003 San Francisco Pied à Terre

Located in the city of San Francisco, this home was designed as a pied-à-terre, a secondary dwelling for a tech executive that wanted a stylish and comfortable space to live and entertain when spending time in the city. The home is in the historic Mission District, offering desirable amenities and access to city life, yet the space initially felt sterile and banal.

Our intent was to introduce a sense of home with warm textures and colors while also implementing key bespoke and vintage pieces that became platforms to perform various programs. The walls and ceilings are in a plaster finish with subtle wood floors. It is important to note that this was designed as a temporary city dwelling, rather than a forever home, so the key was to fill the space with classic vintage pieces that will stay in the owner’s collection over time.

A 1970’s Valeria Borsani sofa upholstered in Maharam fabric, a 1950’s Gigi Radice armchair covered in a citron yellow velvet by Dedar, and a 1970’s walnut and terrazzo Harvey Probber coffee table are among some of the notable pieces outfitting the room. The custom bar finished with green lacquer holds Joe Colombo glassware and a copper table lamp by Umberto Riva, sits next to the Palan chair. While the bespoke dining table anchored to the wall is lit by a special edition Pavo Tynell light fixture. The custom designed wall shelving unit is a modular piece that holds sound equipment and a record player, as well as some alternating pieces in the owner’s growing art collection.