…so what exactly can you do with ex-police station?

I am always inspired by buildings that get their second life thanks to some ingenious new owners. This was the case with this ex-police station, transformed into a place where art and everyday life merge into one. I found it on one of my favourite home design websites, Apartment Therapy.

Now that’s a truly ecclectic space..

Police Precinct Conversion, San Francisco

Back in 1996, the architect Bruce Tomb heard about a 1950s dragnet-style police precinct coming up for public auction in San Francisco. At the time, Bruce’s brother, the artist David Tomb, and his wife, Susan Sweet, were living in New York, but hoping to come back to the Bay Area to start a family. Together they bought the building at auction—Willie Brown’s signature is right there on the deed—and Bruce redesigned the police station, envisioning a kind of compound with live/work spaces for both brothers’ families. The result of the two-year renovation is a gorgeous, light-filled space unlike any home we have seen before.

via Apartment Therapy San Francisco | House Tour: David and Susan’s Police Precinct Conversion San Francisco.

Now, I understand their choice of wall colors is not the usual one, but hey, it’s not a usual house! And the yellowish walls seem to bring even more liveliness, light and this elusive spring feeling into the apartment.

…and what other chair in the right corner but the lovely Barcelona! On the left hand side another design classic, the Eames lounge chair.

The feeling of springy freshness is further enhanced with omnipresent oversized windows, letting in extra amount of light without taking away the privacy of the residents.

Also, check out the large-scale birds paintings by one of the home-owners, David Tomb. If you like them, here is his website.

Moving further inside, the retro bedroom with a vast but suprisingly well-matching collection of painings. What makes them look so well together? Well, if you can’t (or don’t want to) color-coordinate, then theme-coordinate- most of those paintings are portraits. Also, even though the tea-green walls and poppy-red Marimekko cushions are at first sight a striking match, the cushions’ bold design invites cheeky solutions like that. Also, if it wasn’t for the contrasting accent, the room could seem rather dull. Well done!