Sentimental Scenery: A Maryland Home Renovation Inside and Out

This Maryland home renovation respects the past while modifying for the present and future.

Most remodeling projects have their challenges. Adding in a spouse’s desire to protect cherished childhood memories makes any remodel even more challenging. This was the task homeowners Christine Chan and Matthew Reiskin faced when they updated Matthew’s childhood home to accommodate their lifestyle and two children.

The approximately 3,000-square-foot home in Bethesda, Maryland, was designed by Matthew’s architect father, Leon Reiskin, in 1963 as the family home. Leon’s admiration for Mid Century Modern architecture, and specifically the work of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, is expressed in the open floor plan and large expanses of glass throughout the home. The influence of Frank Lloyd Wright is seen in the low-sloped roof.

red Platner chairs and atrium — The homeowners inherited the artwork in the home and vintage furniture pieces, such as the vintage Florence Knoll credenza and sofa as well as the red vintage Platner lounge chairs.

Although both are architects, Christine took the lead position in designing and managing the Maryland home renovation as well as being sensitive to her husband’s nostalgic feelings regarding the project. The most significant changes were to the kitchen, dining room and the centerpiece of the home: the enclosed glass atrium. Christine was able to maintain the original footprint of the home. “I always describe the house as a square donut,” she says. “My kids chase the dog around the atrium just like my husband did when he was young.”

A Compatible Vision for the Maryland Home Renovation

In 2020, the homeowners turned their attention to the landscaping, with their primary focus on the backyard. “The original landscaping wasn’t an afterthought—there was no thought,” Christine says. “It was extremely difficult to find a landscape designer who shared our vision. We wanted the landscaping to look good and be practical. We see the exterior patio and yard as an extension of the living room, which looks out onto the patio. And just like the interior, the design had to have good flow. One day I was flipping through a local magazine and saw a photo of a landscape project by Richardson & Associates and thought it was the exact style we were looking for.” She contacted the firm’s principal, Joseph Richardson, and they hit it off immediately.

Risom chair and Barcelona chairs in living room — Vintage Knoll coffee table and side table and vintage Barcelona chairs provide seating in the living room. A Risom lounge chair is also seen here.

atrium in MCM house with large planter box — This view shows a Planter Worx corten-steel planter wall. The centerpiece of the house is an atrium, which is enclosed by glass on three sides. The atrium was originally all hardscape but didn’t get much use as the summers made it too hot to be enjoyed. The renovation included removing most of the hardscape and replacing it with a low planter of corten steel. Plants and lighting complete the effect. Hunter Douglas solar shades were installed to block out the sun in the summer months. “The house now feels cooler and calmer,” Christine says. The homeowners inherited a vintage Eames lounge chair and ottoman. The house originally had a mix of flooring materials that the homeowners replaced with hardwood flooring. The result emphasizes the open floor plan as one single plane.

MCM living room with fireplace — The homeowners inherited a vintage Eames lounge chair and ottoman. The house originally had a mix of flooring materials that the homeowners replaced with hardwood flooring. The result emphasizes the open floor plan as one single plane.

“In my opinion, this entire project starts with the views,” Joseph says. “The homeowners wanted to experience the exterior from the interior, which is a basic principle of Mid Century Modern design. We don’t usually have to worry about a homeowner’s sentimental attachments to existing plants and hardscape, but that was a big part of this project, and we were up for that challenge.”

Regrowth and Rebirth

The main design elements for the patio are the hot tub, firepit with seating area and the outdoor kitchen with dining area. “Initially, I wanted a pool as part of the design, but here again Matthew’s memories of playing in the yard with his brothers made him veto the pool. We compromised with a design for a hot tub,” Christine says.

dark countertop with starburst wall clock — In the original floor plan, a wall divided the dining room and the kitchen with an accordion door for access. There were two sets of 9-foot tall x 4-foot wide sliding panels, which would close off the dining room and the kitchen when the family had guests. One set of sliding-screen panels were refurbished with Knoll Imago sheets and relocated perpendicular to where it used to be.

large kitchen island in renovated modern kitchen — The eat-in kitchen area was deemed unnecessary, despite Matthew’s objections, and was removed and replaced with a large kitchen island. The dark-brown cabinets were replaced with light cabinets, infusing the room with a much lighter and brighter palette. All appliances and cooktop are by Miele.

MCM dining room with black furniture and art — The dining room is no longer enclosed after the renovation. The dining table and buffet are from Contemporaria, along with a Kristalia dining table, buffet from Molteni, chairs by KFF and pendant light fixture by Foscarini.

