Tag: balancing functionality and elegance in interiors

The interior designer and Director at KT Designs discusses emotion led planning, originality in luxury spaces, and the role of memory in modern homes in an interview with Prittle Prattle News

For Karishma Trehan, design begins long before sketches, materials, or finishes enter the conversation. When stepping into a new space, her attention is drawn first to its untapped potential. She describes this as sensing the quiet possibilities a room holds, shaped by light, scale, and movement, which ultimately form the emotional foundation of every project she undertakes.
As Director of KT Designs, Trehan’s approach moves beyond surface level styling. She believes a home should feel lived, loved, and deeply personal. This, she says, comes from intentional decisions such as thoughtful layouts, layered textures, personal artifacts, and objects that reflect the rhythms of everyday life. For her, design is not about decoration alone, but about shaping how a space feels to those who inhabit it.

Balancing functionality with elegance remains central to her studio’s work. Trehan recalls a recent compact urban apartment project that tested this balance. With limited space and a client seeking a calm, refined environment, every planning decision required precision. Achieving a seamless blend of practicality and luxury, she says, reinforced her belief that thoughtful design can allow both to exist without compromise.
Her philosophy that space is the breath of art becomes especially relevant in cities such as Gurgaon. In fast paced urban settings, Trehan focuses on creating interiors that offer pause and relief. Light filled rooms, open planning, natural materials, and balanced proportions help create environments that feel calm rather than crowded, allowing art, life, and movement to coexist with ease.

When clients struggle to articulate their own style, Trehan begins not with visuals, but with conversation. She spends time understanding memories, habits, lifestyle patterns, and emotional preferences. Mood boards then help translate these insights into a visual language, allowing clients to recognise what feels authentic to them. Her role, she explains, is to guide and refine rather than impose a fixed aesthetic.
Among all design elements, natural light remains non negotiable. Trehan describes it as the soul of a space, one that transforms rooms throughout the day and influences mood, energy, and material expression. Without natural light, she believes a space remains incomplete, no matter how carefully designed.

In an industry often crowded with lookalike luxury, Trehan preserves originality by listening closely. Understanding the individual behind each project allows instinct and research to work together, resulting in homes that reflect distinct personalities rather than trends. No two projects, she notes, should ever look alike.
Social media, particularly Instagram, serves a storytelling purpose rather than a promotional one for her brand. She uses it to share process, craftsmanship, and behind the scenes details that give context and meaning to finished spaces, allowing audiences to engage with design as an experience rather than a visual alone.

Memory also plays a quiet but powerful role in her work. From childhood reading corners to spaces shaped around personal rituals, Trehan often integrates elements of a client’s past into contemporary interiors. These details create familiarity and emotional depth, making homes feel comforting and rooted.
The idea of being high end yet human, a phrase often associated with her work, reflects her belief that luxury should feel warm and inviting. Through tactile materials, soft lighting, and personal details, she ensures that refinement never distances the people who live within the space.

If she were to design a space purely for herself, Trehan says it would be defined by light, books, art, and simplicity. Excess would be left behind, replaced by serenity and authenticity, values that quietly run through every project she brings to life.

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