Outerlands Design

We contracted with Outerlands Design to do a gut renovation of our building in Glen Park in San Francisco. This is a mixed use commercial, residential building, and they designed and built the residential unit, as well as the backyard. We thought that Outerlands did an excellent job and we are extremely happy with the work. There is not one aspect of it where we think, we wish that were different, or this did not turn out as we hoped. The renovation greatly exceeded our expectations, and we would strongly recommend Outerlands to other customers.
In working with a design build firm, we thought that Outerlands was particularly skilled at proposing various options, and taking the construction places that we were not able to imagine. Of course, as with any large project, there were stressful times, but Outerlands was very accommodating to our requests, and open to our ideas. We love our home and would without question use Outerlands again in the future. They are also very responsive to post construction questions, and even replaced some plants in our backyard that were not growing as quickly as we hoped.

My restaurant, Zazie, is well known for our lovely garden patio, so looking for someone to remodel it, add a few seats, yet keep it local and unique was quite a challenge. I found Jared and Outerlands Design here on Unilocal and knew after meeting with him once that this was the team for us. He has an eye for design that is unique and creative– you can actually see his mind working as his ideas change and grow with each new challenge. Our patio was completely remodeled in 5 days– including dry storage benches, three 1,000 pound hundred year old redwood beams, and 8 posts dug six feet into the ground. He did all the lighting himself, highlighting the gorgeous reclaimed beams, and his team did all the plumbing and electrical I needed as well. I’ve never seen a group that worked together like they did– nine carpenters working 10 – 12 hour days with no drama, no frustration, no complications.
I could go on and on, but it’s the middle of the night and we have to open tomorrow at 9 am, so I’ll just say this– stop looking. This is your designer, contractor, and friend all in one. Rarely do you find a contractor who can also work through the design process with you, but it’s a magical combination– I couldn’t be happier with their work and will use them for all my future remodeling plans at the restaurant and at home.

We just bought a house in San Francisco and for the first time in our lives we had to hire contractors and designers. How exciting, but also how scary — given that we are still fairly new to the US and never did something like that before. Also, being in love with precision and high quality (German stereotype), we were curious how our first experience will turn out.
Well, pictures are worth more than words — so here see yourself:
Awesome work, quick, reliable, creative and folks that are great to work with. We look forward to work with them again and can highly recommend Jared & crew for your projects.

We had a great experience working with Jared. He generated some great ideas for our deck, was thoughtful and precise in the planning, and executed on building us a really nice deck. Throughout the process, he was always helpful and very responsive. We left on vacation furing the last couple of weeks of construction, but we left Jared with the information he needed and he took care of things — when we returned everything was done and looked great.
Some specific examples of Jared really went the extra mile include:
— He lobbied the inspectors until he found the right guy to approve our permit to allow us to build right up to the property line (it’s hard to put a price on that!)
— He conceived of the idea, and went ahead and built for us, a really attractive storage unit for our external plumbing (for lawn irrigation)
— He generated the idea of replacing traditional balusters with copper ones to give the deck a nice edge, and I think the result came out really well.
Overall, I would definitely recommend Jared to friends for similar projects.
For reference, our project was this one:

Beyond 5 stars!
So creative
Young professional guys
CAD design of their ideas right off the bat after they stopped by to check out what we were interested in having done
Unobtrusive
Humorous
Get ‘er done attitude but really take care while they put things together
We have a small back deck that needed attention. We have a neighbor immediately behind us so there was very little privacy to be had — not to mention we have a hot tub back there… and who wants to see their naked neighbors, right?
Todd, Jared and Trevor created an interesting and creative solution for us that gives us more privacy yet still allows light as well as some unique spaces for plants
These guys do solid and artistic carpentry!

Our backyard in SF was a pit. Weeds. Raccoons. Other unwelcome wildlife. A deck that didn’t drain properly. We came up with ideas inspired by Dwell, made sketches, and called Jared. They finalized the design with us and these guys are pros — they came, they demo’d, they dug, they built, and voilà, our former pit is now the envy of the neighborhood. We have a multilevel ipé deck and a seating area, beautiful lighting and stone patio. They built a planter box against the west fence. We also have a little rectangle of artificial turf for the chien to take care of his bioneeds. They are engineers and contractors that do things right. Very precise and professional. Entertaining, too. I recommend them highly.

