Inessa Design Studio

School: WVC, Saratoga, CA, Sant Petersburg polytechnic University
Company: Inessa Design Studio
Bay Area, Los Altos, Palo Alto, Carmel, Los Gatos, Menlo Park, Wood Side, CA 95125
Phone: 408-884-2090, 408-655-8252
Email: inessa@inessadesign.com
Website: inessadesign.com

Designer Profile

The founder of Inessa Design Studio, Inessa Ilina, a native Russian, graduated from Saint Petersburg University in 1993 with a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering and industrial design. After university, she moved to Western Europe, where she studied architectural design in France, Finland and Germany. In 2000, Ms. Ilina migrated to the U.S. to advance her education in interior design at West Valley College, California earning her ASID certification.
A designer and project manager, Ms. Ilina is able to take a project from concept to completion, transforming a home or commercial property into a unique, one–of–a–kind space with elegance and style, punctuated by custom furniture and fine details. Her acuity for color, space and form and experience in designing in both Europe and the U.S., give Ms. Ilina a unique perspective that benefits clients as she works closely with them to transform their vision into a beautiful yet realistic design. Ms. Ilina believes a home must be comfortable and usable first, and that its space should blend with the client’s life style.

“Every successful design is a creation of new ideas that grows out of a partnership between me and my client,” says Ms. Ilina. “I consider all their desires and wishes and act as their eyes and ears, helping them to visualize their dream. We can only succeed together.”

Services Offered

- Conceptual design and drawings
- Architectural drawings and documentation
- Custom cabinets and specification
IDS pursues only interiors work. IDS offers a complete interior design service that ensures detailed proficiency and creative inspiration in all stages of the design process: Programming, Schematic Design, Design Development, Contract Documents, Bidding and Negotiation.
- Space planning
- Color consultation
- Architectural and decorative lighting
- Selection and specification of interior finishes
- Window treatment
- Kitchen and bath remodeling
- Specification and purchasing of furnishing, accessories and art
- Project management: coordinate all necessary work with contractor, review bits and spec’s, budgets, supervise all stages of the project from beginning to completion according to design documentation. Liaison between client, construction and landscape companies, strong communication skills and experience.
- Custom furnishings
- Research and shopping
- Renderings
- Custom art framing
- Exterior enhancements
- Landscape lay outs and specification
- Custom metal work and more…..

Awards & Publications

Ms. Ilina has been awarded numerous industry honors. In 2002, she received acknowledgment from CNN for her award–winning proposal and plans for the new Twin Towers in New York City and in 2003, she received an International Furnishings and Design Association award in the Universal Home Design Competition in San Francisco, Calif. Ms. Ilina has also been honored for her 3-D model design for the Jewish Community Center in Los Gatos, Calif. (2004), that helped secure funding for the building, and for her City of Milpitas beautification project (2005). Her work has been published in Space Magazine, Carmel, Calif. (2008) and she’s designed an award–winning, custom line of Tibetan–inspired furniture (2008). In 2005, Ms. Ilina was commissioned to design a custom gate for the Frank Lloyd Wright’s residence in the Oakland Hills of California.