Having studied and worked in the creative arts for over fifteen years, it was Melissa’s education in Interior Decorating where she made the natural connection between the fundamentals of Interior Decorating and Design and Prop Styling. Maintaining status on the Dean’s Honour List for all four semesters, Melissa ultimately earned the highest honour in her graduating class for creative, academic and professional excellence.

It wasn’t long before Melissa began assisting and working in New York City, Vancouver and Toronto alongside leading set designers and prop stylists for clients such as Shopify, Bloomingdales, Schumacher and Verizon. It was in these experiences where she was able to refine her instinct for composition, point of view and visual impact.

From hand sketching and drawing to graphic design and brand development her varied experience working as a creative has only deepened her love and understanding Interior + Prop Styling: creating impactful spaces and scenes that evoke personality, storytelling and intrigue.

Most recently, Melissa is a part-time professor in the Interior Decorating Program at Algonquin College.

My approach is simple: listen, observe, brainstorm, create.  

After years of exploring a multitude of creative avenues, it has come to pass that working in three-dimensional space is where I can most confidently bridge my skills, talent and deep desire to connect to the human story. It is through our environment and the spaces we keep that we can find true peace of mind, refuge and solace.

My motivation to do this work lies in my earnest belief in the collective power of space and beauty and the way in which it influences our lives. There is no question that space can inspire or impair us, that mindful decoration or thoughtful design can change the landscape of our experiences. Visual storytelling has immeasurable reach, the ability to affect lives and history, to provoke change globally or emotionally, or to simply offer a small dose of pleasure to an anonymous passerby.

This has been my own personal discovery which I continue to investigate wholeheartedly.