Marc Gelinas arrived in Santa Barbara five years ago with little money but experience in interior design. Through hard work and talent, he has established a successful design studio. Originally from Rhode Island, he obtained a degree in interior design and worked for a top New York design firm for over a decade. Though he initially struggled in Santa Barbara, word of mouth led to projects that established his reputation. Gelinas now has over a dozen residential projects throughout Santa Barbara County in progress. His design approach is tailored to each client's individual tastes and he oversees projects from concept to completion. Gelinas' success shows that with skill and perseverance, even in difficult times one can find their niche.

1. The Six Hundred
Dollar Man
Marc Gelinas Is Right at Home
50 May 2014

2. By Joshua Brayer
F
ive years ago, Marc Gelinas arrived in Santa Barbara with a wealth of
interior design knowledge and experience in his back pocket, but very
little else. A little bit of luck, combined with heaping spoonfuls of talent
and faith, helped him weather the lean years to the point of being able to
establish his very own thriving design studio in Santa Barbara County.
A native of Rhode Island, Gelinas obtained a Bachelor of Fine Arts with Honors
in interior design from the renowned Pratt Institute in New York City in the mid-
80’s, before going to work for the firm founded by society designer Gary Crain in
Manhattan.
While with Crain from 1986-1998, Gelinas worked exclusively on high-end
residential projects that were primarily rooted in a traditional design aesthetic, a
reflection of Crain’s background. This experience has served him well in developing
a rapport with an upscale and discerning clientele that was drawn to the firm by its
reputation of providing full-service design that reflects the homeowners’ tastes. >
interior design
Interior designer Marc Gelinas
has an innate ability to find
pieces that truly complement
the original architecture.
This Modern living room (left)
features a sofa by Minotti USA;
chandelier by Ochre, available
through David Sutherland in
L.A.; and rug and coffee table
by Design Within Reach.
The bathroom (right) is
anchored by an Agape sink
and mirror and illuminated by
black lacquered light
sockets with frosted bulbs.
Photo by Isaac Hernandez
Keys to Paradise 51

3. In the late 1990s Gelinas left the City and returned to his home
state, working for a small design firm and then as a director of sales
of a large, national gift company. However, it wasn’t long before
Gelinas felt the urge to strike out on his own and get back into
design. Feeling the need for a significant change of pace, Gelinas
packed up his things and headed west in 2009, with visions of a
career in Los Angeles or San Francisco dancing in his head.
“I came to Santa Barbara with literally six hundred dollars in my
pocket and no prospects,” Gelinas said, with more than just a trace
of a New York/New England accent. Though he tells this tale with
the calmness belying an enlightened Buddhist monk, an undertone
of despair hung over the conversation like a gothic wrought-iron
chandelier.
“While nothing seemed to be working out to go to L.A. or San
Francisco, I was asked to design a house on East Mountain Drive,”
he said, “which led to another project in Aspen,” and word began to
spread through Montecito and beyond. Today, the talented designer
has over a dozen projects “in varying stages of completion,” from a
beach house on Fernald Point, to homes on San Ysidro Road, East
Mountain Drive, and in Hope Ranch, among other residences in
Santa Barbara County and beyond.
There is no questioning the fact that Gelinas’ talent as an interior
designer has helped his stock rise. It may be his ability to fill a variety
of roles that makes him such a highly sought-after commodity in the
home industry.
“Pratt doesn’t teach you how to design,” said Gelinas. “Interior
designers get an education that’s based in architecture and
functional space, and how angles work.”
Gelinas’ education; deep passion for comprehending the
entire process of how spaces, colors, fabrics, and light can work
together to make a statement; and a highly attuned artistic eye and
understanding of his clients allows him to assist clients not only with
regard to interior design, but also with regard to which homes would
suit their tastes in the first place. >
This project called for a more traditional, colorful palette, so Gelinas brought in a Mattaliano sofa that is complemented by Christian Liaigre chairs in pale blue linen
and antique French chairs. Above the mantel is an 18th-century French sun god hanging onto a 19th-century French mirror. Photo by Kristin Renee
Keys to Paradise 53

4. “I like to call it ‘construction to
sheets projects,’” he said. “I can
help with construction management,
flooring, architectural drawings, tiling,
interior design, fabrics; I can help
usher construction plans through the
permitting process, and I help clients
choose the art that hangs in their home
or office.”
Although Gelinas certainly has his own
design aesthetic, he has an innate ability
to ensure the client gets what the client
wants. “I listen very carefully to their
needs, wishes, tastes, and design, so
that the final project reflects the client
and not me,” he said. Projects can take
up to a year, largely because everything
is bespoke, with furniture built to the size
and color specification of each individual
client. Almost nothing is purchased right
off the showroom floor. >
A simple but thoughtful stripped-down design allows for unobstructed views of the pool and beyond from a
Blu Dot King bed, offset by a Knoll Womb Chair and antique rug from William Laman Antiques in Montecito.
Photo by Isaac Hernandez
Gelinas adds some highlights to an ultra-Modern kitchen, including cabinets and countertop by Acheo of Italy, and custom wet bar area by designer.
The hanging light fixture (background) is custom, and the pendant lights (foreground) are by Artek. Clock is the client’s own, from NYC. Photo by Isaac Hernandez
Keys to Paradise 55

5. Prospects may have looked a little bleak five years ago, but there is
no question that Gelinas has found his niche and is right where he is
supposed to be and doing what he loves and what he knows best. In
high school, he was taking classes at the vaunted Rhode Island School
of Design, and he’s known since then that design was in his blood.
“I started pushing furniture around the house at the age of 10,” said
Gelinas. “My ninth grade art teacher had an issue of Architectural
Digest, and the first time I saw it I knew right then and there that
I wanted to be an interior designer.” He even remembers that
magazine.
“There was a Southern plantation belonging to George Hamilton on
the cover,” he said.
And he has that innate ability to walk into a room and be able to
completely redesign it, from furniture, flooring, and fabrics to wall
coverings—all within a few minutes’ time.
“Then comes the hard part of executing it,” said Gelinas.
Among the projects Gelinas recently finished executing is a modern
home for New York City fashion designer Kikka Hanazawa, CEO of
VPL. In this instance, Gelinas was brought in by the real estate agent
to consult on choosing a home that would suit the contemporary
design aesthetic that the client sought from the get-go. Once the
team found the right house, Gelinas was tasked with working on a
very short and tight deadline for the busy bicoastal client.
As a fashion designer herself, Hanazawa was clear about what she
wanted, and everyone was on the same page as far as what would
work best to achieve a clean, simple, modern look that maximized
light and minimized color to keep the focal point on the home’s
natural views.
With an eye toward customer satisfaction and building reputation,
Gelinas has consistently sought to work with colleagues who are
at the top of their game—from the textile designers and furniture
builders, to contractors, real estate agents, architects, electricians,
and landscape designers, Gelinas taps into connections from as near
as Santa Barbara to as far as India and Paris. He knows where to go
and who to call to accomplish what his clients want, which makes
him not only a great designer, but also a good businessman.
At this rate, the skylight’s the limit for Gelinas in Santa Barbara.
Marc Gelinas, 1482 East Valley Road, 805-722-0052,
marcnormandgelinas.com.
This custom banquette is complemented by framed 18th-century architectural prints, a 19th-century French table with 18th-century Italian chairs;
the lantern is from Mallett Antiques of London. Photo by Kristin Renee
Keys to Paradise 57