The Maryland home renovation project began in the summer of 2020 and was completed in the summer of 2021. “The pandemic was well under way when we started our project, so another goal of the project became to create a space where our children and their friends could gather safely outside,” Christine says.

Maryland MCM renovated bedroom with clerestory windows — The natural light into the house is incredible, thanks to a ribbon of windows that runs along the perimeter of the home. The clerestory band of single-pane windows was replaced with double-pane windows during the renovation. The Eileen Gray table, Nelson bench and Nelson bubble lamp all are original to the home. (above) The homeowners call the space between the kitchen and dining room next to the atrium “The Gallery.” The atrium hosts a profusion of lush plantings. You can see more white astilbe in the background along with Siberian Iris, Blue Pacific juniper and more foam flower.

Maryland home renovated MCM bathroom — The renovation also included upgrades to the bathrooms. The owners chose Caesarstone countertops, Alape sink and Porcelanosa tile for the powder room upgrade.

Joseph respected Matthew’s requests while putting his own spin on the landscape redesign. “We kept the original footprint of the patio,” he explains. “The patio was originally poured aggregate concrete typical of that time period and was in bad shape. We replaced it with Pennsylvania blue flagstone. Matthew had memories of his dad installing the stones around the patio, so we repurposed the stone to create an irregular border around the new patio.”

“It was extremely difficult to find a landscape designer who shared our vision,” Christine Chan shares. We wanted the landscaping to look good and be practical. We see the exterior patio and yard as an extension of the living room, which looks out onto the patio. And just like the interior, the design had to have good flow.”

MCM home hallway between atrium and open space living area — The homeowners call the space between the kitchen and dining room next to the atrium “the gallery.” The atrium hosts a profusion of lush plantings. You can see more white astilbe in the background along with Siberian iris, blue Pacific juniper and more foam flower.

MCM backyard exterior — The homeowners’ focus was on the backyard as an extension of the interior living area. The patio can be viewed from both the vintage Eames lounge chair in the den and the vintage Platner chairs in the living room. Pirates patch, white astilbe and Pennsylvania sedge comprise the planting bed in front of the patio. Schip laurel and blue Star Amsonia are to the right of the firepit and Hick’s yew are the hedges planted against the house. PereNnial Hibiscus are in the pots that flank the sliding glass door.

hot tub and landscaping in MCM Maryland backyard — The original patio design called for both cedar and Pennsylvania blue flagstone. The cost of cedar skyrocketed due to the pandemic, so that material was scaled back and Pennsylvania blue flagstone was the material predominately used for the patio. Cedar is used in the cladding of the hot tub. Hick’s yew and blue star amsonia are planted by the house.

When Joseph recalls the project, he’s glad to have had the opportunity to add his landscaping ideas to the mid century Maryland home renovation. “My favorite part of the project was the architecture of the home,” he says. “It is rare in this area to get the opportunity to design for a property of this age unless it is a protected historic home. Many of the homes in this area have unfortunately been demolished, and large homes with tiny yards are built on the lots. It is clear this home has been well cared for.”

MCM Maryland exterior flagstone pathway — Although the majority of landscape work focused on the backyard, architect Joseph Richardson created a dedicated side entry to guide guests to the backyard. They even created a cut-out space in the gate so the family dog can look out onto the front yard. Nellie Stevens Holly peeks up from behind the fencing. In the box planters on the right are yellow jessamine and chocolate vine. The planters on the right contain thunderhead pine.

exterior renovated Maryland 1963 home — The Bethesda, Maryland, residence of Christine Chan and Matthew Reiskin was designed by Matthew’s architect father, Leon Reiskin, in 1963 as the family home. The open floor plan and large expanses of glass were inspired by the work of Mies van de Rohe and the sloping roof by Frank Lloyd Wright. Pachysandra Terminalis planted along the walkway is a type of ground cover from the boxwood family native to Japan.

MCM renovated backyard hot tub and fire pit — The exterior landscape design plan followed the Mid Century Modern design principles that were used in the interior of the home: What is the best flow? How does each space relate to the other? What is the function of the space?

Christine says her family home is now a perfect blend of past and present, with room to grow in the future. “It is certainly our forever home, with both old memories and new ones.”

If you’re curious to see another Maryland home renovation, read on for An Unexpected Maryland Mid Century Home. Looking for modern landscaping ideas? Don’t miss A Wisconsin Yard Gets a Dream Modern Makeover and Designing a Non-Desert MCM Landscape. And of course, don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest for more Atomic Ranch articles and ideas!