2026 Remodelers Showcase

2026
SFAHBA'S REMODLERS
SHOWCASE

This year’s Remodeling Showcase features 11 SFAHBA members and their exceptional custom remodeling projects. The Haciendas magazine is published in partnership with the Santa Fe New Mexican and showcases the work of builders, designers, and architects defining the city’s built environments today. 

This Spring’s edition includes a behind-the-scenes look at our 2025 Grand Showcase winner, Praxis Design | Build and their custom renovation. From stunning kitchen and bath renovations to a complete casita transformation and even a commercial property remodel, this year’s showcase highlights the remarkable talent and craftsmanship within our northern New Mexico building community!

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#1 - FRENCH-MEETS-SOUTHWEST REMODEL

MESA VERDE CONSTRUCTION COMPANY 

www.mesaverdeconstructionnm.com

1305 South St Francis Dr, Santa Fe, NM 87505

505-231-4398

DESCRIPTION

Married business partners Margeaux and Maxfield Scott brought their design aesthetic home with this remodel to their open concept kitchen and living room. Margeaux, a Keller Williams realtor, and Maxfield, a general contractor for Mesa Verde Construction, LLC, and Durabuild Construction, collaborate frequently on clients’ renovations along with business partner Daniel Orona. They say their style showcases a love of the state’s landscape, architecture, and history while evolving Santa Fe style to include Parisian influences.

 

“We want to try and expand Santa Fe style. It’s funky. That’s what makes Santa Fe beautiful and unconventional. That’s why people want to live here — in the City Different,” Maxfield observes. They aim to create “artistic spaces you can live in,” Margeaux says of the duo’s approach.

 

After moving into their traditional Pueblo revival home in Eldorado just weeks before the birth of one of their children, they began slowly updating spaces. This remodel marked a significant reimagining of the function and style of the kitchen. However, they still aimed for a quick, functional remodel that could be accomplished while living in the home with two small children. “These homes have such good character. We want to capitalize on that and not destroy it,” Maxfield says. However, opening the walls led to the discovery of electrical, plumbing, and insulation issues that had to be addressed first. They did so along with subcontractors Richards Electrical Solutions, LLC, and Art’s Plumbing & Heating, LLC.

 

They demolished a wall between the kitchen and dining room, giving the space an open concept. They also filled in a sunken garden from the 1970s to reclaim that area as livable space. With a larger footprint available, Mesa Verde Construction installed new cabinets, millwork, and countertops. The team replaced a window in the dining room with French doors, adding natural light and connecting the room to the outdoors.

 

The Scotts kept the home’s original style in many design choices, including matching the residence’s Saltillo tile in the kitchen and reusing the wrought iron–style cabinet and drawer pulls on fresh cabinets. They also repurposed vigas from the home’s rear portal as indoor vertical columns that added structural support and a historic, artisanal feel. Another column contributed a different type of character: They installed a wood column salvaged from a Los Alamos forest fire, the black char from the flames still visible. While honoring classic Santa Fe, the duo advanced the city’s signature style by integrating fire and ice quartzite kitchen countertops that create a point of interest and an emperor chandelier imported from Paris in the dining room. “We want to create conversation pieces and don’t want pieces everyone can get,” Maxfield says. “These types of pieces were made by artisans and were built to last — they also have a story.”

#2 - CLASSIC SANTA FE GUEST HOUSE

ZACHARY & SONS HOMES

www.zacharyandsons.com

218 Camino La Tierra, Santa Fe, NM 87506

505-470-5717

DESCRIPTION

The homeowners of this Museum Hill property engaged Zachary & Sons Homes to remodel three structures on their 10-acre estate. The entire project involved renovations to a main home and two guest houses. The Pueblo revival–style guest home featured here, measuring just over 1,000 square feet, is the first completed.

 

The homeowners sought to celebrate the traditional architecture and craftsmanship of their historic John Gaw Meem–designed property. “This is less of a remodel and more of a renovation,” says general contractor Josh Shultz. “The homeowners had a really detailed intent. They like the story of the home and wanted it to be like it was while putting some of their taste into it.” The guest house was livable but showed the impact of decades of partial remodels and updates, resulting in a design patchwork. With the assistance of Richard Martinez of Martinez Architecture Studio, Zachary & Sons gutted the home down to the adobe and “put the essence of what it really needed to be back,” Shultz says.

