EMBARK | the studio thomas client experience
Designing a home is a creative collaboration. At Studio Thomas, everything begins with listening: learning who you are, how you live, and what inspires you. Our tone and discovery phase is the heart of our process, where curiosity leads the way, and intention guides every decision. From personal style and lifestyle rhythms to life transitions and sensory details, we uncover the common thread that makes a space feel like you. Guided by our core values of stability, warmth, innovation, nirvana, and growth, we move through seven intentional phases to create homes that are timeless, personal, and meaningfully lived in. A concierge-level experience rooted in trust, collaboration, and transformation. This is the art of intentional living.
Read more about what your experience as a client will look like at the link in our bio.
EMBARK | our approach to design
In a world that moves fast, we believe meaning is found in stillness. At Studio Thomas, we call this The Art of Meaningful Living — a philosophy built on intention, balance, and beauty. Guided by three pillars — The Hand, The Eye, and The Heart — our approach merges timeless craftsmanship, artistic perspective, and emotional design to create spaces that are both luxurious and deeply personal. The Hand represents mastery of design principles and respect for enduring craftsmanship; The Eye reflects the harmony between our client’s vision and our artistic lens; and The Heart brings depth and soul, shaping how a space feels as much as how it looks. When these three elements come together, we create homes that ground, inspire, and stand the test of time. Read more about our approach to design on Embark, link in our bio.
EMBARK | founder’s story
Our community is continuously growing so we’d like to start reintroducing ourselves and the “why” behind Studio Thomas. That starts with the story behind our founder and principal designer, Kristen Thomas. Read the full story here and at the link in our bio.
JOURNAL | an introduction to no. 076
Set just outside of Chicago, No. 076 is a home designed around warmth, gathering, and a more considered way of living. While the exterior has a sense of character carried through its brick and architectural details, the interiors felt disconnected from the environment our clients were hoping to create. The goal became less about completely reinventing the home, and more about reshaping it in a way that felt reflective of how they truly live.
Throughout the home, we are focused on creating a better flow and connection between spaces, introducing arched openings and radiuses details. The kitchen became a central focus of the project, thoughtfully reworked to feel more functional and connected to the great room. Elsewhere, a more formal lounge was designed for entertaining, the mudroom and laundry spaces were reimagined for everyday use, and the primary suite is being transformed into a retreat layered with warm finished and timeless details. Throughout the project, natural textures, warm woods, and earthy tones help bring a sense of calm back into the home.
Follow along as we continue to share the progress and story of this project.
MUSE | linen: a study in movement
The creatives at Studio Thomas are inspired by the subltle movement of linen. It’s a texture that’s never entirely still, it’s always shifting slightly with the light, the air, and the way it’s lived with. It softens a space without removing structure. That balance is what continues to draw us in. There’s something authentic and honest about the way it drapes, creases, and eveolves over time. It’s imperfect, and we love that.
Thank you to our creatives behind these images discovered on Pinterest. We find constant inspiration in artists, designers, and makers across disciplines.
LIBRAIRIE | designing around lifestyle
“We don’t believe in trends. We believe in defining your lifestyle and designing around it” -KT
Our questionnaire is where this initially begins. But it’s rarely about the answers alone, it’s about the details around them. Questions like “tell us about your ideal Saturday morning” or “what’s your favorite fashion brand?” become entry points into understanding how you live, what you value, and what you’re naturally drawn to. From there, the depth of our understanding comes from the relationship that unfolds over time.
For No. 022’s office, it was a pomegranate red leather purse. It wasn’t something called out directly, but was aligned with everything we were learning about our clients. It had a richness to it, a sense of ease, and subtle confidence about it. This purse became a reference point as we shaped the space.
The final designs for the office leaned deeper — a little moodier than expected. It required trust to move in that direction, but once it came together, it felt like a natural extension of who they are.
This is why truly understanding who our clients are is so important to our process. It allows us to design spaces that feel personal.
LIBRAIRIE | colour theory of blue
At Studio Thomas, the colour theory of blue goes beyond visuals, it’s an emotional pillar we intentionally incorporate into our designs. Symbolic of stability, a core value at Studio Thomas, it’s a colour you can trust without thinking. You see it in the uniforms of airline pilots and first responders. You find it all around us in nature, in the ocean and the open sky. It’s a quiet, yet impactful colour choice that evokes confidence, calmness, and emotional grounding without needing overpower. It’s a classic. Like your favorite pair of jeans, it never demands attention, but it always earns it.
Today, blue appears in many Studio Thomas projects. In No. 011, layers of blue are found throughout the home, from various textiles to tiles, each tone was selected and placed with intention. In No. 048’s family room our designers opted for a blue sofa that anchors the room.
Whether it’s in a backsplash, a painted vanity, or on the walls, blue has become one of our favorite colours to bring a sense of peace and depth into an environment.
ATELIER | our material library
Stone, wood, and textiles are all pulled and layered with intention. It’s a process of understanding how materials work together before they ever enter a home. The creatives at Studio Thomas have studied how materials interact, how they hold light, how they age, how they feel, so each home is grounded in intention from the very beginning.
This is where the art of considered living starts to take shape.
EMBARK | the edited home
There’s a subtle shift that comes with spring. The air is warmer, the days are stretching a little longer, and the flowers are starting to bloom. It’s a natural time to reset what’s been still during the winter months.
This time of year naturally invites you to match that same energy of renewal, giving you a chance to clear out what no longer serves you and find clarity. That same shift can happen within the walls of your home. The creatives at Studio Thomas refer to this process as “editing a home.”
Editing is often mistaken for just cleaning, but it’s more layered than that. It’s an intentional practice of taking a step back, clearing the visual noise, carefully choosing what deserves to remain. When a home is edited well, you’ll be left with a more considered home, one that’s aligned with how you actually live.
The creatives at Studio Thomas wrote more about this process, what it looks like in practice, and how to start within in your own home.
Read the full blog, “The Edited Home” through the link in our bio.
ATELIER | inside the studio
Before a space is installed or photographed, it all begins here.
Drawings are refined. Materials are compared. And new ideas are tested, then tested again. We like to spend time with textiles and fabrics so we can better understand how they live together. We stay grounded in the belief that the spaces we create should feel as considered as the lives lived within them.
The creatives at Studio Thomas know the most enduring designs are the ones built on a strong foundation, and our team is that foundation. Each of our team members adds to the story we’re telling. Not just through our work, but through the way we choose to show up. With intention and a deep respect for the world that we hope to create for others.
BEAUX | No. 029
We’re excited to look back at project No. 029, a thoughtful remodel of a classic Cape Cod style home, shaped by our clients’ desire for refined, timeless elements throughout their home.
While we kept the original footprint of the home, the creatives at ST carefully reconsidered each space by lifting ceilings, reworking openings, and simplifying details to bring in more light and a natural sense of flow.
What previously felt segmented and closed off, now reads as intentional and considered, with every layer supporting the way our clients live.
To the creatives at Studio Thomas, luxury is found in considered living.
Luxury isn’t loud, it’s not about square footage or status. It’s about creating an enviroment that reflects who you are and supports your wellbeing.
Luxury is in the pieces you keep because they mean something to you. It’s in the materials that wear beautifully with time. It’s in the small, daily rituals that are meaningful to you. It’s editing what no longer serves you, and making room for what does.
For us, luxury is about living with intention in every area of your life.
