color blocking
We've had the pleasure of working with Annie and her team at ALI on two design projects over the past three years. Her creativity and vision combined with her great expertise brought our homes to life in unique and beautiful ways.
We first teamed up with Annie on an extensive remodel of our historic San Francisco home that included a full kitchen/dining area gutting, multiple new bathrooms, paint, art consulting, and soft goods throughout. Our architect had recommended ALI based on Annie's experience updating historic homes like ours, but what stood out for us was how direct and organized her process was from day one, including a high level of budget transparency.
Annie's lighting selection and sense of color were also highlights for us. The fixtures she helped us select for our foyer and living room are far from simple sources of light, they are true works of art, hand-made by artisans from her unique repertoire of craftspeople. As for color, she pushed us (in a good way) to consider applications that initially felt dramatic but ultimately turned those areas into visually lush spaces that we love to be in.
Our second project with Annie and the team was for our vacation home in Wine Country, involving mainly soft goods and design consulting for both indoor and outdoor areas. Outdoors included new construction of a kitchen and pool with surrounding living areas. In contrast to our San Francisco home with all of its historic embellishments and the design to match, the Sonoma home is all modern, clean lines. Annie didn't skip a beat in pivoting to a more relaxed, organic style befitting of the more rural terroir. Whether indoors or out, the resulting spaces are comfortable yet elegant, and once again Annie delivered designs that are both beautiful yet functional.
Annie and the team helped turn both of our houses into homes that we love living in and that visitors constantly compliment us on. From managing the myriad details passing between us and our architect and contractor during construction to presenting us with furniture and lighting pieces that we fell in love with, Annie made our renovation journeys inspiring and fun and we've been enjoying the results ever since.
ORganic mill valley and fan house
We just finished two 4-year projects with Annie and her team. Two extensive remodels. Four years, two pregnancies (mine) and a pandemic. That alone says a lot about her commitment to her work and her clients’ happiness.
Annie loves her work and it shows. Her passion about design is contagious making her meetings something you look forward to. She is very thoughtful about your specific needs and life stage, and makes recommendations accordingly. With years of experience under her belt, she can quickly identify ways that design can complement your life that never would have occurred to you.
Here’s some of what I love about working with Annie:
She’s got Procter & Gamble roots. So do I. We spoke the same language when it came to process. We discussed up front how the project would unfold so our expectations were managed. And she is very clear with the overall project budget. She provides regular updates regarding how the budget is tracking and is transparent about where any overages are coming from.
She works well with a novice. These were my first interior design projects and I literally had no idea what to expect, much less spoke the language. She was always very patient with me, was happy to walk through even the simple details, and define terms like “escutcheon,” to ensure I understood.
She doesn’t offend easily. In fact, she encourages you to tell her when you don’t like something so she can hone in on what you do like and better serve you. I dislike nearly all sconces and floor lamps, but I now live in a home with multiple of each and I love them all. This is no small feat.
Every detail gets attention. In major projects like ours, some decisions are very big, others very small. I appreciate that even when we were selecting a simple throw for my kids’ room, Annie and her team took care to find options that were appropriate from a material, design and cost perspective. She understands that even the small things matter a lot.
Annie loves partnering with you to make your house your home. Thank you, Annie, for your commitment to us and our projects. I am completely in love with our new home.
house of many colors
Annie is a true artist and a master of her craft.
Our project started with a desire to remodel two of our bathrooms. We'd lived in our house for about four years and the list of "wouldn't it be nice if…" items had grown long. After finding Annie's wonderfully colorful and resonant work online and through a shared connection, we went through an intake process. Annie encouraged us to think broadly about ways in which we might refresh and improve elements of the house.
In the end, we did a complete redesign and refurnishing, remodeled all of our bathrooms, and checked off a lengthy list of fixes and improvements that resulted in a transformative feeling of space and ease when we moved through the house. We are incredibly happy with how the project turned out. Annie's process is decision-intensive. She estimated that we had to make over 250 choices with this process; this is not a matter of handing your house over and returning to a magazine (although she could do that if you asked). We were active partners in a process that took nearly two years (including the pandemic!) from the first phone call to the last little detail coming in.