 

That began with structural updates, including rewiring and replumbing the residence. The team also added an HVAC system and recessed ceiling lights to help modernize the structure. They kept some original elements — in part because the home’s location in a historic district and connection to one of New Mexico’s most iconic architects required it. They removed, repaired, and reinstalled all exterior windows and kept the new stucco color faithful to the original. Inside, they maintained the house’s vigas and restored them to their original beauty.

 

Erica Ortiz Berke of Neubleu Interior Design collaborated with the homeowners on their aesthetic choices. Celebrating the residence’s historic style also meant reintroducing Northern New Mexico craftsmanship. Zachary & Sons installed traditional Saltillo tile to unify the open-concept living room, dining room, and kitchen, as well as in the bedroom and two bathrooms. They replaced all interior doors with custom, carved doors by Vince Neal of VLM. Dark walnut cabinets by Albuquerque’s Ernest Thompson, restored kiva fireplaces, and diamond plaster walls care of Javier’s Lath and Plaster further resurrected the home’s classic Santa Fe style.

#3 - A KITCHEN FOR GATHERING

TIERRA CONCEPTS

www.tierraconceptssantafe.com

1512 Pacheco Street, Suite D206 Santa Fe, NM

505-989-8484

DESCRIPTION

When Tierra Concepts’ clients first viewed their 1955 home in South Capitol, they saw that it required many updates to accommodate modern life. Could a seemingly outdated home  be transformed to fit their vision? The buyers knew from a previous Santa Fe renovation that Tierra Concepts could transform the home to better fit their lifestyle with visiting adult children and now grandchildren.

 

Tierra Concepts oversaw a total revision of the kitchen. The homeowners hoped to improve the space’s flow and function while keeping within the existing footprint. The original layout, with a dedicated breakfast nook taking up almost half the floor space, might have worked in the 1950s, when it was designed for the traditional family of that time period, but it didn’t meet the current homeowners’ needs. For the culinary homeowners, one of whom cooks, bakes, and makes jam from homegrown raspberries, this chopped-up kitchen was not adequate.

 

First, Tierra Concepts removed the elements dividing the room, including an exposed beam and a knee wall with decorative shelves above. Next, it removed the upper shelves and soffit from a wall with windows. Both were wasting precious space and caused functional problems. For many serious cooks, upper cabinets are a hindrance because equipment such as a fullsized mixer can’t fit under them. While losing a bit of upper cabinetry on the window wall, Tierra Concepts created valuable storage space with deep cabinets on the opposite wall, as well as a double-door pantry, built-in refrigerator, freezer, and dish storage, all with custom cabinet doors matching the entire room. The sink is now beautifully placed under the existing corner window, which provides views of trees, bushes, and flowers the new owners have planted.

 

A custom 8-foot marble rolling table, with stools providing perches for guests and casual meals, finishes the room. A sunny window alcove just inside the dining room also provides an intimate dining space. This reimagined kitchen is now the true heart of the home, perfect for cooking, baking, and gathering friends and family together.

#4 - COMPACT KITCHEN, REFINED REMODEL

JORGENSEN BUILDERS

www.jorgensenbuilders.net

505-670-1187

DESCRIPTION

Before the remodel, this home projected a tired image from 1985 and needed an infusion of new energy. The homeowners contracted Jørgensen Builders and Heceli Kitchen & Bath Design to renovate the compressed, inefficient kitchen with the objective of greater functionality, connectivity, and livability. The homeowners wanted the kitchen, dining, and portal spaces to become seamless, with a visual invitation of the Jemez Mountain view. Along with these functional objectives, the homeowners wished to create an updated classic look and feel informed by their admiration of Georgia O’Keeffe’s modern, western ethos of simplicity and bold organic forms.

 

The design/build team, keeping in mind the homeowners’ passion for culinary arts, carefully crafted the kitchen with the utmost attention to form, quality, and detail. The kitchen’s existing compact footprint presented a challenge — as well as an opportunity to make the space elegantly purposeful. Doing so involved many custom design solutions. The layered complexity of the kitchen design included maximizing storage and integrating space-saving interior cabinet features.

