How to Decorate Your Home Like Studio McGee: Tips, Tricks & Hacks

Today, we're going to look at how to decorate your home in the style of Studio McGee. The Studio McGee style is very appealing to the masses, which explains why they now have their own Netflix show.

So we're going to look at how to get that look in your own home if that's the kind of style that you're interested in.

Shea McGee has often defined her style as modern traditional or streamlined traditional.

So basically, she fuses modern and traditional elements, and in this way, she manages to keep things feeling classic but without feeling dated or stuffy at the same time. It's a really successful combination of these two styles.

Natural materials

Shay is all about using natural materials in her spaces, so she likes to use jute, wool, seagrass, linens, rattan, and obviously a lot of wood. She uses a lot of white oak or bleached oak, unlacquered brass, which is brass without any protective coating that ages and patinas over time as you use it.

Kitchens

When we look at Studio McGee kitchens right now, she's been using a lot of unlacquered brass. She still does mix metals in her kitchens, but lately, she said that she's been more drawn to actually matching metals in her projects.

I've noticed that she's been gravitating towards the use of tiles that look handmade. In particular, she'll use them above the stove area, and usually, they're in light colors.

She always likes to add a pot filler above the stove. Another thing that Shea also likes to do is place artwork in the kitchen, usually on the countertop.

Shea likes to bring texture into her kitchen by bringing in wood accents, so she'll use wooden cutting boards and utensils, and she'll bring in interesting vessels.

She also adds bunches of greenery, which are ways that she brings warmth into her spaces.

Bedrooms

In the bedrooms, she always uses beds with headboards because she says it makes the room feel more finished, and usually, they're upholstered in a light neutral fabric. Recently, a favorite that I've been noticing is channel back upholstered beds. She almost always uses a bench or a sofa at the foot of the bed.

The beds in her bedrooms are 99% of the time dressed with a variety of mixed textiles in neutral tones with lots of textural layers.

Bathrooms

Most Studio McGee master baths have freestanding tubs. Again, a lot of mixed metals. She usually picks a dominant metal and then picks a secondary metal, like an accent metal.

She uses a lot of marble. She also uses vintage rugs in bathrooms.

Statement lighting

There are always a lot of statement light fixtures in Studio McGee rooms. Shea has said before that she thinks that if you're going to splurge anywhere, one of the places you want to be spending your money is on the lighting fixtures.

I've seen her use quite a few round wagon wheel-type lighting fixtures, and lantern-style light fixtures. She also goes for ultra-modern light fixtures and pendants. She definitely loves an oversized lamp.

She will use those in her entryways a lot, and when she styles consoles, there's usually a large lamp and I've seen her use floor lamps as well.

Furniture

Shea has been using a lot of velvet fabric lately, especially in neutral colors. They also like to mix upholstery, leather, and wood in their seating arrangements and their interiors. They're still using brown leather, and I do not see any black leather being used.

Shea likes to use sofas with bench cushions because nobody falls between the cushions. She will often place a console table behind her sofas if there's room for it.

One other interesting observation about her furniture arrangements in living rooms, in particular, is that she likes to mix leggy furniture with boxier furniture.

Whenever a space is getting too angular or boxy or even too modern, she likes to break things up by adding something with a rounded shape, whether that's a sofa with a rounded back or a round table to break up two very angular pieces of furniture.

Board and Batten

Studio McGee uses Board and Batten a lot. Sometimes, she does it to make ceilings feel taller, and other times, she does it just to add depth to a space. I recommend you do this as well if you have a room that's falling flat, feeling a little boring, or doesn't have any architectural interest. This is so easy to DIY.

Beams, built-ins, and shiplap

Speaking of adding architectural interest, some elements that you'll see time and time again in Studio McGee interiors are beams, built-ins, and shiplap.

She'll often add built-in flanking fireplaces or above a desk or flanking a desk in an office.

You'll also see white painted brick on the interiors sometimes.

There are a lot of white painted shiplap and white beams.

Although the beams aren't always painted white, sometimes she does leave them natural. It just depends on the project and how much wood is also going on in the rest of the space.

Texture

Texture is probably one of the most important things, according to Shea McGee. If you've ever seen a Studio McGee bedroom or living room, then you'll know that Shea loves her pillows. She loves pillows, textiles, and patterns, and this is a big part of what makes her spaces feel so cozy.

She uses a lot of mixed textiles and textural layers. Usually, it's a combination of mixed neutral colors and patterns, often with a lumbar pillow thrown in as well.

Mixed wood tones

Studio McGee mixes wood tones all the time. There's never just one wood tone everywhere. They always seem to find the perfect balance when mixing wood tones as well.

From what I've observed in most of her projects, she always goes with a medium-toned or light-toned hardwood floor with a neutral color leaning towards warmth. She never goes with that cool gray look

Indoor trees

A proper studio McGee room is never complete without a large indoor plant in the corner. Basically, they're indoor trees. Studio McGee's most loved indoor trees are definitely olive trees and a variety of ficus trees. Another way that Studio McGee likes to bring in plants and greenery is by styling large bunches of greenery in statement vessels.

Neutral and vintage rugs

The rugs that Studio McGee uses are pretty much always neutral-toned, often vintage or vintage style. She'll use the odd plaid pattern or stripe, but generally, if you look at her rooms, the rugs are pretty much always muted vintage. Sometimes, she also layers vintage rugs or neutral-toned rugs on top of jute rugs to add an extra layer of coziness.

She does go moody from time to time, and when she does do that, I often see her use mainly inky blues and dark charcoals and the odd dark green, but mostly blue and black.

Warmth and personality

Studio McGee makes a conscious effort to bring character and warmth into new builds, and there are a few methods that she uses over and over to do that. They are one, bringing vintage elements into her spaces.

She'll pretty much always have at least one vintage piece in her room, and this obviously brings character into the room and adds that element of imperfection, which can really help tone down the starkness of a space.

She also likes to bring in personal touches from her homeowners. She'll try to introduce part of a collection or something dear to them.

Do you like the Studio McGee style? How are you using it in your home? Share your ideas in the comments below.

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