This San Francisco Victorian Home Is Filled with Tattoo Designs, Disco, and Danny DeVito

Name: Sam Myers and two roommates
Location: San Francisco, California
Type of home: Apartment
Size: 993 square feet
Years lived in: 1 year, renting

Tell us a little (or a lot) about your home and the people who live there: After months of anticipation, I jumped into moving across the country to my first adult apartment in San Francisco. I was hunting for a character-rich Victorian that wouldn’t break the bank. I found exactly what I was looking for after scouring apartments.com, Craigslist, and Marketplace.

My two roommates and I are now sharing the top floor of a 100-year-old Victorian in the heart of the Mission District. We all work from home, so it was important for me to create a space we would enjoy spending a lot of time in.

Despite my marketing background, I’ve always had a huge crush on the world of design. This is reflected throughout our apartment. You can find locally and internationally sourced art in nearly every room (plus, some crafty monstrosities my friends and I have made, like painted mannequin legs being used as a plant stand). Alongside those art pieces, you’ll find an eclectic mix of furniture and trinkets that will make you question your taste.

Although I drove across the country with many of my prints packed tightly into my minivan, I gathered most of my belongings here. Our decor comes from local thrift stores, the curb, Craigslist, Marketplace, and so on.

All of these pieces have one thing in common: I adore them. The best design advice I’ve ever received was to simply buy what you love and let your style evolve from there. This has resulted in a highly curated space that gives you a window into how my brain works.

I am a queer, Jewish creator with a deep love for dancing, furniture design, goldfish crackers, the human form, tattoos, disco, and Danny DeVito. My apartment tells the story of my identity primarily through art and color.

My dresser is topped with three layered prints, including a queer artist’s vision of a modern-day Shabbat dinner and a depiction of a Brutalist building bursting with primary colors. Vintage magazine cutouts of Knoll and Daystrom furniture ads are juxtaposed with modern prints from the furniture company, Floyd, above those prints. When you walk into the foyer, you’re greeted by an embroidery I created of Danny DeVito as Ongo Gablogian (you can also find Danny in the kitchen and living room).

Describe your home’s style in 5 words or less: Curated, eclectic, and delightfully playful

What is your favorite room and why? My bedroom. Between the bay window and the OG 1920’s built-ins, I basically could have left the space completely empty, and it would still be my favorite room.

I relied heavily on balance in my design. The Ball Chair’s spherical shape softens the sharp corners of the wainscotting and ceiling beams. The neutral colors of the wall paint, bedding, and curtains balance out the bright colors of the 20 prints that hug the walls.

Other details that make me smile include a periwinkle bust from a vintage clothing store back home in Cincinnati that sits right in the middle of the built-ins. Two ceramic Victorian houses that double as cookie jars now occupy opposite corners of the shelves, alongside a 3D printed hand that serves as a jewelry tray.

What’s the last thing you bought (or found!) for your home? A print from my friend Serena titled “Pro-Bird Propaganda.”

Any advice for creating a home you love? Like I said earlier, buy what you gravitate toward! A home filled with the things you love will always look better than designs you take right out of a catalog.

This submission’s responses and photos were edited for length/size and clarity. Share Your Style: House Tour & House Call Submission Form