 

The team enhanced the feeling of spaciousness by concealing the range hood within custom cabinetry by Dura Supreme. This helped give the kitchen a seamless, monolithic appearance, eliminating visual breaks that can make a space feel cluttered or busy. The kitchen was renovated with custom oak riff cabinetry, which was selected for its natural beauty and to complement the refinished bourbon-hued oak floors by Lightfoot, adding texture and warmth.

 

The undulated tile by Hunter Tile, with its rising and falling forms, creates harmony between the newly remodeled kitchen and the primary and guest baths, which the skilled design/build team also reimagined to ensure a cohesive design and flow throughout the home.

 

The counter between the kitchen and dining room was designed to allow for greater workspace for meal preparation. The counter has no seating to increase cabinet space and create an uninterrupted flow between the two rooms, both of which provide views of the mountains. As a final touch, the old grouted tile countertops were replaced with a quartz waterfall design from Infinity Stone, which elevates the feel of the entire room.

 

Benjamin Moore’s Swiss Coffee paint provides a soft neutral tone, and contemporary amber-colored light fixtures above the dining room table reflect the modern forms found in the homeowners’ O’Keeffe art collection. The kitchen has been transformed with a Santa Fe aesthetic — taking cultural and traditional design elements and moving them forward to embrace residents’ evolving, ever-changing lifestyles.

#5 - SPARROWS NEST

THREE ROOTS DESIGN

www.threerootsdesign.com

441 Cerrillos Road, Santa Fe, NM 87501

505-690-5489

DESCRIPTION

After reading a previous edition of Haciendas, the homeowners of the remodeled residence sought out Thea Mason, an interior designer at Three Roots Interior Design, to improve the functionality of a bathroom. The existing bathroom was large and felt cold due to empty space, a small shower, and several oversized windows, including one that, somewhat confusingly, led to another room.

 

Mason reimagined the bathroom with warmth in mind, including closing the mysteriously placed window and reducing the size of the exterior windows. She also removed a little-used bathtub and utilized the space for much-needed storage via stepped, custom-built cabinetry by Rodrigo Rodriguez of El Tapanco Woodcrafts.

 

The remodel removed a small, room-like shower and added a new shower twice the size of the original. It is now enclosed with glass, opening it to the room. The newly installed steam shower also provides the literal warmth the homeowners sought. Introducing this type of shower, however, created a technical challenge. With Robert Watson and Dustin Dossett of Watson & Associates serving as general contractors, the design/build team had to ensure the home had the proper capacity for a dedicated electrical circuit to power the steam generator. Although the team anticipated this from the start and it didn’t add to the planned timeline, adding this amenity pushed the project past its original budget.

 

The practical homeowners opted to reuse extra floor tiles from the rest of the home in the bathroom, which creates a seamless flow between the existing and remodeled rooms. Mason drew inspiration both from the existing home’s craftsman style and the feel of a Japanese onsen to create a spa-like feeling. The bathroom showcases craftsman style in its use of natural materials and handcrafted details, such as the custom vanity, also by Rodriguez. The linear, open vanity completes an accent wall that draws the eye with Kravet wallpaper. “Being attracted to wallpaper is kind of like being attracted to a piece of art. You’re going to look at it every day, so you have to be drawn to it,” Mason says. Hints of calming green in the wallpaper echo the earthy Waterworks porcelain tile that drenches the shower space. Overall, the bathroom feels more functional, stylish, and welcoming.

#6 - COMPACT CONDO

THE HOME CONSTRUCTION DOCTOR

www.thehomeconstructiondoctor.com

505-670-4780

DESCRIPTION

Originally built in the 1930s as part of an artist compound, this sweet, compact condo was stuck in the last century. Old worn

tile walls, a massive outdated tub in the bathroom, and virtually no kitchen cabinets led the owners to seek out the Home Construction Doctor and the quality craftsmanship of principal Bruno Linder, a native of Munich, Germany.

They sought a complete teardown of the kitchen and bathroom to create a modern, convenient space. However, before the experts at the Home Construction Doctor could address functional and aesthetic improvements, they discovered structural issues. After widening the doorframe into the bathroom to remove the tub and take out the floor tile, they found that not only was the subfloor rotten but also several of the floor joists had completely disintegrated due to a silent sewer line leak.

