A little less than a decade ago, Regan Baker’s eponymous design firm was on the rise and her work was featured in the San Francisco Decorator Showcase. At the event, she met a couple who hired her to renovate their home in the city—and their connection was so strong that Baker offered the wife a position at her firm. “It was a role she held for seven years, and I loved getting to know her family,” Baker says.

Before: Exterior

After: Exterior

Eventually, the wife left to start her own consulting business, which complemented her husband’s position in construction management. In the midst of this shift, they also decided to make their next move as a family—they had two young kids, and their square footage was feeling smaller by the day.

The family began exploring an addition to their San Francisco home while the wife was working at Regan Baker Design—but as they were visiting relatives in the husband’s hometown of Piedmont, just across the bay, they spotted a run-down midcentury property for sale. As their two kids slept in the back seat, the couple took turns touring it. They eventually purchased the property, and in the process of designing the home, the couple found out that they had a third child on the way.

Before: Living Area

After: Living Area

“They love to entertain and be outdoors, and they both have an affinity for midcentury homes,” Baker says. “This home’s architecture, natural light, and ample indoor/outdoor living space was perfect.”

The property was built in 1947 and designed by Clarence William Whitehead Mayhew, who positioned it on a corner lot where only one side meets a neighboring house and the rest curves along a tree-lined, U-shaped street. “The home’s unique asymmetry was built around an existing tipu tipu tree, creating an interior courtyard,” Baker says. “It hadn’t been on the market since 1960, which gave our clients an unaltered palette.”

Before: Kitchen

After: Kitchen

Architect Eric Haesloop, who partnered with Baker’s team on this project, was equally struck by the home’s personality. “It had an interesting site layout where the entryway went through the upper wing’s bedrooms on either side, and then a staircase descended to a lower wing with many formal smaller rooms: a living room, dining room, a small service kitchen, and a laundry room.”

He also noted several issues. “The house and yard were in such total disrepair that at first a teardown seemed inevitable,” he says. “We decided to do everything we could to keep the quirky site layout and bring the house back to life. We also wanted to subtly transform it for today’s lifestyle.”

The couple asked for better daylighting, particularly in the entryway, and for the garage to be bigger so that they’d have more storage as a family of five. They requested two additional bedrooms upstairs, and sought to join the many smaller rooms downstairs. Finally, they had their hopes set on an ADU that would serve as a multipurpose hideaway.

Before: Office

After: Office

“Our vision was to marry midcentury charm with contemporary style while creating a warm, organized, and personalized family-friendly home,” Baker says. “We also embraced a lighter, brighter palette where art and texture add to the overall mood.”

After: ADU

Haesloop’s first priority was ensuring that the property was “seismically stabilized” for the new layout. Next, his team implemented a lateral brace for wider windows and created one large kitchen, dining, and living area. “We added an accessory dwelling unit by seamlessly extending the house over the old laundry area, and reconfigured the front entry away from the garage so that we could bring in more light,” Haesloop says.

Before: Bathroom

After: Bathroom

In fact, sunshine streams through the entire home. It enters through rows of skylights and walls of windows; through clerestories and down full sets of stairs. Haesloop’s attention to glazing and wood set the scene for Baker’s tone-on-tone design, which complements the white oak backdrop with colors found in nature.

After: Primary Suite

“The beauty of midcentury homes lies in the sprawling windows and overall minimal feel,” she says. “With an emphasis on indoor/outdoor living, we wanted the home's interior to offer a subtle yet sophisticated design that complemented the unique and natural beauty surrounding it.”

The white walls are covered with the couple’s burgeoning art collection, while unassuming furniture pairs well with the home’s pronounced wood details. There are curves to contrast the structure’s many clean lines and straight-laced vertical tile—like the wide gray sectional, cane-accented kid’s bed, and pendant lights.

After: Bedrooms

“It was also important to our clients to have a place for everything—ideally tucked away,” Baker adds. “Custom closets and carved-out organizational moments create an intentionally minimal feel.”

The entire project, completed in 2021, took about 18 months, and the couple’s youngest is now three years old. As Baker looks back on the experience, she says: “The biggest takeaway I have is that you can update a quirky midcentury home and keep some of the charm by nodding to its history. And you can never have too much glass!”

Before: Staircase

After: Staircase

More Before & After stories:

Every Day Is Summer Camp at This Groovy, ’70s-Inspired Cabin

A Choppy San Francisco Home Finds Its Flow After a Mullet Renovation

New Homeowners Join the Eichler Fan Club With Their First Remodel

Project Details:

Architect of Record: Turnbull, Griffin & Haesloop of TGH Architects / @turnbullgriffinhaesloop

Builder: Kasten Builders

Structural Engineer: Ware Architecture & Engineering

Landscape Design: Site Studio

Interior Design: Regan Baker Design / @reganbakerdesign

Cabinetry Design: RBD and Ukiah Custom Cabinetry

Organization: Haven Home

Styling: Rosy Fridman

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Before & After: In the East Bay, a Tumbledown Midcentury Turns Over a New Leaf