Long before Shea McGee became one of the world's most recognized interior designers, she was paying close attention to the little details that make a house feel like home. Watching her mother wrap gifts with carefully chosen ribbons or set the table for an ordinary Sunday dinner taught her that beauty isn't about extravagance, but about thoughtfulness. Those early lessons became the foundation of a design philosophy that took Studio McGee from a fledgling business built on Instagram to an internationally recognized brand, admired for its warm, layered interiors and timeless aesthetic.

In the latest installment of our series, Shea reveals that behind the signature neutral palettes and perfectly balanced rooms is a designer who is just as interested in how people live as in how their homes look. From thrift shopping in her first apartment to designing the viral projects that launched her career, Shea reflects on the journey that shaped her style, why vintage pieces are essential to every scheme, and the everyday routines that should always come before decorating.

Homes & Gardens: Where do you think your love of design comes from?

There were hints in my early life, but I wasn’t immersed in the world of interior design like some people are. My mom was just extremely creative, and she always loved beautiful things and loved making the smallest moments, like our birthdays and Sunday dinners, feel very special. She loves personal style, and there have always been hints of her influence in all of my work.

Homes & Gardens: What sort of things would she do to make occasions feel special?

Even the way my mom wraps a present is always really well thought out. It’s always the perfect paper for the person, the right ribbon. She really does put the whole package together, and that level of detail and thoughtfulness has had a huge impact on my work.

Homes & Gardens: Did she let you decorate your own room?

No, I was very much not allowed to decorate it myself! It was the '90s when I was growing up, so my bedroom was quintessentially traditional '90s. My walls were a lovely butter yellow, and I had a mix of gingham, florals, and Ralph Lauren chambray – it was the era. I still use those types of florals, ginghams, and ticking stripes in my work today, just in a more updated way.

Homes & Gardens: When did you start thinking about interior design as a career?

I didn’t major in interior design – I got scared off because I’m not great at drawing, and I wasn’t sure I’d excel in the classes. That's very much my personality: I don't want to do something if I don't think I can excel at it! So I ended up majoring in Communications and Public Relations. Then I was in my first apartment, newly married, and became obsessed with decorating our little one-bedroom home. I was scouring thrift stores to make it special, and I realized I just couldn't get enough. I became completely absorbed in making that space feel good for us. Then the lightbulb moment happened, and my husband, Syd, said I should do it for a career.

Homes & Gardens: How did you make that transition?

I went back to school at night. It was 2010, and Instagram was just starting to grow. With my background in marketing and PR, I saw that I had an opportunity to build a client base if I just started posting. I was asked to style one set of bookshelves for one well-connected person in my neighborhood, and that was it – she referred me, and on it went.

Homes & Gardens: What was your home looking like at the time? Is it recognizable as the Shea McGee aesthetic we all know today?

In some ways, yes. It was still soft, light, and neutral. I had the white IKEA couch, these linen box-pleat dining chairs, and light neutrals on the walls. While that era was all grays and whites, you could already see the early influences of what I still love today. To this day, I still love a white sofa. I mean, things have evolved, and I have learned a lot, but a few things remain constant.

Homes & Gardens: Was there a project that felt like a tipping point in your early career?

Yes, there definitely was. I was in Southern California, and we sold our home to fund the business. I designed this home outside Park City, and it was the largest home I had ever designed. We called it the Modern Mountain Home, and it went viral. Around the same time, I designed my little girl's nursery with the Hummingbird wallpaper from Cole & Son, which I still love. It was the first nursery I had ever designed, and that also went viral. Both got me a lot of attention and new work.

Homes & Gardens: What inspires your creative vision?

I am inspired by my clients, and I care a lot about understanding them – I want to make sure I am honoring them and making them feel comfortable and at home in their spaces. So I take a lot of inspiration from the way they live. Aside from that, I am a voracious reader of design books. I love the feeling of having something tactile to look at that isn't a digital image. I seek out old ones that aren't in print anymore, from the '90s and 2000s. They feel so classic to me.

Homes & Gardens: As you've designed more and more spaces, how has your style evolved?

My style is always shifting, but not dramatically so. I'm talking more from a personal standpoint. There are trend cycles, sure, but I'm not a trendy designer. I've always been obsessed with the idea of something old and something new. Even in college, I was shopping for cool vintage clothes, and while I'm not doing that so much anymore, I am always buying antiques or vintage items for my home. Even when a client comes to me and says they want something modern, they still end up with a few vintage, patinated pieces. Every single project has something old and something new. I love sourcing antiques and vintage pieces, but I'm not looking for one thing in particular – it's just a gut instinct that tells me when something I've found is right.

Homes & Gardens: When starting a new project, what’s the very first thing you look for that helps unlock the direction of the design?

I first want to understand what an average day looks like for the client. People tend to plan their homes around one-off occasions, like when they're hosting, and I'm always like, "But how often do you actually host?!" I want to know when they wake up. I want them to walk me through their morning routine. I want to know if they eat dinner at the kitchen island or the table, where they like to drop their bags when they come in through the garage. Those mundane tasks influence the foundational structure of a scheme and then how you can layer the beautiful stuff on top. You can have the prettiest entryway, but if there's nowhere to drop your things, it can be frustrating. I don't want my clients to experience any of those sticking points.

Homes & Gardens: What sticking points have you designed out of your own home?

I have a mudroom off my garage, and it's got closed cabinetry so I can put the kids' backpacks in there and close the doors. That was so important to me. I hated seeing their bags everywhere, and before that, there was nowhere to hide them.

Homes & Gardens: One thing people admire about your interiors is that they feel layered without ever feeling busy. How do you know when a room is finished rather than over-designed?

That's a good question! I fiddle with things a lot. Often, it comes back to the original mood board we created at the beginning of the project. Those become like my North Star, keeping me on track.

Homes & Gardens: Texture seems to do as much work in your interiors as color. Why has that become such an important tool for you?

Texture reads as warmth to me. I like a mix of textures and a lot of tension, so if we use a smooth, glossy surface, we need to bring in something rough, like stone, too. That juxtaposition is key to how I design. I like a dusty palette, and because of that, we need to make the room sing in different ways. Hence the focus on texture.

Homes & Gardens: You have just dropped some new products. What were you thinking about when designing them?

I am so excited about the new product drop! It includes so many pieces that reference vintage styles, and one thing I'm most excited about is the use of pattern. We designed a new sectional sofa [above], and we had a clear vision of what we wanted it to be. Now I'm in love with it! It has a jacquard floral pattern, and it's quite the statement, but we kept everything else clean.

I'm also starting to see a lot more solid rugs paired with heavily patterned upholstery, which really shifts how a room feels, so we wanted to reflect that, too. Mixing styles like this shows how many opportunities people have to bring in their personality, and being personal rather than formulaic is what good design is all about.

See and shop the whole collection at McGee and Co.

For Shea, great design has never been about chasing trends or creating picture-perfect rooms. Instead, it's about understanding the rhythms of everyday life and building homes that quietly support them. Whether she's hiding backpacks behind mudroom cabinetry, balancing glossy finishes with rough-hewn stone, or layering antiques into contemporary spaces, every decision is rooted in making a home feel personal, comfortable, and enduring. It's an approach that explains why Studio McGee's interiors remain so widely admired: they're beautiful, certainly, but they're also deeply livable. And perhaps that's the greatest luxury of all – a home that reflects who you are while making everyday life feel just that little bit easier.

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