BCV breathed new life into an intimate Victorian cottage in San Francisco’s Noe Valley neighborhood. The existing main cottage was a non-conforming property set at the back of the lot. Designed as the first phase for a future carriage house above, an efficient two-car garage was designed at the property's street front. The garage buffers a gated entry alongside, which leads through a garden courtyard to the front door of the main house. An elegant roof deck on the new garage acts as an expansion to the courtyard garden.

The main cottage, previously a single story living space over storage, was reconfigured and expanded by excavating several feet to develop proper living, dining, kitchen functions at a newly created first level alongside the garden court. An effort to maximize living space led to an efficient open plan at the lower level with living and dining combined at the front of the house open to the kitchen beyond. Pantry, powder and utility rooms are tucked in the back while a sky-lit central staircase brings floods natural light into the main living spaces.

Within the existing roof envelope, the upper level was sensitively converted with a spacious master suite overlooking the garden, and a children's bedroom set to the back of the cottage. A renovated attic space provided an retreat within the roof form with a view to the property and beyond. Throughout, a classic, clean and airy palette marks the aesthetic of the interior.