Built for Design
SDL Residential Design has grown from a small design firm serving Sonoma to a large service area with projects spanning from Santa Rosa down the peninsula all the way to San Jose. We specialize in residential new construction (such as residences, accessory dwelling units and guest houses), remodels, space planning and client-contractor liaison.
We create design cohesion by spanning multiple disciplines, including Architecture, Interior & Landscape Design. We pride ourselves on working closely with our clients from the beginning until after a project is completed, providing as much knowledge, opinion, and coordination as needed. Behind us is a large network of professionals who are ready to support our clients in our project ventures.
SDL Residential Design is owned by Sam and Sam, a married couple brought together through a shared love of design. Their unique opinions create considered design decisions and their backgrounds bring broad knowledge to the table.
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Samuel Lowe
Samuel is a British transplant with a long history of architectural, interior and graphic design. Projects he enjoys most: Contemporary takes on older styles, revisiting the classics with the functional sensibilities of today using gorgeous finishes.
Samuel Hayward
Samuel is an accomplished designer with a background in video game design, which has been invaluable in the consideration of volume and the flow of spaces. The projects he enjoys most: Experiential progression and utilization of natural light.
Publications
Testimonials
“As residential designers for our kitchen and bath remodel, Samuel and his team have skills that cover several disciplines that would otherwise require hiring a separate architect and interior designer. Samuel took stock of the current style of our house and blended designs for a new state-of-the-art kitchen and bath. He listened well through several iterations and was very responsive to questions and inevitable issues that came up with our contractor during construction. Once the designs were settled on, they were able to produce the drawing sets for contractor, cabinet maker, and Sonoma County permits with very little oversight from us. Most of this phase of the project was done while we were living in Colorado and we had no trouble working remotely with them. We are very pleased with the results and would highly recommend SDL Residential Design.”
“SDL are creative and up to date with he latest trends. Sam has a particularly strong eye for design. He did a thorough job guiding us from conceptualization to assisting us with material selection. He was attentive to our requirements, and designed a functional and beautiful kitchen.”
“It has been a pleasure working with Sam and SDL Residential Design! Our goal was to remodel two small bathrooms in our 1916 house. We wanted an affordable update that was interesting, colorful, and stayed true to the time period. We also did not want to discourage future buyers.
After months of trying to figure this out on our own, we called SDL. Sam started with three creative and unique vision boards for inspiration. His choices of tile, paint, fixtures, etc were on point. He was bold and balanced. I liked that he pushed us a little out of our comfort zone but was open to suggestions and honest with feedback. Working together was easy and enjoyable! Sam also worked well with our contractor. After finalizing details, specs were entered into an organized database that was accessible to our contractor and ready for me to purchase items. If problems arose or changes were made, Sam was responsive and helpful.
The results were beautiful, and the project was completed on time and on budget. We are very confident about using SDL for our future remodel, which will require both architecture and design skills. They are organized, responsive, patient, and tech savvy. Big or small projects, I would highly recommend this creative, professional team!”
“I highly recommend Samuel Lowe at SDL Residential. Sam worked with us to redesign and increase a 1400 square foot ranch home plus convert a separate detached garage into a studio/office in our newly purchased home in Sebastopol, CA.
Our vision was to expand the footprint of the house with an open floor concept, increase ceiling height and incorporate the common living space into indoor-outdoor living. In addition, we transformed an old garage to serve as a welcoming place for guests and office space for us. Sam was a pleasure to work with - he brought great ideas to the project, while considering our needs and budget. He is professional, attentive and has a great sense of design.
Sonoma County is a tough place to get permitting, but due to Sam’s diligence, the process went smoothly without a hitch and we were approved with no revisions needed.
I would not hesitate to work with Sam in the future.”
“SDL Residential was a crucial part of our home renovation. After a thorough survey of our home and property Sam was well equipped to move our project forward. We converted the garage into a master suite, added an additional bathroom to the house and put in an outdoor kitchen, large deck and pool. Without Sam’s guidance around permitting and Sonoma’s rules and regulations we would have been lost! Sam is very savvy about the permitting process and a master at getting everything necessary in order so your project can move along smoothly. He is efficient, communicative and a super nice person. He is responsive to calls, emails and texts.
We wanted the new addition of the house to feel seamless in relation to what already existed and Sam listened and produced just that! People who come to the house can not believe our new bedroom was not originally part of the house. We went through many iterations in the design phase and all along the way Sam was able to produce what we had envisioned. SDL helped me choose tiles for both my new bathrooms and I am very happy with them.
Thanks Sam!”
“We just completed our second project with SDL and were thrilled with the results, once again. Sam is great at listening and bringing your vision to life. He suggests additional elements graciously (take it or leave it) that really make things shine The 3D renderings his firm now does are super helpful for envisioning the final look and feel. And he was super helpful when we were down to the final details like paint colors, hardware finishes and placements, where we are not experts but needed someone with a design eye to help. We are so pleased with our home renovation and the new look and feel of our living space. Sam is a great creative partner and very responsive and client-focused - we recommend his services.”
