An Inside Look at a Liberty Hill Historic District Renovation

Jun 23, 2023

While the Victorian in San Francisco's Liberty Hill Historic District was built in 1888, it was the 1980s that the homeowner, Helen Min, and interior designers Lissette Fernández-Hilson and Chelsea Murawski had to contend with for this extensive remodel. To purge the home of embellishments like purple carpeting and numerous non-load-bearing columns, the three women envisioned crisp white walls, a return to classic architectural elements and plenty of functionality for Min, a venture capitalist, and her young son.

It was also the second project for Fernández-Hilson and Murawski, who founded Marin-based Together Home Design Studio in 2017, and Min, who had collaborated with the designers on her previous home a block and a half away. Considering that the latest renovations kicked off in April 2021 amid considerable resource delays (Min's new dishwasher finally arrived in January), that familiarity allowed for a trusting creative process over the next year and a half.

"Just knowing her so well through our last design series, we took her midcentury, clean, modern aesthetic and really wanted this to feel like a family home," says Murawski, who is a mom to two young boys (as is Fernández-Hilson) and understood the need for a beautiful yet livable environment. For example, in an upstairs sitting room, graceful sheer window panels flank a cozy armchair, while a heritage chest and closet, outfitted with bountiful shelving, mean everything can be tucked away after the son's playtime. "There are a lot of really old, beautiful homes in San Francisco that need to be refreshed tastefully and incorporate the right conveniences," Min says.

In kind, the kitchen and bathrooms were both taken down to the studs, while the rest of the home was largely refreshed. In the primary bathroom, which features an atrium that opens to a redone deck, Together Home enlisted Doherty Restoration to frame the space in a way that felt organic to the existing footprint. "We worked with them and designed this really pretty opportunity to not only include window casing that looked like it had been there forever," Fernández-Hilson says, "but also an opportunity to put in window treatments to give Helen some privacy."

In the kitchen, the designers reoriented the layout to give Min a large custom island and added a wall to enclose her previously open office. "During the pandemic, I was one of those cliché people who got really into baking," says Min, whose appliances tripled. "That made me feel confident about wanting a layout and a lot of functional storage for that in a new home." Pointing to the island's deep walnut drawers and light, white perimeter, Murawski adds, "Everything started with function, but we wanted to make sure it felt really warm, too." Meanwhile, floating walnut shelves exhibit Min's eclectic Heath Ceramics collection. "I wanted the home to feel curated and like these were pieces that were collected over time," says Min, who welcomed styling input. "I love that about working with a team. They really listen and present you, but just better."

Modern form and function also coalesced in the living room, which shows off one of the property's four original fireplaces, now stripped of 1980s ornamentation and restored to 1880s green-marbled glory. Everyday use again drove decision-making, from the plentiful bookshelves Min requested to a round, kid-friendly coffee table. "It's not just for show," Murawski says. "It's the room where her son takes piano lessons and they read books and they listen to music and also entertain." The light and airy space leads into a dining room with a deep turquoise wallcovering by Holly Hunt for Carlisle & Co. The dramatic contrast is intentional — for it captures a Victorian home's traditional connection between rooms, but with a modern sense of distinction.