We used Outerlands Design for a major remodel including structural framing, adding a master bedroom, bathroom, living area and landscaping. We could not be more satisfied. The project was completed within budget and under time. Jared showed exceptional attention to detail, was present and responsive throughout the duration of the project. Jared is a true craftsman and his creative vision exceeded our expectations. We highly recommend Outerlands Design.

soooo… i am a new kid to this whole «home-​owning» business… basically had no idea what i was getting myself into… bought an old home and lots of things needed to be replaced. so i was getting bids on new windows, garage doors, etc. well after a couple of weeks of collecting prices and tidbits of knowledge, i realized i didn’t want to just be schizo-​fixing and that i needed a person who can help reinvent my home into something i would love and be proud of.
after weeks of being discouraged of many bids, confusion, and no vision i ran across Outerlands Design on Unilocal.saw all the furniture and woodworking and fell in love with the amazing contemporary designs, so i called immediately. i met Jared the owner, a super laid back guy. he suggested a cedar siding for the pop out for my home and told me he could take care of the overall look of my house. this would include, painting front and back, new windows, window trims, cedar siding, garage door, (also a walnut slab book shelf indoors)
so after a few brainstorming sessions, he set everything in motion, setting us up with the best window, painting crew (shout out to Ronnie & Hector), and garage door guys (Hamid & Ed). (btw the garage guys that Jared works with were the guys i was going to go with before ever meeting Jared… they are A Plus Garage Door Company)
Howell & Rob worked for days on the siding. Within a few weeks, i came home to the sickest looking house i could ever imagine. the house went from old and outdated to handsome and contemporary. i freaking love it. our book shelf turned out fab.
i am so happy with their work i am bugging them again to help me with the hard scaping of my backyard. maybe a deck in near future??? ooh lala
regardless of how laid back or relaxed they may seem, they heard every detail i wanted to take care of and dealt with it. i never had to ask twice… these guys appear so calm because they totally know what they are doing. i felt i was completely in good hands.
the results truly exceeded my expectations. i highly recommend them.
i am looking forward to working with Outerlands Designs for many future projects.

Jared, Hal, and Co. have treated us fantastically across a few different home upgrade/​building contractor projects, including a deck, roofing, and repairing our front stairs. In all cases they were smart, on-​time, easy to work with, and they performed excellent quality work. In fact, the last time Hal and Rob were here, they were cleaning up in the garage after working on our roof — the job was over and they were packing up to head home — and Rob smelled a faint gas leak, which he and Hal traced to a line in the garage. They not only found it and alerted us, but they even repaired it on their way out. That is truly going above and beyond the call of duty.
In summary, these guys are very professional and a delight to work with. We’ll be calling them again to re-​do some floor and wall bathroom tiles that were done poorly by the original contractor.

We hired Jared to do a remodel of a porch and deck. He did an amazing job. Was great to work with. Honest, fair and a person of his word. Everything was completed on budget. It was very easy to work with him and his crews. Highly recommend!

We used Outerlands Design as our building contractor for a recent sunroom remodel. The remodel was extensive, replacing 3 new windows, knocking out a closet, adding a door, redoing some siding, all new drywall and a cedar lid for the ceiling. We had a pretty tight schedule with a baby on the way, but Jared and Drew were able to keep everything moving along and finish the job on time and within budget. Jared was extremely attentive to any concerns that we had and was a pleasure to work with.

I had a general idea about the desk I wanted built; reclaimed wood, metal saw horse legs and a hidden shelf underneath to store hard drives and wires. Jared took my idea and helped me refine the exact specifications (measurements and materials). He then got down to work and crafted a beautiful red elm desk that exceeded my expectations.
Overall Jared was great to work with. He completed my project faster than expect and even made a couple modifications after I had a chance to see the finished product. Highly recommend!

Jared Johnson with Outerlands Design was absolutely incredible! He just redid the interior furnishings of our café Judahlicious. We absolutely adore his focus on sustainability and his use of eco friendly finishing products. The mixture of rescued light and dark wood has completely grounded and warmed up our dining area. He designed and installed two custom benches, a shelf, a partition, and a bar. We are currently designing new tables as well. The customers all love the comfort of the good quality wood and workmanship. Jared is the fusion of an amazingly skilled carpenter and inspired artist. You can see the passion he has for his work attempting to change the current building and design trends for the better. Aside from his beautiful work, his personality and ability to cater to our particular needs in a gracious and forgiving fashion was unbelievable. We would give 6 out of 5 stars if we could!
Come visit us and check out Jared’s beautiful work in person at Judahlicious on the corner of Judah and 44^th in the Outer Sunset!

We found Jared through a web search by chance and so glad we did. It’s rare to find a young guy with a true passion for woodworking and exceptional attention to detail. Jared listens to what you want and will offer throughtful advice and suggestions. We wanted to add some reclaimed wood shelves to our new Kitchen and we were lucky enough to benefit from Jared’s foresight in purchasing some beautiful reclaimed red elm. The end product was better than we could imagine. His pricing was more than fair and reasonable.