Annie was extremely attentive to the budget and was continually transparent with us about where we were throughout the process. Ultimately, we ended up slightly under budget on goods purchased for the project, which makes us very happy! We ended up over budget on design time, but it's reasonable to assume this was very pandemic-related. We had to reselect many things several times when the stock was unavailable because of Covid delays.
One anecdote from our experience: our master bathroom design keys off a green tiled floor; after spending a lot of time selecting the handmade tiles that I assume was created by elves on the Moon based on their cost and availability, we finally got the tiles in. And Annie sent them back. Why? Because they weren't right. There is enough variance between batches of handmade products that this batch had too much mottled brown, which wasn't going to give us the bathroom we wanted. And this is the yin and yang of working with an artist. Annie had the design expertise to know that the northern light coming into our bathroom would make the floor look wrong, AND she was willing to delay the tile setter coming in to get it right. But in the end, we got what we wanted, which counts.
We would happily work with Annie on future projects and LOVE the end product of our collaboration!
Lafayette
My house is perfect, and I have Annie Lowengart to thank for it. Annie was recommended to me by a close family friend who had seen her incredibly beautiful room in the 2016 San Francisco Decorator Showcase. I didn’t know Annie before we met and had no idea the wonderful treat I was in for. We started with our recently acquired property that had been remodeled and added on over the last several decades. The house was tired and needed an overhaul.
Annie painted an unmatchable vision for us. The only thing that did match was the result. We now have a new home that is virtually perfect. Every piece - light fixtures, sofas, cabinet faces, window treatments - is better than I imagined. Everything is beyond my expectations, from the closet door hardware to the gorgeous tables and chairs to the new and practical family-friendly floor plan. Of course, it goes without saying that while each element looks amazing, what’s even better is how comfortable everything is.
However, one of the most important parts of this whole project, even above and beyond how insane everything looks, is what a trustworthy and excellent lead she was on the project. Annie brought not only a contractor who would deliver on time but also an architect who was perfectly in sync with the vision she laid out for us. The accounting was spot on, and Annie updated us on any changes. There were no surprises. Everything blew away our expectations so much that we hired Annie to re-design our home in Napa.
I can’t thank Annie and her team enough for delivering such a complete and total home run of a house, but also a complete and total lifestyle change for our family, one that is filled with beauty, comfort, value, and a whole lot of fun.
-A.S.
HISTORIC ROSS
“I've lived in my home for 26 years and it was in dire need of updating after years of loving use by my 4 kids (now grown and living elsewhere) and a couple of dogs. At a minimum the floors needed refinishing and the walls needed to be repainted. However, it felt like a perfect time to rethink and refresh my home. I turned to Ann Lowengart Interiors to help with the process. From the very first visit Annie was professional, helping me understand the scope and the budget and coming up with fabulous ideas for the interiors. Since those initial meetings Annie and her team have kept my project moving forward with good communication and updates even through the Covid-19 shutdown. The end result is just what I hoped for and has wonderfully exceeded my expectations. And best of all - we all love the results - my husband, my kids, and the dog!”
“I wish that I could give 10 stars. Service, talent, great associates, and notwithstanding COVID-19 amazing quality!”
pacific heights wurster
““Stunning”, “Amazing”, “WOW, WOW, WOW” are just a few of the comments I’ve heard in the last couple of weeks since we finished our 2 1/2 year complete gut and full house decorating job on our historic home in Pacific Heights. I couldn’t be more pleased with the end product and the fabulous and fun journey we had with Annie and the whole team at Ann Lowengart Interiors. Our project was immense. We remodeled the entire house, added complex technical elements like a floating staircase and a car lift, and excavated bedrock to add additional living space. We also reimagined the whole interior with gorgeous custom furniture, window treatments, rugs and too many special details even to mention. My innate style was perfectly expressed through all the texture Annie added including a sumptuous leather paneled piano niche, custom hardwood floor patterns, bespoke and handmade door hardware and (faux) shagreen tile, just to name a few. Overall my love of modern and organic materials was ideally balanced in the decor with fresh silhouettes and perfect proportions throughout. Not only is the decorating in our home drop-dead fabulous, but Annie’s involvement in the project was the key to achieving the fantastic result we did. Annie was our first call and, after getting to know my husband and me, she suggested an architect and contractor who completed the top-notch team. They all worked together seamlessly. Annie kept everyone on track and accountable while ensuring we remained relaxed - laughing, joking and feeling secure about both the process and final result. If you’ve seen Annie’s work you know her style is impeccable. But what you won’t see in the photographs is the operational excellence and absolute accuracy and follow-through of the Ann Lowengart Interiors team. Our project required an incredibly dedicated set of people to shepherd the volume of custom items through the system and Ann Lowengart Interiors did it flawlessly - with no accounting errors nor anything slipping through the cracks. Annie and her team are very talented at understanding your vision at the first meeting and making it happen. She gets along with everyone, even the most difficult of personalities. She totally stepped in when we had to leave for extended periods of absences. The last thing I’d like to mention is what a truly “forever” trusted resource Annie has become. We were really blown away with her ability to accurately forecast the cost of the project and then deliver under budget. For a project of our size that is huge! Additionally, the design is exceptionally smashing. But the best part was making this significant journey with someone who not only exceeded expectations but became a trusted confidant and friend.”
