A 1915 Home With Golden Gate Views Gets A New Life

Intent on restoring the character of a Willis Polk house overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge, a San Francisco couple hired a design team to help refresh the space and modify past renovations that left the rooms in their 1915 residence feeling a bit disjointed.

“I’m a huge fan of consistency,” says the wife. “I’d rather have consistency of materials and finishes instead of making each room unique. It’s more soothing.”

To keep the top and ground floors in sync with the home’s original vibes, James Hunter and Shannon Jue, from the Wiseman Group Interior Design, reconfigured the spaces, reintroduced traditional millwork and worked in classic, yet modern, furniture silhouettes.

The designers also lightened up that palette of the house, particularly in the entry hall, which previously felt brooding with its mahogany-stained gumwood paneling. The wood was stripped, bleached and touched up to make it “perfectly imperfect,” says Jue.

In the end, the homeowners were left with a cohesive look befitting both their casual lifestyle and the home’s historic roots.