At the risk of having folks think that this is a sham because it is all 5 star ratings… We also had a great experience with Outerlands.
We went to Jared to build a very unique table that was specific to our current apartment, but also will be something we use forever. It is a «high» table that we use as an island in our kitchen, doubling as a workstation and a dining table with 32″ stools.
The table is really gorgeous, made out of slab acacia, which has an awesome natural finish to it. We wanted «rustic», and Jared accomplished this while maintaining impressive elegance. We aren’t too formal, but you can definitely dress the table up.
In addition, we were very impressed with how quickly the project was completed, and get constant comments about how nice a table it is.

Here it is: my very first Unilocal review, inspired by Jared’s exceptional work. A true craftsman and artist, he completely transformed our entryway with his extraordinary doors. Constructed entirely from reclaimed Douglass Fir, each is a work of art. He located hand-​forged Portuguese hardware and meticulously installed the doors with impressive precision in a space that was obviously far from square. His dedication and skill are are reflected in his final product. The project from beginning to end was the perfect blend of artistry and engineering.
I echo sentiments made by other reviewers: Jared’s patience, enthusiasm, collaborative nature, ethos, overall vibe, and ready smile make the entire process a joy. He is a true pro and a pleasure to work with.
I ADORE my doors, and couldn’t recommend Outerlands Design more highly.

Jarred and John (Outerlands Design) are terrific building contractors. They’re knowledgeable, dedicated and totally responsible. The things I liked most about working with them was that they always did what they said they would do, they were always on the job and they were easy to work with. Their work is top notch and I would highly recommend them no matter the size of the job.
They did an outstanding job completely remodeling my 100 year old garage in Noe Valley. The garage was franky a mess — exposed beams, dangling electirical wires and pipes, cracked cement floor, etc. In about a month, they completely gutted the garage and remodeled it — reinforced the foundation by adding shearing to the walls, insulated the entire garage, completely rewired all the electical conduits, sheetrocked and painted everything. It’s now a showcase garage.
The guys just did a great job. You won’t go wrong using them.

Rarely am I moved to write a Unilocal review but when something is really worth promoting I will. Our table from Outerlands Design has just been personally delivered by the designer, Jared and we are so pleased with it.
I was introduced to Outerlands via friends and was instantly inspired by their ethos and approach. Jared clearly has a passion for the materials he is using and his enthusiasm makes him a pleasure to work with.
I gave Jared an idea of the type of table I was looking for and he immediately understood what I was going for. The table was made within a week of our first consultation. I know from conversations with Jared that a local restaurant owner saw the table in progress and asked him to copy the style for a revamp of his entire restaurant!
It’s great to know that we are in possession of a beautiful and unique new table made of local materials that are salvaged and repurposed by a local designer. I smile every time I look at it :)

I can’t comment on Jared’s home remodeling skills (though I’m sure they’re awesome), but I can say that he builds AMAZING furniture. We bought a table from him that, I’m not exaggerating, gets compliments from everyone who walks through the door. Using recycled, refurbished wood salvaged from older homes, Jared put together a gorgeous, unique, piece of furniture that outshines everything else in our apartment (meaning we’ll need to buy more Outerlands pieces). I really can’t use words to do justice to how beautiful this table is, and I know it’ll last us forever.

Right before the housing market crashed, I decided to buy a house. Perhaps not the best evidence of my judgment. Thankfully, this was followed by a very good decision: hiring Outerlands Design (Jared Johnson) to remodel our house. He took so much of the stress out of what can be a very time-​consuming, expensive, intense process. I would recommend him a hundred times over for a broad range of things: bathroom, kitchen, entire house remodel, add-​ons, decks, backyard remodel (he also really great at landscaping/​hardscaping), custom furniture (makes his own furniture using reclaimed materials).
Our project: Adding a legal studio apartment to our house in the outer sunset, while staying on a budget and maintaining our style.
The outcome: Jared completed the project on schedule and on budget, handled all the subcontracting, got the project approved by the city, and helped us achieve our style. He has great sources and ideas on use of reclaimed materials (old redwood, cedar, etc.) The finished space had wood from the old Levi Strauss Building, bamboo flooring, a slate-​tiled bathroom, and new outdoor siding and tiling. He also helped us with a plan for the backyard — what things to plant, materials to use, etc.
Finding a contractor you can trust is a tough thing to do, so I am so happy he is on Unilocal