Who We Are
MN Studio is a full service interior design firm which offers professional expertise on projects from concept to completion. The mission at MN Studio is to create functionally beautiful interiors as unique and engaging as the clients we serve. With a creative spirit, we merge timeless design and a purposeful approach to elevate home, work, and play. With a focus on custom residential, workplace, and hospitality project types, the firm takes on projects of all sizes, including new construction, renovations, furnishing and interior styling. MN Studio believes in the power of good design and its ability to positively transform environments for its people. Our team creates beautiful interior spaces designed to bring function and value to your home or business.
Natalie Greenside and Melissa Mohr Brown are the owners and lead designers of MN Studio. Prior to founding MN Studio, the partners worked at several highly reputable architectural firms and gained invaluable knowledge in project management, finish material selections, architectural detailing and construction documentation, construction team dynamics, green building practices, the permitting process, and client relations. Most recently, Mel and Natalie worked together at the Cearnal Collective, a long established and respected architecture firm in Santa Barbara, California. It was there the women grew the interior design division within the firm and ultimately decided to take their unique skill sets and client-focused approach into their own practice. MN Studio strives to provide truly exceptional customer service and values a collaborative project team. The firm has the capability and experience necessary to excel in interior renovations, ground up construction, and collaborative multi-disciplinary projects. With a wealth of knowledge and abundant industry connections, the team at MN Studio prioritize making the construction process less stressful and significantly more enjoyable for their clients. As client advocates, we put their needs first while shepherding our shared design vision through the building process and provide turnkey service whenever possible.
Natalie Greenside
Founder | Principal | LEED AP
Before Pinterest and Instagram, people sought out inspiration through open houses and model homes. Growing up in Santa Barbara, Natalie was forced to join her mother on these inspirational outings and she complained about this a lot. Her appreciation for design and beautiful things developed over the years and surprise plot twist, she became an Interior Designer and genuinely loves it! In 2008 she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Interior Architecture and Design from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco and has since worked on a wide breadth of engaging and challenging projects.
Natalie takes great pleasure in working closely with her clients and developing long standing relationships built on mutual trust and good design. She strives to produce chic, livable interiors and has proven that understanding a client’s needs through thoughtful programming and the ability to truly listen are her special skills and passion. Prior to launching MN Studio, Natalie worked at the Cearnal Collective where she had lead the interiors division since 2008. In 2018, she cofounded the Santa Barbara State Street Holiday Window Walk; an annual event which reimagines vacant storefronts through the eyes of local interior designers and design industry partners.
Her dish of choice is macaroni and cheese (artisanal or boxed) and drink of choice is a French 75 because adding gin to champagne makes it a lot more fun. She is beyond obsessed with her nieces and nephew, and she hopes to one day hunt for truffles in Italy. Until then, Natalie will be in the office and looks forward to working with you.
Melissa Mohr Brown
Founder | Principal | NCIDQ, LEED AP
Building on seventeen years of industry experience with a broad range of skills in both interior design and architectural project delivery, Melissa is a highly resourceful designer with a strong work ethic and creative spirit. She received her Bachelor of Science in Interior Design from Bowling Green State University in 2005 where she competed on the women’s volleyball team and graduated with honors. She became a licensed interior designer in 2014 and a LEED Accredited Professional in 2008. Prior to cofounding MN Studio, Mel worked as an interior designer at several multi-disciplinary firms in Santa Barbara and Los Angeles including the Cearnal Collective, HOK and DLR Group where she focused on workplace, hospitality, custom residential, higher education, and sports facility project types. Mel loves the creative process involved in each unique project and the challenge of translating conceptual designs into buildable spaces. She and her fellow designers foster a team-oriented studio and strive to engage with the local design community whenever possible. Mel leads the workplace and hospitality studios within the firm and thrives on the diversity of project types and creative range her team gets to implement each day into their work.
