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Claire Schwab, ASID

School: Vanderbilt University, Northern Virginia Community College
Company: Claire Schwab Interior Design, Inc.
Alexandria, VA 22308-2758
Phone: (703) 780-8767
Email: cschwab@claireschwab.com
Website: www.claireschwab.com

Designer Profile

Claire has been practicing design since 1990. She and her design team all hold design degrees, are members of ASID, have participated in 7 local show houses, and have had their work published in magazines, the Washington Post, a decorator's book, and have been featured on HGTV.
Associate Designer: Leslie Gaughan, Allied Member ASID
Junior Designer: Katharine Howard

Services Offered

-Complete room or home design
-Window treatment design and fabrication
-Fabric and furniture selections
-Rugs and floor coverings
-Lighting
-Paints and color solutions
-Floor Planning
-Art & accessories
-Project management & installation
-Carpentry & Built-ins
-Light remodeling
-Kitchen & Bath design
-Architectural plan evaluation

Awards & Publications

2011- Washington Post, Home & Garden section
2009- Washington Post, Home & Garden section
2008- HGTV "Top 10 Christmas Towns"
2007- Washington Post, Home & Garden section
2006- National Symphony Orchestra: Decorators' Show House
- Spectacular Homes of Washington, D.C., ed. Panache Partners, LLC
2005- Washington Spaces magazine
2004- National Symphony Orchestra: Decorators' Show House
1998- Alexandria Show House
1996- Better Homes & Gardens magazine
- Alexandria Show House
1995- Southern Maryland Decorators' Show House
1994- Better Homes & Gardens magazine
- Alexandria Show House






