heather & ben's noe valley home

Heather's style has always caught my eye and when she and her boyfriend had to merge both of their styles in a sunlight-filled apartment in San Francisco's Noe Valley, it looked like it was always meant to be.

"After an intense search for the perfect apartment within our price range, we were thrilled when we found our light-filled early 20th century one-bedroom apartment in a great location in Noe Valley. We have lived here happily since October 2008. Moving into our first apartment together, our initial challenge was fitting two apartments worth of belongings into an 800 sq foot apartment with limited closet space. Finding space for Ben's growing collection of Mauviel copper pots, my enormous sectional sofa (named Steve - a splurge purchase from my last job at a furniture company that I will not part with) and our merged library of paperbacks were a few of the first projects we tackled together. Since we are both clutter-phobes, getting rid of anything that we truly didn't need, or that wasn't a must-have, was a priority. We both had items that we refused to give up even though space was an issue (his Japanese tansu, my vertical garden system - that remains unplanted) but we managed to make it work. Squeezing camping equipment, two huge boxes of Christmas decorations and golf clubs into our "laundry space", we have been forced to be creative when it comes to storage. We have had a great time putting our space together, although I'm sure we'll never truly consider it "done", and we love spending time at home.

• Our favorite project: The headboard we built from reclaimed barn wood from Blacks Farm Wood. A surprisingly simple and satisfying accomplishment.

• Our least favorite project: Hanging a Roost pendant lamp from our ceiling. Sometimes those old ceiling fixtures are a disaster...

• Space challenge: Ben loves to cook so it was important that our kitchen was a well organized space. However I needed an "office" so it was necessary that part of the kitchen also be multi-functional. Our solution was to build a simple wall mounted counter-height table top (out of unfinished lumber from Home Depot) that could be used as an casual eating surface or as a desk. We love how this space works because one of us can be cooking while the other is checking email or paying bills.

• Words we might use to describe our style: classic, simple, modern, vintage, eclectic, mid-century, utilitarian, organic, comfortable .

• Inspirations: Many design blogs, flea markets (Alameda, Rose Bowl), the 50s/60s/70s, reclaimed materials, the outdoors, contrasting textures and materials."