Though it’s a sophisticated space now, this San Francisco home wasn’t always so polished. Located in the Inner Sunset, the house was in need of some major TLC and the homeowners felt they weren’t using it to its full potential. The laundry and powder room shared a space, certainly not ideal for entertaining, while the outdoor area was an overgrown mess. There was the dated kitchen, and a few (functional) eyesores that made things tricky. Fortunately, the family sought professional help.

“The homeowner asked for my services as her Christmas present. We had met in the past and she told me someday I was going to do her house,” designer Soledad Alzaga tells us with a grin. “She contacted me in the new year with the idea of doing a full remodel.” The only hiccup was the timeline — the homeowners are both busy doctors and have two teenagers. That’s four calendars to navigate start to finish, something Soledad was able to do in four quick months. Working around summer vacation, when the family could temporarily relocate, she made it all happen with ease.

“We talked about expectations and because they fully trusted me with the design vision and project managing the whole job, it was very easy for me to get a team together,” she recalls. “I knew I only had a couple months, so I got to work on drawings, designs, choices of materials and permits right away.” Once everything was decided, Soledad wise began ordering both materials and furniture so that it’d be onsite right at the start. “It took perfect planning, timing and running a tight ship to make it all happen,” she shares. “And in 4 months, we had updated the kitchen, redone two full bathrooms, updated three bedrooms, did a full new laundry closet area, updated the living room and dining room adding french doors to a new deck, the backyard and painted all the house inside and out!”

It was a lot of moving parts, but with good coordination, organization, and planning — the family was back at home by the end of the summer. As for Soledad, it’s a project she takes pride in. “The living room and dining room are my favorite part of the transformation,” she smiles. “It had its design challenges, but the change with the built in sofa and bookcases was huge, the french doors in the dining room and everything painted white made the space feel fresh and modern without losing charm and warmth.”

See her work in the slideshow.