Thomas Designs | Design with a Conscience

10 Reviews

Interior Designers & Decorators

About Us

13 years in business

2x Best of Houzz winner

Eco-friendly

East Bay Full Service, Eco-Conscious Interior Designer
Best of Houzz

Michelle and her team offer more than twenty years of residential and commercial design experience. We bring a current mix of Eco Conscience eclectic style, emphasizing functional design plans and architectural details. Working closely with clients and contractors we incorporate the integrity through the design as well as the construction process of each project. A little more about us: We understand the importance of realizing your vision. Throughout the design process we help you to understand Eco-friendly alternatives, design styles, architectural features, and how to get the most out of your interior design budget. As a full-service design firm our projects range from a new plot of land designing from the ground up, to kitchen/bath additions or a fully decorated room in need of updated finishes and fixtures. In any case we begin our work by familiarizing ourselves with your needs and goals. After several years of working for many of the Bay Area's top design firms Michelle decided to open her own firm in 2009. Her design education and experience are coupled with a project management background. These strengths and her life-long passion for Architecture, Art, and Sustainability lend a special and unique perspective to her work. She takes pride in establishing long term relationships by offering comfortable and eclectic design solutions for her clients. Michelle grew up in the Oakland/ Rockridge area and loves their local architecture. If you live in Rockridge, Montclair, Temescal, N. Berkeley or The Piedmont Ave. vicinity you will have the amazing opportunity to work with someone with a true love and intimate knowledge of the area. Enough about us, now tell us about you!

Services Provided

Art Selection, Basement Design, Bathroom Design, Bedroom Design, Custom Blinds & Shades, Custom Cabinets, Custom Furniture, Decluttering, Dining Room Design, Downsizing, Drafting, Floor Plans, Furniture Selection, Green Building, Guesthouse Design & Construction, Home Office Design & Construction, Home Theater Design, Interior Design, Kids Bedroom Design, Kitchen Design, Laundry Room Design, Lighting Design, Living Room Design, Mudroom Design, Nursery Design, Playroom Design, Project Management, Space Planning, Sustainable Design, Universal Design, Additions, Kitchen and Bath Remodeling, Family Room Design, Basement Conversion, ADU's, Remodels

Areas Served

Alamo, Bay Point, Benicia, Blackhawk, Canyon, Clayton, Clyde, Concord, Danville, Diablo, El Sobrante, Lafayette, Martinez, Moraga, Oakland, Orinda, Pacheco, Piedmont, Pittsburg, Pleasant Hill, Port Costa, San Ramon, Saranap, Vine Hill, Waldon, Walnut Creek, Dublin, Livermore, Montclair, Berkeley, Rockridge, Montclair Village, Grand Lake

Awards

ASID & AutoCAD Professional, Certified Green Professional,

Back to Navigation

17 Projects

Walnut Creek, CA

Credentials

Back to Navigation

Featured Review

Gina L

Relationship

Client

Write a Review

10 Reviews for Thomas Designs | Design with a Conscience

Newest first

5.0|10 reviews

Work Quality

5.0

Communication

5.0

Value

5.0

HU-200614907

Relationship

Client

Michelle designed two bathrooms for me - both needed to be gutted. What I loved most about working with her is that she took the time to get to know me and "explored" my home with a keen eye to get a feel for my unique style. She then incorporated my style into both bathrooms giving each of them unique looks. I feel so many designers have a "canned" almost staged look to their approach, not so with Michelle! On top of that she worked closely with the contractor to answer questions and come up with solutions to any issues that inevitably came up. Lastly, she did all this with a keen eye on cost and provided green products for much of the work. I can't recommend her enough!

February 3, 2022

Davis & Daughters

Relationship

Colleague

Meticulous designer with great ideas and experience. We've greatly enjoyed working together on her projects as she's very communicative and has great follow up.

January 24, 2022

Comment from Thomas Designs | Design with a Conscience:

Thank you for the kind words! We have enjoyed working with you and your team for many years and look forward to many more to come.

Benchmark Home Construction, Inc.

Relationship

Working colleague

Michelle is a great designer with both logic and creativity. Many designers struggle to balance the economics of a project while dreaming alongside a client. Really enjoy working with Michelle!

August 9, 2019

Comment from Thomas Designs | Design with a Conscience:

Thank you Jason! it has been a pleasure working with you and we appreciate your approach and attention to detail. We look forward to working together on the next project.

