An Edwardian retains its history and newlyweds celebrate their own in a house designed for intergenerational gatherings.

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The clients loved their Edwardian home, but its compartmentalized floor plan was inconvenient for large family events. To prevent the “empty box” feel of many modernized historical houses, we were careful to preserve as much of the original design as possible. We opened up sections of the living room wall that separated the kitchen—leaving the interior architectural frame intact—so that hosts, guests, and whoever’s cooking could
see each other and socialize.

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For movie nights in the living room, we designed a chaise lounge/sofa that seats 10; while
a custom table in the dining room seats 12, perfect for the grand Persian feasts thrown
by the clients. The wife can trace her heritage back to the Qashqai, a tribe of nomadic shepherds in southwestern Iran. We were happy to use some of our wool felt pieces as
a nod to this legacy, including a wool tapestry hanging in the dining room and sheep
stools found throughout.

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Regional artists provide the rest. These include a commissioned terracotta sculpture from LA-based artist MyungJin Kim; a small Jesse Schlesinger piece on the chimney mantel that looks like the geometric lay of the original brick fireplace; an Ido Yoshimoto vase made in Inverness; and paper mâche masks by Mexican-American, SF-based artist Joel Hernandez. For the foyer, we designed a stained-glass window with Dan Gamaldi,
whose studio has been a local mainstay since 1977.