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" Location: San Francisco, CA      The mezzanine offers co-owners Tjasa Owen and Scott Kalmbach a loftlike view of the new living areas.     Scott Kalmbach and Tjasa Owen prefer the simplicity and openness of loft design, so a slender 1910 two-story house that had been divided into two dingy apartments was hardly their idea of the perfect home. But the location, in San Francisco&amp;#039;s Marina district, was ideal. The neighborhood, called Cow Hollow, has great restaurants and antiques stores, and views over rooftops of the Golden Gate Bridge. Even better, Hang Gallery, where Owen shows her artwork, and Lounge, Inc., one of Kalmbach&amp;#039;s two furniture stores, are just a few blocks away. Ultimately, the couple decided the rundown duplex offered the opportunity to create the home they wanted in a place they already loved. &amp;quot;Being in such a state of disrepair actually gave us a lot of leeway,&amp;quot; says Owen. Friend Steven House, a partner in the firm House+House Architects of San Francisco, stepped in, and with associate Amena Hajjar launched a redesign that expands space and reinterprets horizontal loft design for the home&amp;#039;s vertical layout. Where zoning and a narrow lot restricted how far the designers could build out, they built up.      The former Old West-style flat facade inspired the new one.    The design team first stripped away a jumble of sheds in back of the 1,050-square-foot gabled house, revealing what they call a simple, pure form. The old rental apartments were gutted and the space reorganized; a 1,100-square-foot addition to the rear of the original structure made room for loftlike core living areas and a garage on the first floor; a bedroom, bath, family room-studio on the second; and a master bedroom, bath, and dressing area on a new third floor.       The revamped entry welcomes visitors through a side garden.    The result is two elegantly fused rectangles\u2014one a hundred years old, the other brand-new. The modern appendage features a 17-foot-high mezzanine overlooking the living room, a two-story wall of windows, few doors between rooms, and skylights at every turn. Although this open configuration meant sacrificing storage on the second floor, the interiors gained light and a sense of spaciousness, reminders of Owen&amp;#039;s cherished childhood summer home in Rhode Island. The updated interiors of the home are just as streamlined as the newly stuccoed exterior. House+House believes in using off-the-shelf materials in attractive, creative ways. And in San Francisco, where land and construction costs are astronomical, this is one way to stay within a tight budget. So the designers went with inexpensive, good-looking materials such as maple for cabinetry, cast concrete for counters, bamboo for flooring, galvanized steel pipe for stair railings, zinc for fireplace surrounds, salvaged industrial lighting, and new light fixtures from Ikea. When it came to selecting the decor, the homeowners chose earth tones and light neutrals to create backgrounds that frame their collections of richly colored artwork and furniture, much of it from Hang Gallery and Lounge, Inc.      The original duplex house had been divided into two dingy apartments with small rooms.     To make up for some of the space traded for the loftlike mezzanine, every inch is utilized throughout the house. An office fits cozily on the stair landing leading to the third floor; niches have been carved out everywhere for art display and built-in cabinets and shelving. There&amp;#039;s even a tiny third bedroom slipped into a sleeping loft above the second-floor guest room. Quiet and sunny, the remodeled house is the perfect antidote to the stress of city life. The couple can extend their living space by opening back doors to a secluded deck with mature trees, rose bushes, and a hot tub; or doors covering one wall of the dining area to a side garden of trees and roses. Casement and awning windows and French doors are carefully placed for optimal cross ventilation, views, and light.  Owen and Kalmbach love the idea of one big central space for the living, dining, and kitchen areas. &amp;quot;Everybody likes to be together,&amp;quot; says Owen. The couple came to appreciate this living arrangement in their previous home, a small Victorian. Although it had many rooms, they found that family and guests gravitated to one main living-dining space. Adapting the concept of a one-room living area to the couple&amp;#039;s new home, Kalmbach can now, for example, whip up a dessert in the kitchen while chatting with guests sitting at the dining table across the way. &amp;quot;It&amp;#039;s incredible going into the house now, seeing it before\u2026it&amp;#039;s a remarkable change,&amp;quot; says Steven. The new home is a rich, open space with abundant light and soaring ceilings. &amp;quot;I love it, love it, love it,&amp;quot; exclaims Owen. &amp;quot;We hate the thought of ever moving. Where else would you find a space like this?&amp;quot;      The Woman With the Mandolin, a powerful painting by Bay Area artist Eric Zener, tops the living room&amp;#039;s zinc fireplace surround. French doors lead to the rear deck and the hot tub.   Lighting from Ikea, maple cabinets, and bamboo floors outfit the home in simple, budget-friendly style.    The original kitchen on the first floor was cheap but not chic.      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