Washington Spaces, NSO Decorators' Show Houses

This living room provides a cozy retreat and inviting entertaining space.
The new version of this room is much more relaxed and intimate than before. The antiques and artwork make the space feel balanced and rich.
This open plan in the 2-story foyer set the color and style on the main floor.
The colors from the foyer and living room spill into the dining room, providing an inviting, warm glow.
This sunroom was added and looks out over a vast garden on a hill. The fabrics reflect the outside colors.
The sofa here in this large space can float off the corner and make an approachable conversation area overlooking the expansive yard.
Part of the remodel involved a complete gut of the kitchen. We designed new cabinets, new appliances, new lighting, and a generous granite island.
The new construction allows for great current architecture, high ceilings, moldings, and spacious living. The river view is nice, too!
We chose a warm, pumpkin color for the living room and North-facing side of the house.
Light upholstery and carpet provide a calm contrast. Two furniture pieces were recovered and the club chairs are new.
The living room pumpkin color carries back to the family room as an accent, and warms up the browns and taupes.
The symmetrical arrangement is very fitting for this formal house and its architectural details.
The darker upholstery works well with all of the Southern light flooding in.
The view from the family room inspires an equally elegant and dramatic breakfast room, and the English floral wallpaper makes the room cozy and inviting.
The dining room mirrors the living room color with damask wallpaper. The window treatments share the same design as the living room, but are different fabric and trim.
The new dining room chair backs showcase a fun and current oval design. Hopefully upstairs will be next year's project!
Welcome to Mansion Drive.
Once an outdoor slate patio, this space is now a four-season room and the favorite gathering space.
The sofa houses a queen sleeper for extra guests or a fun slumber party by the fire.
The gas fireplace warms in the winter, and two ceiling fans and lined shades cool in the summer.
The new room faces West and grabs great light for plants and early evening gatherings.
The console table behind the sofa, with two custom finishes, opens up to a dining or buffet table for entertaining.
The adjoining study shares the same color palette and makes a great homework space for the kids.
We chose yellow walls for this cooler-feeling, North-facing room.
This seventeen year-old has a youthful, playful palette for reading and hanging out.
The bed canopy ties into the three window valances and balances the walls in the room.
Mirrors on her closet doors also open up the space and bring light into this North-facing room.
The other daughter's bedroom has an equally fun and youthful palette and lots of room to study, relax, and listen to music.
More of a contemporary project, this house for a bachelor has been a nice change of style for us.
This man cave showcases his interest in world travel, historical books, and horticulture.
This room opens up onto a large patio and pool deck, which inspired our botanical accessories.
Items from India and Burma work well with the leather furniture.
This small powder room received a facelift with a new countertop, vessel bowl, and bar faucet.
The foyer connects the living room to the informal den.
This informal den used to be the dining room, but now gets much more use.
The master bedroom, overlooking the backyard pool, is a spacious and cozy retreat for the owner and his dogs.
Mixing antiques and leather with sleek, contemporary lighting provides the owner with his desired eclectic, urban look.
Rolling up our sleeves and lending a hand is part of the job!
The foyer welcomes guests to the rich, warm colors of the home.
The taupe color in the wallpaper carries the color into the rest of the open floor plan.
A complete remodel with new marble floor, toilet, furniture sink, wallpaper, and lighting brought this powder room up to the level of the foyer and family room.
Oh how we used to struggle to keep coats, gloves, and backpacks organized!
Even a simple valance can be customized with good details to make a room look special.
The master suite has calming and restful blues and creams.
We selected a custom, hand-painted bookcase in the far corner of the room to contrast with the rest of the mahogany four-poster bed, tables, and armoire.
The layers of the window treatments in the master bedroom began with a woven shade for privacy and glare, then were softened with silk panels, a touch of bias banding, and decorative trim.
A minimal master bath makeover of new sink, faucet, countertop, and decorative mirror with accent shelves saved the client an entire bathroom remodel.
The living room and foyer welcome you with warm, neutral, inviting tones and textures.
We helped this family decorate a house years before, then they moved closer to town. We transitioned all of their furniture into their new home.
We repainted the entire house and most of the furniture stayed together in each new room. We performed minor alterations to the window treatments, and cut down a few carpets for the new spaces.
The living room opens right into the dining room, and makes for a wonderful entertaining space.
We brought over their old foyer chandelier, repositioned it in the dining room, and added a ceiling medallion.
The master bedroom furniture moved over just perfectly into the new house.
Even the artwork and mirror found a great new home.
The bed pillows and lamps balance either side of the bed, but the different end tables keep the design from looking too matched.
This cozy family room offers seating for the family of three. The leather ottoman also serves as a coffee table and a toy chest for the 5 year-old son.
The symmetry of the loveseat, artwork, and wall sconces add formality to the space and also help lift the feel of the ceiling for a more open look.
We continued the warm color palette to blend with the granite and the cabinets, and designed a light, natural tile backsplash with a pillow edge for a softer look.
