architecture, residential

sf victorian

DSA accommodated the modern lifestyle of this San Francisco couple while preserving the comfortable details of a historic Victorian home.  The slanted planes of the attic roof have been exposed to create a dramatic spacious master bedroom suite.  Interior walls have been swept away to open the first floor living space. A longitudinal glass block window brings light into the kitchen and maintains wall space for cabinets above.
The only modification to the exterior was the addition of a new gable facing the garden and two towers: one tower for the stair to the upper floor lined with book as a library, and the other a master bathroom for the mistress of the house.

Pied-a-Terre

DSA opened all rooms to each other in the remodel/additon of this Edwardian flat to create the feeling of greater space in this small (only 800 square feet) pied-a-terre.  The stairway becomes the central spine, moving up from street to public space, from public space to private space and then out to the deck increasing the feeling of movement and expansion.
History has been incorporated into the design by the re-use of materials taken from the building during construction.  Redwood 2 x 4’s from partition walls become trim for windows and doors.  The original Douglas Fire sub-floor is transformed as the nosing for stair treads.  Original wainscoting follows the entry stair up to the Great Room.
Memories are embedded into the design.  The chandelier from a former family home has been relocated into the entry hall.  Bronze clovers are cast into the cement counter top to reflect a specific family story.

home with a history

DSA incorporated salvaged doors and windows into the complete remodel of this simple unassuming home to give a sense of traditional charm and character. A triangular shaped music studio is the result of a former train track which has now been replaced with lush garden overflowing with flowers. The arched windows of a top floor warehouse boldly connect the studio to the outside greenery. A local second hand yard supplied the vintage marble sink for the guest bath and chandelier for the bedroom.

fillmore kitchen

parkside remodel

Addition: One Floor Up/ One Floor Down

This cottage style home in Bernal Heights was expanded both up and down in this site typical to San Francisco where the slope of the hill provided several floors of difference between the front and back doors.  Expanding up on the street side of the house, a new bedroom suite was added for the girls as they grew older, needed more space and eventually separate rooms.  Expanding down on the garden side, a new office suite was developed to accommodate the husband’s business.
DSA created a palette of translucent materials allowing for a shared sense of light and movement while maintaining privacy.   The lower floor is transformed into a light filled quest suite with partitions of honeycombed fiberglass walls, obscuring specifics but connecting light. The sand blasted Plexiglas window along the stair provides a view of passing feet.  Sustainable mahogany windows and a recycled Douglas Fir floor add warmth while maintaining green design.

Nine Square Country House

DSA created a nine square floor plan to give organizational structure to the open flowing spaces of this lake side cabin.  The nine square plan is a tradition extending from Palladio in the 15th century, to the Modernist Aldolf Loos of the early twentieth with the appeal being the centered yet flowing nature of the spaces.  In essence, the entire home forms a cube with the entry porch as a missing piece to indicate entry, and the bay window pushing out to face the lake.  Every room has an exterior corner for maximum light and air for summers when it is hot, and winters when it is dark.  Each floor has a different suite of bedrooms to maximize privacy between summer visitors.   Living/dining/kitchen/entry/and stair are held together as one grand room by the dramatic cathedral roof above.