Before & After: After Fixing Up a Gutted Houseboat, a Couple Join a Legendary Artist Community

Laura Mauk
·2 min read
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Retail executive Marka Hansen and sculptor Joe Brubaker call on designer Michelle Chan to turn a dilapidated floating home into a dreamy retreat in Sausalito’s Waldo Point Harbor.

The floating home, originally constructed in 1968 by Forbes Kiddoo, that Marka Hansen and Joe Brubaker recreated with designer Michelle Chan and builder Steve Crutchfield of True North Construction bobs in a berth at the historical Waldo Point Harbor in Sausalito, California, just north of San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge.
The floating home, originally constructed in 1968 by Forbes Kiddoo, that Marka Hansen and Joe Brubaker recreated with designer Michelle Chan and builder Steve Crutchfield of True North Construction bobs in a berth at the historical Waldo Point Harbor in Sausalito, California, just north of San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge.

For years, Marka Hansen and her husband, Joe Brubaker, walked the docks of Waldo Point Harbor in the seaside town of Sausalito in Northern California, coveting the candy-colored houseboats of all shapes and sizes. The marina has a storied past—and present—as a floating community where freethinkers, naturalists, artists, writers, and musicians live, gather, and create.

The harbor has been around for more than a century, and it’s lived many lives. After World War II, out-of-work shipbuilders found refuge here, crafting floating homes from flotsam and found materials. It drew beatniks in the 1950s and ’60s and hippies in the ’70s.

Before: Exterior

Seneca, the floating home originally constructed in 1968 by Forbes Kiddoo that Marka Hansen and Joe Brubaker recreated with designer Michelle Chan and builder Steve Crutchfield of True North Construction bobs in a berth at the historical Waldo Point Harbor in Sausalito, California, just north of San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge.
Seneca, the floating home originally constructed in 1968 by Forbes Kiddoo that Marka Hansen and Joe Brubaker recreated with designer Michelle Chan and builder Steve Crutchfield of True North Construction bobs in a berth at the historical Waldo Point Harbor in Sausalito, California, just north of San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge.

According to locals, the docks—situated just five miles north of the Golden Gate Bridge—have welcomed the likes of Otis Redding, Fleetwood Mac, Maya Angelou, Jack Kerouac, Jerry Garcia, Jean Varda, Alan Watts, Stewart Brand, and Anne Lamott. There are tales of spectacular parties, all-night dancing, and the creation of great works of art, including Redding’s "(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay."

After: Exterior

The floating home, originally constructed in 1968 by Forbes Kiddoo, that Marka Hansen and Joe Brubaker recreated with designer Michelle Chan and builder Steve Crutchfield of True North Construction bobs in a berth at the historical Waldo Point Harbor in Sausalito, California, just north of San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge.
The floating home, originally constructed in 1968 by Forbes Kiddoo, that Marka Hansen and Joe Brubaker recreated with designer Michelle Chan and builder Steve Crutchfield of True North Construction bobs in a berth at the historical Waldo Point Harbor in Sausalito, California, just north of San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge.

Today, the harbor draws contemporary creatives and professionals—like Marka, a retail executive and the former president of Gap Inc North America and Banana Republic, and Joe, a Bay Area sculptor. "We used to take walks down here and Joe would say ‘We should live on a houseboat,’" says Marka. "I fell in love with the idea." She started searching for a floating home in the legendary artist community, and she eventually found a 350-square-foot houseboat and purchased it as a surprise for Joe.

The docks that populate the harbor feature floating homes that have served as a kind of artistic community for decades. "Each floating home is a unicorn, an expression of its owner's personality,
The docks that populate the harbor feature floating homes that have served as a kind of artistic community for decades. "Each floating home is a unicorn, an expression of its owner's personality,

See the full story on Dwell.com: Before & After: After Fixing Up a Gutted Houseboat, a Couple Join a Legendary Artist Community
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