Nestor Santa-Cruz

One of my favorite local DC designers is Nestor Santa-Cruz, both in person and in work. Every time I look at his spaces, I am awed by elegance.

Often, the pieces of a room will merge together to offer you a big picture.  An overall experience. But in Nestor's rooms, the pieces speak individually (yet still coalesce to form a superior space). Each piece holds its own and likely carries a history. All thanks to Nestor's careful editing and selection of objects for his interiors.

Here are some images he sent me of the dining room of a house he is working on in Potomac, Md. The light fixture sets the tone for a completely artful space.

Photos by Angie Seckinger

Refined. That's the word.

2010 DCDH: Nestor Santa-Cruz

I was delighted to receive an email from Nestor Santa-Cruz yesterday with photos of his reception room for the 2010 DC Design House...wow, the room's transformation is stunning.

I unfortunately didn't take good photos of the room during the Bare Bones tour, but I did take a shot of the ceiling, which gives you an idea of what Nestor was working with...

And now for the magic:

All Photography by Angie Seckinger

A showcase of crisp, classic, sophisticated elegance - hallmarks of Santa-Cruz's design. I love that he kept the gorgeous wall mirror and incorporated it into the room's updated decor. With the photos, he included a blurb about his thoughts for the room and mentioned that he aimed to work with elements already present:

"In designing the Reception Room, I wanted to maintain a hint of the original house. The Neoclaasical background and architectural details gave me an opportunity to step back, and reappraise what the decor should be: comfortable and welcoming in an elegant way, but very personal."

This space is certainly in harmony with the house, and I have a feeling it flows beautifully with the other rooms...I'll have to see for myself when I go!

I'm so happy to be posting about Nestor because I absolutely love his work and he is Cuban-born but spent time growing up in El Salvador, which makes him all the more interesting to me (I was born in ES). We had a lovely back and forth chat over email yesterday and I was thrilled to "meet" him.

Thank you for the sneak peek into your beautiful room, Nestor!

Want to see it for yourself? Buy your tickets here...