Hartford began when we were approached with an interesting, if common, challenge: our clients, a couple, had bought a classic San Francisco Victorian. They loved the exterior, but the inside—not so much. It was dark; the spaces were tight; and at least one prior renovation had left the rooms in a state of cramped disorder. The clients wanted spaces where they could host and hang out, and they also hoped to have rooms where they could turn inward and feel the other’s presence even while doing separate activities. Taking this desire for experiential contrast as a directive, we produced a holistic renovation that encompasses architecture, interiors, and landscape.

We started by opening up the spaces, creating a new corridor and foyer more aligned with the home’s original plan and removing a heavy drop ceiling from the kitchen space. In the earthquake shed adjacent to the main building, an addition from 1906, we added four feet of height to the glazed opening at the end. To create cohesion between inside and outside, we brought the visual motifs of the home’s exterior—elongated proportions, arch shapes, patterns of vertical lines—to the interior. These motifs show up in every room, both in the architecture and the objects: in the shelves in the kitchen, in the bathroom mirror and in a pendant hanging next to it, in the doorways and thresholds throughout the home.

Differences in hue are subtle, while tactile interest is heightened: a plush camel rug laid atop warm wood flooring, bathroom tiles that subtly shift from cool at the ceiling to warm at the floor. In the main bathroom, tall prairie grasses press up against a rectangle of glass, providing both privacy and textural opposition. Outside, a sunken fire pit is surrounded by a u-shaped trio of benches, themselves surrounded by a variety of greenery. Ferns, palms, and bamboo stretch high overhead, calling attention to their height and the expanse of sky beyond them, and simultaneously highlighting the cozy arrangement of space around the fire. It’s the culmination of the home’s exercises in duality.

Year: 2025
Location: San Francisco, CA
Square Footage: 3,229
Typology: Residential