Studio AHEAD

We worked with Studio Ahead on a complete refresh of our Berkeley Brown Shingle House and highly recommend them!! Elena and Homan really took the time to get to us, as clients and people before making any recommendations. They have a wonderful process to discern their clients style that my husband and I both greatly enjoyed (much to my husband's surprise) and really helped to inform the design process and mitigate any differences in style that were likely to arise later. Elena and Homan are wonderful people and have exquisite taste but what really distinguishes them, I believe, is their commitment to creating a functional space that truly reflects their clients' style and needs, along with an abiding love for handcrafted, artisan work. Our house now truly reflects us, but so much better. We had high expectations going into this project and Studio Ahead only exceeded them.

I partnered with Studio Ahead for the design of my Brooklyn wine bar, and the experience was exceptional. Their fresh and innovative concepts seamlessly integrated with my ideas and brand ethos. The collaboration was smooth, with meticulous attention to detail. I appreciate how they are keen to work with local and independent artists, making everything more personal and custom. They were comprehensive and played a critical role in my branding too. They completely exceeded my expectations, delivering a design aesthetic that truly reflects their creativity and commitment to excellence in interior design. I highly recommend Studio Ahead for their outstanding work and collaborative approach.

I first reached out to Homan because we needed a custom vanity for our bathroom remodel. I was so thrilled with the vanity that 1.5 years later they have designed or are currently designing nearly every room in our house. Talk about project creep :) but it’s been great because Studio AHEAD is made up of not only incredibly talented designers—Homan and Elena are beyond talented—but also the kindest most responsive professionals who make design fun. Studio AHEAD’s style leads to interiors that are functional, inviting, and show stopping all at once. After finishing our bathroom, we asked Studio AHEAD to design our primary bedroom. Our primary bedroom is a converted attic with a weird floor plan vaulted ceiling—that is beautiful but makes the room feel cavernous—several random-seeming nooks and no clear place to put a bed. When describing what I wanted the space to feel like, I told Studio AHEAD I wanted it to be cozy, like a weekend morning where you get to wake up without an alarm and linger in bed knowing you have no plans. They delivered. First they picked a soft sage color for the room, making it feel warm instead of cavernous. Then they built a shelf for book storage (important for us as we have lots of books) behind the only reasonable place to put a bed, bumping the bed forward so we could fit a king bed and 2 side tables. The headboard they designed, well words don’t do it justice, I’ll just let you look at the photos they posted (see the photos from the pac heights II project). It’s so cozy and I e never seen anything like it. A reading nook with shearling chairs and desk space finish the room making it a space I never want to leave. The whole process was fun from start to finish (and we aren’t done yet—my husband’s office is in the works and Studio AHEAD is also designing our living room) and ran seamlessly. Would hire this team again and again and again.

I had always been proud of my own sense of decoration and my past experiences with dabbling into hiring a designer had been more frustrating than inspirational. Luckily my hesitation did not block me from asking Homan to take a look at our newly remodeled home while it was in progress. The suggestions Homan gave us were simple but brilliant! It took our home from a "nice design" to extraordinary warmth, comfort, and elegance. Homan taught us appreciation for antiques,recycled pieces, natural materials, and using arisians instead of mass produced furniture. This opened my eyes to a world of options and felt good to be a consious consumer. Integrating recycled/antique pieces into our design gave our home a feeling of love and respect for history and the labor of love that created the pieces. Everyone who enters our house comments on how beautiful and harmoniously everything flows. Homan also helped us with our vacation home in Mexico which gets a lot of "wow"s upon entry! We love both home designs and highly recommend this team. Thank you Homan for your brilliance,unique approach to design, and encouragement to use artisans pieces.

The designs from Studio AHEAD inspire quiet and calm relaxation plus bold designs that, at the same time, awaken the senses. Homan Rajai is a true professional. His quiet direction is smart and essential to getting the job that fulfills the need his clients's needs while avoiding the pitfalls of larger installation projects. His view is unique and his aesthetic is sublime. I know you will like what Studio AHEAD has to offer.

Upcoming designer dual in San Francisco. I got the pleasure working with Studio Ahead on my last couple projects. Elena & Horman, both are proving with their fresh, energetic, and unique vision: are redefining San Francisco designer trend.

Would hire this team again in a heartbeat! SUPER professional, great communicators, and fun to work with. Homan has a great eye, and Elena is thoughtful and creative and the team is trustworthy and are great listeners. I am very picky, and have not worked with any Interior Designers despite having owned 3 homes in Marin, so was nervous at first. They can create a gorgeous oasis yet still be practical. My bathroom thanks you!

We moved into our new place and felt slightly overwhelmed about how to design our home. We were trying to figure it out on our own and we ended up going a very generic, sterile route. It didn't feel right. We then started to work with the Studio Ahead team after they were referred to us by some friends who had a wonderful experience. Studio Ahead made the process of designing our home a completely different experience. They got to know both of our personalities and then created proposals that reflected who we are, resulting in a really comfortable design and design process. The entire effort went from daunting to enjoyable and a beautiful memory to start our home together. We also got to know each other better in the process!

We asked Studio Ahead to elevate our Master Suite with new furniture and window treatments. Our bedroom has a tricky contemporary architecture, off-center placed large window and two-story high ceilings. Studio Ahead came up with a concept to drape one of the entire walls in sheer drapery and block one of the windows that looked out to the street (only the light came through the sheer). The drapery concept was the key! It helped with the entire furniture arrangement as it covered the off-center placed window on the headboard wall and let us place the bed symmetrically without being distracted by an asymmetrically placed window. It also opened up more organically a space for a nicely appointed living room in our master bedroom. We knew the room was cool when we bought the house, but now the furniture makes sense in ways we hadn't thought and it accentuates the architecture and views we love.

We worked with Studio Ahead to select furnishing, drapery, art and light fixtures for our new home in Marin County. They came up with furniture floor plans and ways of using pieces that made our home have the designer feel we wanted, yet still felt very specific to who my husband and I are. On top of it we have worked with other interior designers before on previous homes and I have to say the process with Studio Ahead was very smooth. They are on top of purchasing, budgets and timelines which we appreciated after having some poor experiences in the past. Thank you Studio Ahead team! Looking forward to working together on the house in Tahoe.