Prior to relocating to Santa Barbara in 2017, Mel and her husband stepped away from their careers in Los Angeles for a 22-month travel sabbatical where they explored five continents and gained invaluable creative inspiration. As a native Midwesterner (what’s round on both sides and high in middle? O-H-I-O!), Mel loves meeting new people and taking advantage of California’s great outdoors. When not in the office you can find her enjoying the beach with her family, taking in a concert at the SB Bowl, hiking in the hills above the city, or planning her next adventure.
Gina Soohoo
Senior Associate | Interior Designer | NCIDQ
Beginning her career in 2009 Gina is building upon 13 years of industry experience. She is a licensed Interior Designer specializing in hospitality and corporate workplace interiors. Throughout her career she has built a diverse portfolio of work ranging from creative office to high-end hospitality and healthcare projects.
Gina is a native Angeleno but Santa Barbara has always been her second home. In 2007 she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from UCSB in Global Studies. She spent most of her senior year abroad in Europe where she fell in love with architecture and the evolution of design. This love for design inspired her to pursue a Masters Degree of Interior Architecture from UCLA Extension / Cal Poly Pomona, completing her degree in only their second graduating class in 2011.
Prior to joining MN Studio, Gina worked as an interior designer at several multi-disciplinary firms in Los Angeles including Gensler, nbbj and SFA Design. The first five years of her career were spent at boutique interior design firms focusing on high-end hospitality projects; the Waldorf Astoria La Quinta Resort renovation with SFA Design remains one of the projects she holds close to her heart. The last seven years of her career have been focused on corporate workplace interiors for tech and entertainment clients including Netflix & Google to name a few. Most recently she completed a 375,000 SF workplace campus project for a confidential Fortune 500 tech media client in Hollywood, as well as a 100,000 SF of creative workplace interiors for a confidential animation client in Burbank, California.
Gina brings a unique and holistic approach to design. She is experienced in all facets of design and excels in conceptualization, space planning, FF&E selection, construction documentation, interior detailing, and specification writing. She is passionate about creating tactile human experiences and believes that good design should be accessible for everyone. She thrives off of collaboration and the process of realizing design into a functional reality. When not designing, you can find Gina on the pitch playing soccer, rocking out to live music, thrift shopping, or (purposely) getting lost on mountain trails.
Rachel Lijana
Senior Associate | Interior Designer | Associate AIA
Rachel brings over a decade of wide-ranging experience to MN Studio. After earning her bachelor’s degree in architecture from Miami University in 2009, she began her career in furniture and interior design with Knoll in Philadelphia. She moved to California in 2014 with an opportunity to join the innovative and award-winning studios at Gensler and later, As Is Architecture + Design. She relocated to Santa Barbara and collaborated with Anacapa Architecture before joining Mel and Natalie at MN Studio. Throughout her multi-disciplinary design career, she has created and constructed successful workplace, residential and hospitality projects, each unique to the client. And has honed her skills in conceptual design, strategic planning, project management, and construction.
Rachel’s passion is rooted in human connection- with others, with the built environment and with the earth. She is a thoughtful community builder- something that drives her values as well as her design ethos. She is happiest when she is celebrating the moment- when she is dancing, surrounded by good food, good people and immersed in the culture from her local and global travels. Currently nurturing a green thumb and an expensive cheese habit.
Milky Way
Office Dog | Head of Security
Milky is a fun-loving canine employee with a big heart and even bigger smile. He’s a total people person and comes to the studio each day with a positive attitude and plenty of personality. His charm and good looks make up for his lack of drafting skills and occasional barking at the delivery person. When Milky is not at the office greeting visitors and working the phones, you can find him chasing his favorite chuck-it ball at Hendry’s, having a beer in the Funk Zone, or cozying up with his family at home. Next time you’re at the office be sure to give him a few pets and a treat, you’ll certainly have a friend for life!
Petunia
Office Dog | Head of Hospitality
Petunia is new to the studio but she is a quick study, what she lacks in experience she makes up for in sheer cuteness. She enjoys soaking up the morning sunlight in the driveway, harassing Milky, and reviewing plan sets while chewing on her bone. Despite her frequent naps and light snoring, she is a total sweetheart and always up for a good snuggle. She’s always down for a good party and the force behind our impromptu happy hours.