los altos Comfortable + CollecteD
"Annie was an amazing collaborator on our project! She helped us with tricky questions at the very beginning, like scope and finding the right contractor and architect, through to realizing our complete vision for our home. Her contacts and stellar reputation with high quality vendors is superb. This was a multi year effort that took both long term stamina, bouts of sprinting, and an unyielding focus on the end result without compromise. Annie did a phenomenal job, and was incredibly fun to work with in the process. I now count her as a trusted friend!
Annie really did her homework with us to extract our ideas, make our vision come to life, and we couldn’t be more pleased with the result. She went the extra mile - she studied every topic that came up, was fully available to talk through every question and detail, even late at night and early in the morning. She was tireless - even sending us inspiration images from her vacation in Mexico and shopping ideas when she was on a personal outing in LA.
Annie’s versatile sensibility and endless creativity shone through, as we wanted to mix some of her well known, colorful pops and California energy with an aesthetic that was grounded in tradition and harkened back to my childhood on the east coast. We were so lucky to find Annie to help us create a home that is special to us and highly personalized to our family. This was no cookie cutter project and Annie did an absolutely outstanding job."
“We just finished a multi-year, full house remodel and decorating project with Annie Lowengart and we couldn’t be more pleased. Our home is not only gorgeous, but also completely reflects our style and taste in the most elevated way. Although the physical result of our collaboration with Annie is wonderful, the time we had on our 2 1/2 your journey with her was equally fantastic.
We came to Annie with nothing more than a few ideas around how we could take our newly acquired, yet dated home and make it our own. Through her wonderful contacts and relationships Annie brought us an architect who was the perfect fit both in style and capacity. She introduced us to a contractor who surpassed our expectations both in terms of customer service and quality. And she connected us with a wide array of unparalleled resources to fulfill our specific vision. Annie’s network and resources were invaluable!
The collaboration between Annie and my wife resulted in not only an absolutely spectacular interior, but also a really special and fun journey for us both. We relied on Annie’s guidance for every level of detail and she did not disappoint! Her taste and style are superb, and she went out of her way to make sure the end-product was the right amalgamation of our collective vision. In addition to blessing us with her design prowess, Annie conducted business with high integrity, follow-through, accounting accuracy and transparency. Annie also exhibited nothing short of a constant can-do and adaptable attitude throughout the project that helped us through every stage.
It is without hesitation that I recommend Annie Lowengart Interiors. Now that our project has come to an end, it’s great to have an incredible final product, but it’s also wonderful to hold so many great memories of this significant stage in our lives. Thank you Annie.”
Palo Alto Warm Modern
"If you're reading this review you already know that Ann Lowengart's work speaks for itself! We chose to work with Annie because of her comfort with color, bold choices and love of art, but her warm and lovely personality is an added bonus. We love how spectacularly sophisticated, fun and functional our multi-purpose spaces are and finally feel we have something that suits where we are in our lives. There's nothing like hiring a pro to think through everything from fabric to space planning to visual joy! Thanks ALI!"
FRESH AND CLEAN
"Annie was an integral part of a team that just completed a very extensive (down to the studs) ground floor remodel for our family home. She was incredibly helpful in every stage of the project. At the front end she helped us and our architect re-imagine the floorplan to open up the space and improve the flow. Her taste and style on the design finishes were impeccable. Most importantly, she really listened to what we had to say, pushed us when that made sense, and didn't when it didn't...if that makes sense. I would highly highly recommend Annie!!"