Gina L

Relationship

Client

Michelle is absolutely fantastic! I am so grateful to her for so many things but in summary, she made our empty, bare house a warm home which we can now proudly entertain in! I had no idea what I was doing or how to start and she took my vague descriptions of what I like and didn't like and created design boards that even my picky and quick-to-critique husband loved. She is professional and warm, knowledgeable, accommodating, and provides great communication throughout the project. The quality and design of the furniture she gets is incredible and the prices are better than what you could find on your own. I am a huge bargain shopper and price comparison junkie. She beats them all. To top it off, she attended every furniture installation and provided white glove service in the entire experience. I plan to work with her as our children grow up to update their rooms and add additional pieces to our home. She's our Designer for life! I would highly recommend her to anyone looking for a professional designer. I would give her more stars if I could! Thank you, Michelle!

February 5, 2019

Comment from Thomas Designs | Design with a Conscience:

Thank you so much Gina for your review- it means a lot! You and your beautiful family were such a pleasure to work with and I too look forward to working with you all for years to come!

Beth Goodell

Relationship

Client

Michelle's recommendations for my new home were invaluable. She was able to identify my style preferences very quickly and located unique items that I wouldn't have been able to find myself. She helped me furnish my living room, dining room, office space and master bedroom. Her taste is impeccable. I appreciated her gracious service and attention to detail. She made the stressful process of transitioning to a new home enjoyable.

August 27, 2018Last modified:August 27, 2018

Comment from Thomas Designs | Design with a Conscience:

Thank you so much Beth! It was a great pleasure to work with you and I'm happy to hear you are enjoying your new home.

Lisa Bryant

Relationship

Client

Great ideas and was able to pull together my ideas with my husbands, which are very different. Timely and professional. Great contacts as well. We are very pleased with our design. Thank you Michelle!

March 2, 2018

Comment from Thomas Designs | Design with a Conscience:

Thank you Lisa! It was a pleasure to work with you and Bill and I look forward to helping with phase 2.

Sandra Sullivan

Relationship

Client

We found Michelle to be professional and warm. She was able to take our scattered ideas and develop a cohesive design with which we were thrilled.

April 22, 2017

Marc Restrepo

Relationship

Client

Michelle made me feel comfortable immediately and after just moving here I really needed some design help! She helped me pair down all of the old furniture and made suggestions on how I could mix old and then provided me with new. I also needed new paint colors and art throughout. My new place turned out exactly the way I wanted and now I can comfortably settle into Bay Area living. MR - Dublin CA.

March 23, 2017

Tina Gangel

Relationship

Client

I have had Michelle from the Thomas Design Group assist with several projects and I cannot be happier with the results. She worked within my budget and was professional and charming. We need to complete these projects prior to my in-laws coming to visit and we were under the gun. The project was completed on time with amazing results! I would not hesitate to hire her again for renovations or new projects. Thank you Michelle for doing such a great job!

March 21, 2017

Fran S

Relationship

Client

Working with Michelle at Thomas Designs has been a wonderful experience. She has helped me with numerous projects and my guest bath remodel completed last year turned out great. From start to finish she drafted, designed, managed and completed my remodel in the agreed time frame which was very important to me because I had out of town guests coming to visit. Her sense of space and color was perfect and her attention to detail was much appreciated. Having never worked with a Interior Designer before I really didn't know what to expect but she listed to all of my likes dislikes and concerns making me feel comfortable with the process. I am working with her again to refresh and update my Family and Dining room decor and then it's on to remodeling the Kitchen. Needless to say I would highly recommend Michelle and Thomas Designs for all design, remodel and decorating needs.

March 20, 2017Last modified:March 20, 2017

Back to Navigation

1 Ideabook

Back to Navigation

5 Comments

Commented: wall paint accent color help...yes the back wall and stair wall would be nice to use a subtle accent paint color. Or consider doing a warmer color throughout.

May 12, 2017 in Design Dilemma

Commented: Anyone know who makes this light fixture??I believe that's Kalco or Justice Designs

May 12, 2017 in Design Dilemma

Commented: What should I do with this two story fireplace wallI would remove the 2 side niches and have the fireplace framed to the ceiling so that its even.

May 12, 2017 in Design Dilemma

Thomas Designs | Design with a Conscience