"A home should intrigue you from the moment you walk in." Designer Nina Takesh knows how to layer homes so they feel rich, enticing, yet can include one key piece from IKEA

Nina Takesh is a Los Angeles–based interior designer and founder of the eponymous Nina Takesh Design, renowned for creating interiors that marry contemporary elegance with a worldly sensibility. Drawing on her background as co-founder and former CEO of the luxury baby brand Petit Tresor, and her experience designing homes across the U.S. and internationally, Nina has developed a keen instinct for balance, proportion, and sophisticated detailing.

Her work has been featured in leading publications, as well as her own popular YouTube design channel, where she shares behind-the-scenes insights and styling advice. Known for her ability to mix modern lines with vintage pieces and layer textures for depth, she creates spaces that are both visually striking and deeply livable. In this conversation, Nina discusses her design philosophy, the value of storytelling in interiors, and the thoughtful choices that make a home unforgettable.

You’ve developed a distinct aesthetic that blends refinement with warmth. How would you describe your style in your own words?

Refinement and warmth just about sums it up! There is a sense of warmth as I tend to shy away from cool colors and coolness in general. I want people to feel enveloped with warmth and love and mystery. Warm colors play off each other better too - designing with cool colours is more difficult.

Mystery is an intriguing word to use about decor! What do you mean by that?

Well I love when people come into a home and don’t immediately know what to expect. This is why I’m not a fan of open concept layouts - there is no mystery as you immediately get a 360 view of the entire home. But a home that has the pathway into other rooms can really create that wow factor, and that sense of mystery and intrigue as you guide people from one space to the next. It’s a little like exploring, like being taken into a new world with each room, like being Alice in Wonderland.

What do you do to create that sense of journeying?

In a lot of instances, when we're doing a renovation and remodel we get to change the door opening sizes. In California, the ranch style of home has just basic square doors, so we create arches to make them more interesting, and at that point we can think about what you’re going to see - or not see - within those openings. We place ourselves in other angles so we can see what we are privy too - for example you don’t want to see the toilet through a door into the bathroom. We had a bar concept in one project and wanted to put a powder room into the bar area, so people could easily access it once they’d had a few drinks, so we used the idea of a disappearing door - flush to the wall and covered with wallpaper - so as not to break the sightline.

You often work with bold silhouettes and sculptural shapes. What draws you to form as a design element?

A lot of it is inspiration from my travels - the camera on my phone works non stop! I just launched a furniture collection and a lot of it is inspired by seeing an ornamental gate in Italy, a pattern on a women's dress, that sort of thing. I love hunting for treasures and looking for objects in flea markets - honestly, it’s where i have most fun.

Is there a design decision you find yourself making again and again, no matter the project?

It's the molding. I have a very specific blade and proportion at the carpenters, which is a very European approach, not one that is so prevalent here in California. I just love it, it just elevates a room and I’ll take it up and over the ceilings sometimes, but you need to have some restraint with it. I tend to do more lower panelling and i love it in the dining room - it envelopes the room with love.

Are there colors you instinctively return to?

I find myself leaning into rust a lot - we have a lot of options in mohairs and silk which are all very appealing. I also find myself returning often to materials like raffia and sisal, which of course have that oatmeal color to them. They’re very universal and so go with a mix of styles - they’re a great thing to put down in a high end room to kind of dumb it down a little. I’ll have an 18th century armoire placed on an IKEA sisal rug, something ornate with something ordinary. I also find greens and browns generally to be very timeless, those colors of trees and tree bark.

Sisal and raffia are both very textured - is that another important factor for you when building a room?

Texture is the most important factor. When it comes to picking pieces, textures and layers are very important - a room can be very flat if it doesn’t have multiple textures. It can be metals, fabrics, rugs, even your wallpaper or plaster. Everything has to be distinct. Though let me point out, I’m not saying you should bring in 700 textures! At a minimum I like to have six different textures in a room - a glass, a marble, a mohair, a cashmere, some wood and a metal. You can layer and un-layer in the winter, so it doesn’t have to be heavy, it just has to have different sheens. I often like to place polished finishes with matte, which is relatively new for me. Back when I first started out, I’d want everything to be clean and refined, but I appreciate the difference now.

Tastes are definitely changing. Do you think people are getting braver with their interiors today?

Absolutely - there are no limits! I love hoe people are pushing the boundaries, and I love experimenting. Clients seem to be able to take that more now, to understand that a busy marble can still be soothing if you approach it in the right way.

Is there a common design mistake you notice people regularly making?

I notice everything - it’s a curse - but one of the things that really bothers my eye is the placement of art. If it’s too high I just can’t get past it. If it’s a living room and the primary act is to sit on the sofa you then need to make sure the art is at eye level. People tend to think that art is important and so it should be higher on the wall, pride of place. But you want to be able to see it properly. Honestly, I’m happy when I notice that people have paid attention to details. When the paint is good, the caulking is done well and there is a level of craftsmanship. That’s what brings a room together.

See more of Nina's work at Nina Takesh