"My husband and I hired Annie for a complete remodel and furnishing of the first floor of our home. We could not be happier with the process and outcome.
I'll never forget the first time Annie visited our home in the early stages of planning. She toured the home, listened carefully to our goals and initial ideas, and then blew us away with a vision for the project that we had never imagined possible. By moving the location of a powder room, Annie helped us add tons of natural light and dramatically improved the flow of the first floor, transforming a previously unused living room into a favorite gathering place for our family. Annie also elevated the indoor/outdoor flow of the home by adding bifold doors to the patio. and she encouraged us to add a beautiful but functional mudroom that now keeps our daughters' clutter conveniently out of sight (priceless!).
In addition to the ideas she brought to the construction process, Annie developed a clear understanding of our design style and recommended furnishings that are exquisite but also honor the realities of our lifestyle with young children. As a mom herself, Annie understands the needs of families and selected pieces and fabrics that will stand up to the inevitable spills, footprints, and unexpected surprises of childhood. Annie's stated goal was for ALL members of our family to love, enjoy, and take pride in our new home -- and we do! Our daughter exclaimed "I never realized we could have a house like this!" when she first saw our new furnishings and I, too, still pinch myself when I look around our beautiful home.
Perhaps the most impressive aspect of working with Annie is her ability to provide big ideas and creativity while also sticking to a clear timeline and budget. The entire ALI team is extremely organized, communicates seamlessly, and takes a process-driven approach to projects. If that's not enough, they're also some of the nicest people you'll ever meet.
Thank you, Annie, for your vision, creativity, energy, optimism, and personal touch. I am so grateful for your guidance and friendship throughout this journey!"
HAPPY FAM
"Annie Lowengart offers the rare combination of amazing taste, business sense and organization. She designed an incredible home for us that met my wife's design expectations while offering transparency into cost and budget that kept me happy. She is honest, hard working, reachable and strives to provide top notch service. Annie has an opinion and we wanted to hear it. She also has a full stable of providers who do excellent work and love working with her (ex. counter top provider, tile provider, carpet provider and wallpaper provider). The end product is fantastic and we stayed within our budget. Annie designed our first home in 2002 and what we hope is our last home in 2016."
"I had a very positive experience working with Ann Lowengart this past year. Her upbeat, positive attitude made me feel like anything was possible and gave me the confidence to try something new. Some of those bold decisions happen to be what I love most about my home. For example, the fun, bright wallpaper in my entry way makes me happy every time I walk in the front door. Ann made excellent suggestions for wallpaper, window treatments, and tile, and the people she uses for installation were professional and experienced at their craft. As an expert interior designer, Ann has extensive knowledge and knew how to find a specific piece of furniture or a fabric. She was always easy to reach and was incredibly responsive and available. In addition, Ann had a keen understanding of the style I was after and was instrumental in making my dream house become a reality."
Cool Gray
"My husband and I hired Annie to fully furnish, top to bottom, our entire home. We couldn't be more thrilled! She and her amazing team provided concierge level service. We moved with three children to our new home in the middle of the school year. Since we were keeping our previous residence we needed everything from the kitchen being stocked with new dishes, cookware, appliances, to towels in all bathrooms. They thought of everything! The scope of this project was huge!
Annie was a great listener, always asking questions to narrow in on our taste and preferences. She got to know us so well, she was able to present items to us that we loved which made the whole process flow easily. She does have impeccable taste!
The finished product was amazing! I feel like I am on vacation in a gorgeous retreat everyday-- and it's my home! Thank you Annie!"
Squeeze of LIme
"I recently hired Annie and team to help remodel and decorate my first home. Their classy, personal approach combined with technology-savvy, process-driven method was an excellent match for us balancing two full-time tech careers.
From the very beginning, Annie has been an active listener, absorbing all of the details and nuances of our personal and project needs. We were thrilled with her creativity and superb taste; it truly made the selecting pieces a breeze, particularly with the close adherence to our budget.