Additionally, the wall behind the tub was raw adobe beneath the tile. These discoveries led to a six-week delay, waiting for a special structural permit. Further, as with most historic buildings, this one had no plumb or level walls, requiring every cabinet in both rooms to be custom-made.

Ultimately, a lovely glass shower replaced the tub. The bathroom remodel also incorporated modern fixtures. Given the compact footprint of the structure, the Home Construction Doctor made smart use of space with a stackable washer and dryer in the small bathroom. This approach extended into the kitchen, where a mini dishwasher outfits the newly modern space. Cabinets and wall and floor tiles throughout unify the spaces and complete the structural and stylistic renovation.

#7 - ROOTED IN REGIONAL DESIGN

CHANDLER PREWITT DESIGN

www.chandlerprewitt.com 

903 W Alameda #5 
Santa Fe NM 87501

505-603-1948

DESCRIPTION

In a home on Santa Fe’s historic East Side, this primary bathroom remodel began with a clear intention from the homeowner. While the home itself already carried a strong sense of place, the original bath did not. It leaned heavily on white marble and a cooler, more generic finish palette that felt out of sync with the homeowner’s collection of antiques and original Native crafts. A Texas native with a deep love of the region, the homeowner wanted a bathroom experience that felt grounded in Santa Fe, cohesive with the rest of the house, and calming in the way the very best spaces are: subtly expressive, thoughtfully made, and built to last.

Chandler Prewitt Design approached the project as a full-gut renovation, reimagining every surface with warmth, texture, and a distinctly handcrafted sensibility. The team selected travertine for the floors and countertops, replacing the previous cold look with a stone that feels lived in and luminous. The walls shifted from white plaster to a warmer gray tone and were finished in a water-resistant tadelakt plaster. In the shower, the decision to avoid tile elevated the sense of serenity, creating an enveloping,

spa-like room where materiality does the talking.

At the heart of the space is a bespoke wood vanity fabricated by Albuquerque craftsman Ernest Thompson. Inspired by historical furniture, it is a faithful replica of an antique piece, carefully adapted for daily function. The detailing throughout continues that made-by-hand approach, from the crafted stonework to lighting that brings a soft southwestern glow. Hand-forged metal sconces with candle-like fixtures by Gregorius Pino add atmosphere and reinforce the sense that everything here was chosen with intention, not pulled from a catalog.

The team collaborated closely with general contracting firm Innovative Building Solutions, led by Luis Mingura, and with Megan Herrera at Counter Intelligence. Waterworks fixtures were selected for quality and longevity (though backorders extended the timeline by a few weeks). Additional finishing touches, including a vanity mirror from Mulligans USA and a custom wall mirror by Justin’s Frame Designs, complete a bathroom that feels personal, enduring, and unmistakably Santa Fe.

#8 - ARTISTIC ESTATE

FRENCH & FRENCH INTERIORS

www.frenchandfrenchinteriors.com 

50 Mt Carmel Rd, Santa Fe, NM 87505

505-982-7737

DESCRIPTION

The Applegate Estate is a 10,186-square-foot, five-bedroom, seven-bath Pueblo-style adobe located near historic Canyon Road. Once home to artist Frank Applegate and a gathering place for Los Cinco Pintores, as well as Georgia O’Keeffe and Ansel Adams, the property carries an extraordinary creative legacy.

French & French Interiors, led by principal Heather French, approached the historic renovation with deep respect for that past, transforming the home into a warm, welcoming high desert retreat for homeowners Heather and Dale. The homeowners’ goal was to soften what had become a heavy, cold, and worn historic house and reimagine it as a cozy “landing pad” for family life, an inviting second home that honored its history while functioning effortlessly for modern living. French & French accomplished this by keeping the original layout largely intact, preserving architectural quirks and thick adobe walls, while updating all systems and finishes and fully reworking the primary bathroom. The focus was on refinement, restoration, and thoughtful layering within the existing footprint.

