Creative Couple Molds a Dogpatch Loft to Fit Their Lifestyle

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Jeanne Feldkamp and Dan Diephouse have made the kitchen the center of their home; photos by Patricia Chang.
It's said that the best homes are the ones that reflect the lives of the people who inhabit them. If that adage is used as a standard, the loft inhabited by Jeanne Feldkamp and Dan Diephouse can be considered an interior design success. The space not only reflects their passions, it's home to their many DIY decor projects.

↑ The loft, their rented home, is located in a converted building in Dogpatch. Feldkamp was the first to occupy the building, before she and Diephouse were married. She lived there eight years ago when she moved to San Francisco. "The building had been used for industrial purposes—I believe it was an aircraft parts factory," she says. "It had a lot of character, and I loved the texture of the raw concrete floor and the high ceilings."

After living there for a time she moved on, but contacted the owners several years later when she once again needed a place to live. "A friend told me of another unit that was about to vacated. I called the owner and took the place, even though I'd only seen it briefly years before," Feldkamp says.

Over the years, the space has morphed to fit her lifestyle: from fashion designer to avid home cook, from single person to married couple.

↑ Until recently, Feldkamp had a fashion design side business, and she created pieces for her personal line, 615 Project, here. Although designing and sewing is now a hobby, her interest in fashion is on display throughout her home on mannequins she once used in her business.

Her current hobby—shared by her husband—is cooking, and the loft has been tailored to fit. The couple loves cooking and hosting dinner parties. To give themselves opportunities to do that, they created Hearsay Supper Club, and underground dining experience. "It's not a business, and we aren't making money off of it," says Feldkamp. "Basically, it's a way for us to cook and entertain."

Potential guests register on the Hearsay website, and between eight and 12 are selected to visit the loft for a dinner party. "It's been an amazing social experiment, we bring people together whose paths might otherwise never cross," Feldkamp says. "We enjoy that, because it seems like everyone is in their own little world these days."

↑ Feldkamp says that the experiment wouldn't be possible if it weren't for the loft's uncommonly long dining room that's perfect for entertaining. A long table sits in the room, surrounded by the couple's merged collection of modernist chairs.

↑ The artwork is composed of skateboards Feldkamp scored at Building Resources. Inspired by the decorations at a friend's wedding, the couple strung twinkle lights above the table.

↑ The mural in the living room was also inspired by an artistic friend. "My friend's amazing black-and-white etching is on a music stand in this room," Feldkamp says. "I taped a similar branch pattern on the wall before I painted it." She says the terra cotta color, which wraps around the living room and kitchen, helps define the spaces in the open area.

↑ Feldkamp's favorite room is the kitchen, which she convinced her landlords to remodel after she moved in. She says that it was in pretty bad shape (her exact words are "falling apart"), and as a person who loves to cook, she was not excited about it. She convinced her landlord to remodel it with a savvy pitch, "I came to him with a plan of how it could look," she says. "I also pointed out how much he would save by remodeling while I was still living there. If he waited until I moved out, he would have to wait for months for a renovation to be finished before he could rent it again."

↑ The couple added their own touches that make it work for them. IKEA towel rods are affixed to the ceiling and serve as pot racks. They used magnetic containers to turn the refrigerator into a spice rack.

Feldkamp and Diephouse picked up two stainless steel tables from a restaurant supply company ("A score for $400," says Feldkamp). One serves as the kitchen island, the other is her desk. She loved the look of the deconstructed chandelier, and she modified it from a ceiling fixture to one with a cord and plug. This allowed her to have the piece and illumination over the workspace.

↑ "The kitchen is my favorite space and where I spend the most time," Feldkamp says. "But I also love the dining room, because that's where the magic in our home happens."

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· Hearsay Supper Club [Official Site]