As Hospitality Industry Veterans, This D.C. Couple Were After Cool Hotel Vibes at Home
Photo by Michael P. H. Clifford
A little more than a decade ago, Washington, D.C.-based designer Zoe Feldman met Alexandra and Gavin Coleman in what now feels like an entirely separate chapter of their lives. “My firm was completely different, and they didn’t have any kids,” Feldman says. “It was back when they had a townhouse on Capitol Hill.” After they worked together on that initial project, Feldman and the couple stayed in touch socially as the Coleman clan grew to include Henry (10), Taylor (8), and Peter (6). Then, two years ago, Alexandra and Gavin purchased a circa-1900s farmhouse in the Palisades neighborhood, and Feldman was asked to jump back into her professional role.
Feldman liked the idea of working with old friends, and not just because she knows their tastes. Gavin is a partner at Long Shot Hospitality, and Alexandra is a brand and marketing executive, so Feldman knew that they could take design risks along the lines of a must-stay hotel or a buzzworthy restaurant—in fact, she was sure that’s why they wanted her back. But Feldman also had her own fresh chapter in the works called Demi, a part of her firm that focuses on smaller projects with leaner budgets rather than full-fledged renovations.