Throughout the home, historic character leads. Salvaged beams chosen by Applegate remain, white oak floors with an English chestnut finish ground the spaces, and walls are coated in hand-troweled white diamond plaster that brings light and polish to the undulating adobe forms. Furnishings balance original 18th-century New Mexican pieces with custom, historically accurate reproductions crafted by local furniture maker Christopher Thayer. Upholstery leans traditional in silhouette, softened by subtle patterns, gentle hues, and tactile fabrics, allowing texture to take center stage.

Design challenges included low ceilings, thick walls, and naturally dark interiors typical of historic adobes. Rather than fighting these constraints, the team embraced them, highlighting fireplaces, beams, and sculptural walls while counterbalancing their weight with lighter textiles, reflective finishes, and curated patterns. The project required patience and sensitivity inherent to historic renovation but was completed with care alongside Tent Rock, Inc., the general contractor.

What makes the Applegate Estate remodel truly special is its restraint. The architecture remains the hero, its history palpable in every room, yet the home now feels alive, livable, and deeply personal — a soulful sanctuary where Santa Fe’s artistic past and a family’s present comfortably coexist.

#9 - VAST VIEW

SERQUIS + ASSOCIATES LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE

www.serquis.com

922A Shoofly St, Suite #201 at The Trailhead Compound Santa Fe, NM 87505

505-629-1009 

DESCRIPTION

The homeowners were immediately drawn to this property for its exceptional location and expansive views at the Summit. After living in the home for some time, they felt the time was right to thoughtfully reimagine how the house connected to its setting. With the remodel, they hoped to expand the outdoor living environment, enhance shade and comfort, and extend a cohesive material language throughout, all while preserving clear, uninterrupted views to the surrounding environment.

The residence already connected to nature; however, the outdoor spaces felt cluttered and compromised. Heavy railings, an aging and poorly maintained deck, and a lack of shade caused safety concerns and interrupted the panoramic view. The remodel by Serquis + Associates resolved these challenges by simplifying and refining the outdoor architecture while keeping a close eye to the budget.

As is common in Santa Fe, the difficulty of accessing the site, and sourcing and delivering materials, called for a designconscious and well-orchestrated approach. Seasonal installation of windows, long lead times, and the homeowners’ evolving needs required thoughtful coordination. For example, the request for dense shade meant additional structure and material considerations. In many ways, this remodel was about carving a new shape from an existing piece of wood — understanding its limits, respecting its character, and embracing the challenge of transformation.

Serquis concentrated work at the rear of the house. The landscape architects replaced existing barriers with transparent yet structurally robust solutions appropriate for the cliff-edge setting. The firm also carefully evaluated the original deck structure and selectively reused materials from it while reinforcing critical elements and introducing new wood finishes and custom- designed metal-and-wood railings to provide safety without visual obstruction.

A pergola was a significant project addition. It now functions as an extension of the home’s portal and outdoor living space.

Previously, the transition outdoors led to an unsheltered area with limited usability. The pergola creates shade, scale, and comfort, transforming the space into a high-end outdoor room designed for daily living and entertaining.

Serquis also introduced a water feature that serves as a subtle safety element and an experiential focal point. Acting almost as an invisible railing, it enhances the sense of vastness while adding sound, movement, and a quiet sense of awe, allowing the surrounding landscape to remain the true spectacle.

This remodel exhibits clarity and restraint via a unified palette of materials, a seamless relationship between structure and landscape, and a series of paths, destinations, and features that connect people to place — all of which support lifestyle, comfort, and daily use while allowing nature to take center stage. The collaboration between the homeowners, Serquis + Associates, landscape installer Joaquin Marquez Landscape, LLC, and other artisans achieved a cohesive final result.

#10 - GARAGE DESIGN STUDIO

B CONSTRUCTIV 

505-470-7888

DESCRIPTION

Early in her career, Lisa D. Martinez worked out of a home office — a loft in a Venice Beach, California, residence. It was a creative sanctuary and a space Martinez — the principal owner of the design, construction, and consulting companies Lisa D. Martinez Design, LLC, and B Creativ + B Constructiv LLC — hoped to one day build in her home in Santa Fe. This dream became a reality in the form of a garage expansion to her home with a loft studio space above.

