Caitlin Flemming had one big problem to solve in this 1885 San Francisco Victorian: a dreary gray paint job that flattened everything—including the view.

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Tasked with refreshing the top-floor unit for a couple who live there part-time, the Marin-based Expert leaned into what they loved most about her work: a natural approach to pattern. “They're minimal people, and they wanted this space to be nature-focused,” she explains.

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But before Caitlin could layer in any floral or botanical prints, she had to address the ashen walls. She swapped out the lifeless hue for Wimborne White by Farrow & Ball, which infused a bit of joy into the space and allowed the leafy green views to shine.

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With the fresh coat as a backdrop, Caitlin turned to furnishings, starting with a custom sofa in a walnut brown linen with large beige and blue flowers. “It was the catalyst to the project’s entire color palette,” she shares. She treated the rest of the living room like a supporting cast, with pieces chosen to amplify the textile moment without competing with it.

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The Lawson-Fenning Alta Brass Dome pendant adds a warm glow overhead, while a French wooden cabinet and coffee table ottoman upholstered in an old wool bed cover bring in the kind of lived-in texture that makes the whole space feel instantly at ease.

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The lotus flower throw pillows’ indigo hue reappears next door in the dining room, where Nickey Kehoe Spindle Chairs are wrapped in a navy striped fabric. To bridge the home’s traditional bones with the couple’s current tastes, a custom table strikes the balance between contemporary rounded edges and vintage-inspired turned legs. “We were trying to play into both worlds to tie it all together,” Caitlin explains. Above, a rattan pendant provides the earthy texture the clients requested.

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Caitlin carried that same natural-materials mandate into the primary bedroom, papering the walls in a raffia grasscloth. Here, texture does the talking: the neutral, tactile wallcovering sets a calm backdrop for a custom midnight blue velvet headboard, while the oak nightstands keep the mood grounded and warm. Floral ceramic lamps bring in a soft botanical flourish, rounding out the room with just enough romance.

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Though Caitlin didn’t renovate the white subway tiled kitchen, she did create its charming breakfast nook with a custom banquette in a Rose Tarlow stripe, a vintage tilt table from France, and rush chairs with botanical seat cushions. “The client really wanted a touch of pink somewhere in this house, so that was our nod to it,” Caitlin says of the microflower fabric.

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Caitlin intentionally eschewed window treatments to highlight the verdant scenes just outside—a main reason the clients originally purchased the home. “There are so many trees on this street, and they dapple the light all day long, which is kind of spectacular,” she says. The views are only enhanced by the nature motifs she has woven throughout.

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