The accessories reflect the son's interest in world travel, and the bookshelf organizes his books and toys. The harbor wall lamps reflect the port city of Old Town Alexandria.
The challenge of town house bedrooms is to maximize the space in every way you can; this custom bench is a great nook for books, toys, and seating.
Although most items in the son's room were retail, we designed a custom valance and storage bench in the bay window.
This open kitchen wall used to be solid, shutting off the dining room. Now both rooms feel larger and lighter.
We gutted the kitchen entirely, updated the appliances, and made it part of the whole living space.
The kitchen is now not only a space for cooking, but also for entertaining.
A Persian rug from the client's own antique collection inspired the design and color palette for this formal living room. Formal and Comfortable can co-exist.
Only a soon-to-be teenager can embrace these fun colors!
This sofa bed allows for sleepovers and a lounge area.
Details are so very important!
A 2-toned Hickory dining table anchors the décor for gathering space amongst 3 open rooms.
A recent renovation to the main house created an expansive master sitting room.
Guest room
This versatile guest room also includes an office area.
Formal but inviting, rich colored window treatments illuminate the scenery outside.
Yellow paint on the dark side of a house provides the feel of warmth and light.
This seating area makes a room within a room.
This family spends a lot of time in this inviting, fun, gathering room.
This oversized dining room holds an antique table perfectly.
The clear shades of yellow, blue, and rose show in different strengths here.
The color palette from downstairs flows to the upstairs.
Blue is restful and clean- masculine and feminine.
One of Fredrick's oldest homes, this one on Carroll Parkway has seen many additions and renovations.
The former attic with exposed beams and new paint and furniture is now the favorite room in the house!
This large attic allows for a bed and a sitting room.
What a man cave!
Glass doors and walls, and stone tiles create an in-home spa.
Leftover shower tiles create the mirror frame.
These draperies stack off the window to maximize the natural light and the view outdoors.
This light, airy guest room remains welcoming through the seasons. The palette is restful and clean.
The generous space in this master bedroom afforded proportionally substantial furniture, which we dressed with opulent draperies and bedding.
We chose this chair for the master sitting room because of its full scale; it is comfortable, inviting, and swivels so the client can enjoy seeing outdoors.
Vanity skylight window treatment in silk.
Lady's vanity adjacent to the master suite.
Morgan's name over her bed creates that specialized room a child needs to feel individual.
These brightly colored bunk beds are perfect for saving space and sleepovers.
Even Morgan's shower is a place she can call her own.
This large kitchen provides ample space for seating, entertaining, and storage.
Avid wine collectors, these homeowners wanted a place to show off their favorite bottles.
We worked with the client to accommodate their entertaining needs.
Double dishwashers are the perfect solution for the frequent host and hostess, and granite counter lengths accent the steel finishes.
A bright picture above the stove keeps the kitchen feeling light and airy.
The 1950's house was more than ready for a man's bathroom makeover. We had the space to convert the previous small shower into a marble-lined steam shower.
This his and hers style bathroom is a perfect combination of masculine, feminine, modern, and traditional accents.
For the National Symphony Orchestra Decorators' Show House, we transformed a corner bedroom into a lively, feminine lady's dressing room.
This photo, shot at night for the NSO Decorators' Show House preview party, shows how the chosen color palette glows at night.
The adjoining bathroom showcases an airy window treatment that allows lots of light.
We carried the colors into the spacious closet.
The adjoining bathroom showcases a granite countertop with vessel sinks. The chiseled edge shows a new option.
We painted the existing cabinets with a glaze and created a frame around the mirror with decorative tiles.
Entrance hallway in designer's home.
Welcome to our home! I love a black bannister. We love to open our door and use the glass storm door when we're home.
Soft yellow paint and silk draperies on the North facing side of the house make this living room warm and inviting.
Living room symmetrical grouping of mirrored botanicals shows a more formal room.
Portraits of our girls, an oils of a pastoral Virginia scene, and a round table make this my favorite room.
I carried the yellow from the foyer wallpaper to the back of the house.
Yellow is cheery and warm, and works well with the stone and dark kitchen granite.
Our guests are met with sharp, fun colors in this bedroom.
A layering of woven shades and silk draperies on the North facing side of the house make our living room warm and inviting.
There are many accessories available for mantels and high walls.
A true retreat at the end of the day.
My favorite wall in the whole house: a collage of black and white photos of our family as we grow- 2 dogs and 3 children!
Even balconies deserve furniture, window dressings, and artwork.
Peaceful, restful colors on upholstery and in artwork calm a busy attorney.
This sunroom addition grabs all the morning sun and makes the perfect coffee and paper spot!
The use of black and red in this transitional furniture provides drama and strength in an Old Town lobby.
The fun use of color on a bench or in a fish tank gives life to a long hall.
Picture hanging is challenging. The order and layering of this grouping is more formal.
This upstairs hall area extends the colors from the Foyer and into the bedroom.
The Breakfast Room opens into a kitchen, sunroom, and Family Room, allowing for a slightly more sophisticated look.
Why go away to a nice hotel when you live here?
The Master Bath design provides amble space and good storage to keep things clean, uncluttered, and organized.
The morning sun warms up the room and the cool fabrics keep it calm.
Casual elegance and comfort unite in this Family Room.