The remodel showcases the art of mixing business with residential design. Martinez intended to create a space that seamlessly blends residential comfort with professional functionality, blurring the lines between studio and personal dwelling. She also aimed to blend the expansion’s design and architectural style with the existing residence and to professionally show how an addition can and should work. The design reflects Martinez’s take on a modern/contemporary Northern New Mexico architectural style in which the pitched roofline is the focal point.

Creating a flow between the existing residence and the addition was a challenge. It required meshing and aligning contrasting rooflines, addressing New Mexico weather and snow loads, matching style and proportions, using consistent materials (but in a new and different way), and capturing the right light within the interior space. The studio and the garage needed to feel like a natural, integrated part of the original home rather than an afterthought. The result is a colorful and cohesive addition that beautifies what otherwise might be a boring utility box garage.

The cantilevered studio and deck are offset from the garage footprint, adding depth and interest to each visible facade and making the studio the primary architectural feature. The bright turquoise exterior wood supports for the angled roofline add further dimension to the elevation. With this addition, the garage, often considered a utilitarian space for vehicles and tools, is expanded from its normal untapped potential. In its reimagined form as Martinez’s design studio, it becomes a living laboratory for testing unconventional design concepts and expressing the designer’s love of cantilevered spaces. This design not only boosts the property’s appeal but also enhances Martinez’s professional life through a distinctive and functional upgrade.

#11 - HACIENDA TO MODERN RETREAT

SARCON CONSTRUCTION

2009 Botulph Road, Suite #600
Santa Fe, NM 87505

www.sarcon.net

505-474-4700

DESCRIPTION

When Modern Elder Academy approached Genesis Purce, president and owner of Sarcon Construction, to build its flagship American location on the 2,500-plus-acre Rising Circle Ranch in Lamy, it had large ambitions. Constructing the campus for its programs aimed at navigating midlife would mean building 2 miles of new roads and 40,000 square feet of new ground-up construction, as well as infrastructure updates such as a new fire suppression water supply, septic systems, and solar array.

 

Sitting serenely amid the planned new construction was an existing 6,000-square-foot adobe home overlooking a large koi pond. “It was very well built but hadn’t been properly updated since the 1990s,” Purce says. The client hoped to keep the feel of the large hacienda-style home while converting it into an elegant accommodation with six private guestrooms, a gathering room, a workout room, a library, and a steam room — all exuding the low-key luxury for which the retreat is known.

 

Doing so required meeting the safety requirements of a hotel in a more than 30-year-old adobe residence with a budget constrained by the many demands of the larger surrounding project. To deliver on these sometimes-competing goals, Sarcon refurbished the existing handmade custom fixtures and hardware and revitalized or matched existing finishes to follow French & French’s interior design. Working with AOS Architects and MASS Design Group to meet ADA requirements, Sarcon added an entirely new brick-lined ADA-compliant entrance, reworked rather than replaced narrow doors, raised the courtyard portals, and matched ramps to the original brick’s pattern and tones.

 

Meeting fire code brought the greatest challenge and required retrofitting the whole house with a fire sprinkler system. Sarcon replaced the roof in sections, allowing the sprinkler piping and alarm wiring to be installed from above and inspected on a schedule built around the arrival of building inspectors and winter storms. To protect interior finishes, holes were drilled with care through hand-carved beams and fragile split-cedar ceilings to allow for new sprinkler heads, alarms, and fixtures. At times the work felt akin to “a team threading a needle on a schedule,” Purce says.

 

Outside, landscape architects surroundings studio reimagined an enclosed courtyard, removing a large existing concrete pond, dead trees, and mortared lava rock fountains and planters. A wall enclosing the courtyard was removed to allow heavy equipment access and was replaced. Sarcon completed the courtyard with new irrigation, a granite fountain, and new plantings in hand-cut

stone planters.

 

A separate 1,300-square-foot, three-car adobe garage was repurposed as a yoga studio, general manager’s office, and ADA compliant bathroom. Sarcon redefined the parking area between the home and the garage as a large courtyard enclosed by a new pair of 15-foot custom steel gates, allowing both privacy and delivery access. It added concrete paths along with trees, a stucco banco, and a large gas-fired pizza oven, another central element in the home’s new life as part of the retreat center.

505.982.1774