The 1911 rowhouse was an eclectic blend of architectural details from the start. Now opened up for family living and finished with a charming mix of salvaged finds, it's ready to weather another century in style
Seeing a house through a remodel is dirty work, but somebody's got to do it. And at the San Francisco home of Jenna Miller Pelaez and her husband, Steve, that would be Jenna. "I enjoy the process," she says of tearing out old baths, squeezing in new ones, and mollifying crew members who threaten to walk off the job. Surprises rarely faze her. "I always need to be working on something," she says. A wiry blonde with energy to spare, Jenna steered her husband through the renovation of two condos and a house in the Richmond district near Golden Gate Park, adding kids Payton, now 7, and Aria, 5, along the way. "It was the worst house imaginable," she recalls fondly, "a water-pouring-through-the-ceiling kind of house." All went well until the work dried up, at which point Jenna homed in on this needy rowhouse across the street, its rooms small, dark, and dated.
Shown: Barn wood covers the floor and island base in the now-larger kitchen, a natural gathering spot for homeowners Jenna and Steve Pelaez and kids Aria, 5, and Payton, 7. Salvaged corbels accent the wide passageway that opened up the cook space to the existing dining room.
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