ALI has executed flawlessly and exceeded their mantra of "surprise and delight." As the project comes to a close, we'll miss the regular interaction with ALI as they've become part of our extended family through the process."
cozy with a pop of orange
"I recently worked with Annie on a large second home with a specific decorating budget. We found that Annie has amazing taste and style with invaluable knowledge of every aspect of the design and remodeling business. She is a very good listener with a keen ability to take all of the clients' thoughts and ideas into consideration then synthesize them into a cohesive design vision executed with ease and within budget. Her ability to combine expensive antiques with custom fabrics, Serena & Lily furniture, and West Elm accessories and having them all look absolutely chic together is a true talent! Working with Annie felt like working with my best friend ─ she is easy and fun to work with, respectful, trustworthy, fair, and gives her honest opinion. In the end, Annie delivered an outcome above and beyond our expectations. We continue to receive compliments from all those who visit our home and we do and would highly recommend Ann Lowengart Interiors to anyone!"
Transitional with a Twist
"I highly recommend Ann Lowengart Interiors. We hired Annie to gut and remodel our master suite, reorganizing the space to create larger closets, a work space for my husband, built-ins, and a larger master bath. She did an amazing job that exceeded our expectations.
Annie was able to understand my vision for our project and deliver beautiful results on time and on budget. She is a joy to work with and made the renovation process fun - I looked forward to our days together and was constantly amazed by her style, creativity, and resourcefulness. I also appreciated that Annie knew what to "save" from our old house. We had very old, tired door knobs throughout our house. Instead of recommending we replace all of them, she suggested we restore them because of their unique character. These door knobs were transformed and are beautiful and unique - restoring them also cost significantly less than new hardware."
Kent Woodlands
"Annie worked with us over the course of 18 months on an extensive remodel of our home. Her ideas and suggestions every step of the way shaped the entire project and turned our old house into our dream home with every room worthy of oohs and aahs. From construction details in framing to objets d'art for our finished shelves, her input as well as her attentive and collaborative style made working on our project a pleasure."
Fun-Kay Kitchen
"I cannot recommend Ann Lowengart highly enough! Ann and her team are exceptionally talented with a gift for making fabulous spaces happen-gorgeous and with in budget! Ann was able to translate what I had envisioned for the space and make it a reality. She works seamlessly with the architect, contractor and many others involved to make it a smooth and enjoyable process. It is a joy to work with her!"
Chic Hillsborough
"Annie is truly amazing to work with and has absolutely fabulous taste. She is easy to work with and provides incredible knowledge in encouraging great changes in your house! She is creative within an organized and well-defined process. Annie and her team make the process very enjoyable.
Annie is also extremey trustworthy. She only wants the best for your house, family and lifestyle. She also understood and worked within our budget and timeline. We are so happy with all the work that Annie has done in our house."
Mill Valley Calm
"Annie helped us transform our house during our recent remodel. She took our vision and worked with us to hone our style. Annie worked closely with our architect and builder to ensure every design detail was considered. We learned a lot in the process. We are thrilled with the results and really love our home! We would absolutely work with Annie and her team again."
Marin County VINEYARDS
"We have worked with several of the top designers in the San Francisco area, and Ann is by far the best! We engaged her to do a complete remodel of our 5,200 s.f. house and guest house in Marin, which included 2 kitchens and 6 bathrooms. We are notoriously slow at making decisions, and we knew that eventually we might want to put the house up for sale. We wanted something that would reflect her amazing taste and creativity, but also have universal appeal. So, we decided to put ourselves entirely in her hands. Best choice that we ever made!
Ann is truly a wonderful person. She is just a joy to be around, and so fun to work with! She has such an incredible depth of experience to draw upon, which makes her very quick and efficient. She has a great team working with her, and lots of resources at her disposal. Ann managed the entire process so well, that we came in right on budget.
We were absolutely in love with how everything came out. In the end, we did end up listing the house after all. The market reception was amazing. The result of all that much better than we ever could have hoped for! We are so looking forward to working with her again soon."
Marin Bungalow
"Annie Lowengart completely transformed our home including our entry, living room, dining area, sitting room, master bedroom and bathroom. Not only is Annie's work drop dead fabulous but functional, on budget and delivered on time. We started out with a black slate and over the course of our collaboration Annie listened carefully and brought forth a beautiful design for every space. The look not only reflects our style but does so in a way that makes me constantly think “I would have never thought of that”. Annie is a pleasure to work with, is accessible, approachable and although she takes her work seriously, does not take herself too seriously. She made the project fun. Our time working with Annie exceeded expectations and we very much look forward to engaging her again in another project down the line."