“Sam Lowe, SDL Residential, is the ultimate professional. We engaged him to do an update to a 1910 vintage home along with converting a garage into a Master Bedroom Ensuite. He quickly assessed our recently purchased home, even crawling under the house to evaluate the existing infrastructure. Throughout the project Sam was always available for questions. He quickly developed plans and deftly guided the project through the City of Sonoma approval process. He is quite conversant in the various code requirements.
Sam has a great vision on how spaces can be enhanced along with thoughtful ideas regarding colors and accessories. He intently listens to your ideas and offers his suggestions, but is respectful of your final decision. In the end we had a great outcome and look forward to many enjoyable days in our reimagined home.
Needless to say, we would strongly recommend anyone contracting with Sam Lowe, SDL Residential.”
“We just finished the design/permit phase of our exterior remodel project with SDL Residential Design. Our experience was very positive. Samuel is responsive, efficient, reliable, and a pleasure to work with. Our permit was approved in a week!”
“Samuel was terrific to work with. We had a tricky remodel that required some engineering which he deftly guided us through. Samuel is very creative at solving problems and his communication was excellent. He worked well with our interior designer and kept the project moving along. We had a great experience with SDL residential design and would use them again.”
“Sam was very flexible, respected our suggestions and questions and followed-up with the vendors and contractors to assure perfection in the product. He provided detailed plans, picked wonderful fixtures and appliances and was truly at our beck and call when we had questions and issues. We recommend that you call Sam with your kitchen design questions and get ready for exciting changes to your home and lives.”
“We engaged Sam at SDL in August 2017 to design our 3 bedroom 2.5 bathroom home in Sonoma county. During our purchase of the vacant lot we looked for architecture firms that matched our modern aesthetic, and out of four Sam impressed us with his enthusiasm for the project and initial ideas in our first meeting that stuck with us. We worked with Sam developing upon initial designs he provided us with. After a pause when the north bay fires effected their business, we were surprised when a set was delivered and we were determined that the design was complete. Unfortunately it took 5 weeks to get the estimates we wanted from contractors we interviewed, but we were told us that many construction companies were fielding insurance related questions after the fires. Once we received an estimate close to our budget SDL worked with our contractor to take advantage of cost savings he could provide.
SDL handled the building permit process for us and after 12 weeks we received the OK from Sonoma county to begin, however it was another 4 weeks before our contractor could begin the work. In that time Sam helped us pick out materials and fixtures, and although we initially disagreed on a few choices Sam had the patience to explain his choices. Once construction began Sam was on-hand to answer our questions and worked with the contractor to produce extra details as the project progressed. We’ve lived in our home for over 6 months now and enjoyed hosting Thanksgiving and Christmas for our family. We love the space for the pace of our everyday lives and also how it accommodates many people over the holidays. We are go grateful to Sam for his insight, guidance and attention to detail, we intend to consult with SDL over the coming years to develop the property.”
“Samuel and I have worked closely over the past few months on my kitchen and cabana remodel. He has a good eye for detail and great design ideas. His drawings are professional and reviewed every detail with us. I’ve worked with other designers but Sam is a step above. He has been a lifesaver, I couldn’t have done it without him. Thanks Sam, I love my new kitchen and Cabana!”
“As a general contractor, we’ve been working with Sam at SDL Residential Design on many projects over the past 5 years. He is communicative, professional, and has a keen eye for design. He quickly addresses project questions and helps solve “in the field” issues as they arise. This helps us stay on schedule and plays a huge part in the success of our projects. He walks through each project, with both the clients and our team, from start to finish to ensure his plans and the client’s vision are properly executed.”
“Working with Sam has been delightful. He is not only a talented designer and space planner, but he takes the time to listen to concerns and worries and addresses them with detailed drawings and explanations, adding layers to the vision of the project. I would not hesitate recommending him!”
“Sam provided (my client) with assistance by communicating with the county to determine what, if any, fines would be passed on to my Buyer as well as what costs would apply to bring the property to legal status, including new architectural drawings. He included information about, creek repairian setbacks and County codes. Sam was helpful, quickly found answers during a short inspection period and helped my Buyer make an educated decision.”
“Samuel has been great to work with. His attention to detail and overall knowledge of residential design has been fundamental to a lot of the decisions that we have made during the initial planning of a large home remodel. We look forward to working with him further and would highly recommend his services to anyone.”
“Sam is a pleasure to work with. He does a great job of really listening to what you need for your project. He’s great at several aspects of design, which make it much easier during the design process when someone can put on different hats to get the job done. I would definitely recommend Sam.”
“I have worked with Sam on a number of projects. As a designer I really appreciate his attention to detail and the professional quality of his documents. He is a cooperative and talented contributor to every collaboration we have engaged in. I highly recommend Sam.”
“I am a real estate agent in Sonoma and have used Sam Lowe’s design services both personally and professionally. My husband and I are doing a project that involves the design of a second unit that will have a kitchen, living room, bedroom and bathroom. Sam has been excellent to work with, he has a great eye, good design sense, listens to what you want, responds quickly and has made the whole process much easier. He has also worked with my clients and they rave about how wonderful he is to work with. ”