
Removing the windows freed up wall space, says Jim Harris, president of BOWA’s Classic Design Build Division, and the team replaced the room’s swinging doors with space-saving pocket doors. But the biggest game changer was a custom built-in unit that houses a queen-size Murphy bed, with cabinets that double as nightstands.
Designed by Ireland and fabricated by Custom Millwork Design Group in Manassas, the unit has a collapsible walnut desktop affixed to the underside of the bed platform. When the bed is stowed, the desk can be pulled down to serve as a workstation or game table, or it can fold up neatly and sit flush against the wall unit.
Amazingly, the room sleeps four. A walnut sectional sofa rests on hidden casters, allowing it to be split apart and rolled into two twin beds. Wall sconces positioned at reading height and a wall-mounted TV make the sofa a cozy hang-out spot for everyday use.
Near the ceiling, Ireland installed up-facing cove lighting that “makes the room glow and feel taller.”
The Rodmans are delighted. Says Rachel: “[This room] went from scary to one of our most used spaces.”