Waller

2021

San Francisco, ca

3,500 sq. ft.

This gut-remodel of a 1909 Victorian home in San Francisco’s recently designated Duboce Park Historic District was a masterclass in client collaboration. The new homeowners requested something that's become our specialty: connecting inviting, modern interior spaces with the California climate. We decided to give the south-facing rear of the house exterior decking, opting for balconies on all upper levels. The resulting layout required only minor changes to the building envelope, with a 75 square foot, single-story addition that extended the kitchen/dining area and a simple dormer setback capturing 600 square feet of attic space — without affecting the historic front facade. When we were through, all 4 levels boasted access to the outdoors.

How it all started

The house was extremely run-down, aching for a new foundation and a face-lift that would bring it into this century. The new owners were eager to become dedicated stewards of the property and see our proposed renovations through.

Pull back the curtain

Solving the maze

A meandering ground-level floorplan and underutilization of light and outdoor space presented a formidable, but familiar, challenge.

Adding without taking away

An addition to the kitchen/dining space massively improved the flow of the home's first floor, while balconies rising above it brought more of the outside in without detracting from the iconic facade that we had plans to restore.

Overcrowding

With four bedrooms sharing a single bath and two stairwells bisecting it, this floorplan was being stretched thin, with little consideration for flow or comfort.

Form equal to function

Thanks to a new, dedicated master suite, consolidated stairwell, and the added laundry and bathroom spaces, this level of the house gained function, breathing room, and privacy.

Stepping up our game

The stairwell functioned as the backbone of the living space, but it needed some TLC in the form of a new railing and vertical reconfiguration that made it code-compliant. The attic, with added skylights and ease of accessibility, naturally became a more prominent part of the home.

Fleshed out

The massing model of the finished design helped the owners better envision changes to be made, especially elements like the deck and balconies. This approach better defines expectations and often leads to more enthusiastic approval.

How it came together

Our priority became the stairwell at the center of the house. We reconfigured and refurbished it, creating a custom decorative railing and extending the steps to reach the new attic space. With the addition of operable skylights, sunlight spills dramatically through three levels of the structure, all the way down to the re-worked formal entryway.

Although the new interior space is fully modern, we preserved the notions of the original house with eye-catching details like painted decorative casings and nods to its former geometric wallpaper; Fireclay tile in the bathrooms and hexagonal stone in the kitchen continue this theme. We worked with SF Planning to discover and refurbish beautiful features in the house's facade, crafting missing components from authentic materials. The process was long and exhaustive, but we'd say the results speak for themselves.