CHRISTOPHER HOOVER AND George Rosenfield had just become new parents and were renting a home in Tiburon when they decided to look for their “forever” house, a place where they could settle down and raise their family. Because Hoover is an interior designer and the couple has an eclectic style — picture a vintage Tahitian girl lamp next to a bold contemporary painting — they also needed something distinct to their style.
They logged more than a few Sundays at open homes, and when they saw this house before it went on the market in early 2015, they knew exactly how they felt. Hoover loved the vaulted ceilings and San Francisco views and asked their realtor, Patricia Oxman, to write an offer immediately. Rosenfield, a banker who had been out of town, saw it several days later and said no.
The problem? The house they were renting was 5,100 square feet. This one was 3,000. But Rosenfield came around, partly because the property was so singular: it had a level lot, loads of privacy and deep Tiburon roots. Built in 1957, the home had belonged to the Deffebachs, one of the original families who settled Reed Ranch in the 1800s. “George and Christopher wanted something they could make their mark on,” says Oxman. “But you can’t go out and search for unique. It just finds you.”
It helped that the house had large windows on both sides, lending it the illusion of space. And Hoover and Rosenfield quickly began making their mark. They hung their modern art collection, featuring artists like Brigitte McReynolds, on the walls. They placed Hoover’s personally designed furniture, including the living room’s mohair and silk club chairs, throughout the home. And they covered the bedroom floors in bamboo carpeting that looks and feels like silk.
They also renovated the master bathroom into a tasteful area with feminine touches, hoping that the entire master suite will eventually be their daughters’ room. Circular iridescent glass tiles line the shower and equally delicate tiles sit over the soaking tub and sinks. They’d make any girl happy.
For now, though, the master bedroom is decidedly male, with a cowhide bench, martini-themed pillows, and a David Ward twig sculpture over the bed. Flanking the bed are walnut-and-stainlesssteel bedside tables that Hoover created himself.
The design elements of the home are interrupted occasionally by the sight of the couple’s two-year-old twin daughters’ pink plastic toys, mostly contained in a family room off the kitchen. It’s OK. In Hoover and Rosenfield’s house, family is part of the design.
THE DETAILS
WHERE THEY PURCHASED The Upper Reed Ranch neighborhood of Tiburon
WHAT THEY PURCHASED A 1957 three-bedroom ranch-style home
LISTING AGENT Kathleen Clifford, Pacific Union International
SELLING AGENT Patricia Oxman, Decker Bullock Sotheby’s International Realty
STATS Price per square foot for homes in the neighborhood: $825–$1,125
View more photos of the home below.