“To be successful, you must be able to balance all the details—small and large,” advises Bay Area–based interior designer April Sheldon, who for decades has shared a life and home with renowned graphic designer, artist, and photographer John Casado. These creative virtuosi have achieved such a unique balance in their uncommon, enviable oasis in San Francisco’s dynamic South of Market neighborhood. Attention to larger aesthetic elements—think flooring and ceiling materials—as well as details—backsplashes, light positioning, and carefully chosen tile—contribute equally to each engaging space. Careful consideration of the overall ambience and experience—floods of light, an eye toward nature, varying ceiling heights, and an effortless interplay between indoors and out—conjures a setting for urban living that is truly singular and surprising.
San Francisco, California | Gregg Lynn, Sotheby’s International Realty – San Francisco Brokerage
Behind a colorful contemporary steel gate and unassuming concrete walls, the property is an unexpected merger: a home perfectly suited to artisans and entertainers with improbably lush gardens that feature a dazzling assemblage of shapes, tones, and textures. A wall of glass—modern French doors and light-admitting casement windows—introduces a bright, airy foyer that gives way to a spacious living and dining room where rich hued polished concrete floors, steel-framed windows, beamed wood ceilings, and oversized skylights create a space dedicated to sophisticated living and entertaining that also recalls—in the subtlest and most suitable ways—an artist’s studio. A fireplace contributes a sense of welcoming warmth that remains decidedly stylish and modern. Lighting is both thoughtfully positioned and occasionally artful in its own right.
The view is mesmerizing—the locale could easily be mistaken for a tropical island escape—and the natural light is ideal for artistic contemplation and creation. Numerous sets of French doors allow for easy indoor-outdoor leisure and festivities. Steps away is a sleek, streamlined kitchen with stainless-steel appliances, a pebble-like backsplash that adds intriguing texture, and plentiful counter and storage space augmented by a lengthy walk-in pantry. More relaxed, private moments take place in the family room or library, which includes an office area, an oversized skylight, and its own collection of brightening casement windows.
Remarkably discreet, the primary suite is secluded just off the foyer behind clever sliding frosted-glass doors. A fireplace—a dream on the city’s foggy afternoons—captivates with hand-painted detailing and eye-catching tilework. The en suite bath exudes soothing serenity with its minimalist palette, spacious glass-enclosed shower, and generous two-sink vanity. The gardens amount to a virtual private park, a place where the bustle of city living falls away and the hues and hush of nature hold sway. A tiled patio allows for an alfresco experience immersed in rugged bark, knobbly burls, spear-like leaves, prismatic flowers, feathery fronds, flourishing bamboo, and climbing vines. Nevertheless, the neighborhood’s nexus of technology and finance, inspiring museums, inventive cuisine, and engaging public ensures that life remains effortlessly urbane and always artful.
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