San Francisco, United States
Discover how Isolina Mallon, the founder of a San Francisco interior design studio, made 3D work a fundamental part of her workflow to collaborate with other design and construction professionals, win clients, build client loyalty and continue to pursue innovative and bold designs.
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Living room modeled in SketchUp. Image courtesy of Isolina Mallon.
For Isolina Mallon, SketchUp is a must-have tool in her interior design process that helps her create her amazing, award-winning designs faster and easier. From her beginnings as a designer for furniture showrooms and large companies, to her current work as a designer and entrepreneur, her mindset and 3D designs helped her adapt to ever-changing circumstances.
Living room, interior design by Isolina Mallon. Photography courtesy of Jean Bai Photography.
Exploring a new way of designing
Isolina studied interior design at university in the early 2000s, when interior design work was based on hand-drawn sketches and design proposals were done in watercolor. When Isolina finished her studies and began her career as an interior designer, an engineer friend told her about a new 3D modeling software. Although Isolina still had to deliver hand-drawn designs to the client, she quickly found a way to incorporate the new software, SketchUp, into her workflow.
Working in 3D helped Isolina to design more efficiently, experiment more freely and create visualizations that communicated her ideas clearly. In 2011, Isolina moved from Spain to San Francisco where she opened her own design firm. SketchUp helped her communicate with potential clients and experiment with the new types of architectural and design sensibilities she encountered in California.
Children's bedroom, modeled in SketchUp. Image courtesy of Isolina Mallon.
3D interior design: from idea to completion
SketchUp is part of Isolina's interior design process in all of its projects, from planning and design to client communication and execution. Here are some of the advantages of using 3D modeling in all phases of an interior design project.
3D Design
At the beginning of each interior design project, Isolina creates a 3D model of the space she will be working on. A member of her team measures the existing space and she creates the model in SketchUp. Once she knows the dimensions, Isolina creates the 3D model directly with the structural materials, without including furniture, lighting fixtures or other elements that are not inherent to the space. During the modeling process, she becomes familiar with the volumes and relationships between walls, doors, windows and existing infrastructure such as lighting, plumbing and site carpentry.
I leave the room empty in my mind and in my model. Starting from scratch is the best way to create something new.
- Isolina Mallon, interior designer
He likes the freedom SketchUp gives him to quickly explore room design ideas. For example, testing whether you'd like to use armchairs or a sofa in a particular space takes just a few moments. With the "Reload" component, you can change the furniture and explore the potential in a matter of seconds.
Isolina is also a 3D Warehouse enthusiast. She loves the ability to find and specify models from real furniture companies. She also uploaded some of her own models to 3D Warehouse to share with other users.
3D model capture of an iron and brass ceiling lamp, modeled by Isolina Mallon and uploaded to SketchUp's 3D Warehouse.
I always use SketchUp in my work and that's how I feel comfortable. I know the result will be good if I start in 3D and create everything else from there.
- Isolina Mallon, interior designer
Manage the expectations of interior design clients
With SketchUp, Isolina easily makes changes based on customer feedback before purchasing furniture or making major modifications. Unlike designers who only generate lists of furniture for an interior design, Isolina can easily communicate her entire vision to her clients by showing them models and conceptual renderings.
I design everything in 3D and add colors and materials. It helps me a lot when it comes to convincing clients. Instead of giving them long explanations, it's as simple as: "It's going to look like this". It works great.
- Isolina Mallon, interior designer
Isolina creates renderings for her clients using V-Ray and Photoshop. Her clients are thrilled to see that the finished projects look exactly like the renderings Isolina created before even installing a single piece of the design.
Collaborations between design and construction
When Isolina created her interior design firm in San Francisco, she found a new community of design/build professionals to collaborate with. It was exciting to work with new people and different design sensibilities, but also challenging when they didn't share the same cultural and educational background. SketchUp made it easy for him to communicate with his collaborators through the universal language of 3D.
Thanks to the 3D models, Isolina can easily convey your lighting, plumbing and space needs. If you think a window or door needs to be moved, SketchUp is the perfect communication tool to collaborate with architects.
He also worked with carpenters and closet manufacturers to make custom designs. In a huge San Francisco apartment tower, an unsightly column ruined what could have been a space that gave a sense of openness and freedom. Isolina transformed the ugliness of the column into a pleasing sight. She designed custom planters and shelves to beautify the column, and added beauty and color to a space that was once mostly white.
SketchUp model for a wall with planters. Image courtesy of Isolina Mallon.
2D documentation for a wall with planters. Images courtesy of Isolina Mallon.
To fabricate the planters, Isolina modeled the design within the overall departmental model. She shared .skp files and 2D LayOut drawings with the carpenter, and he was able to create precisely what Isolina had in mind.
Photograph of wall with planters. Image courtesy of Isolina Mallon.
For a custom design, use SketchUp. It's the best.
- Isolina Mallon, interior designer
Recommendations for modeling in SketchUp
Isolina believes that the best way to learn how to use SketchUp is through constant practice. SketchUp's intuitive tools make it easy to get started with simple models and allow you to progress at your own pace. When new features come out, Isolina visits the SketchUp help center and YouTube channel to learn about new tools or workflows.
1. A good organization
Isolina recommends keeping models organized. Properly labeling all components is a good way to save time. Isolina can extract models from years-old customer projects and immediately jump to the customer's new idea because she already has an accurate working base.
2. The model must be lightweight
Another recommendation from Isolina: don't try to make very heavy or complicated models, at least at the beginning. At the moment of realizing your design ideas, do it with few polygons and as simple a model as possible. This will allow you to keep adding elements without worrying about the model becoming overly complicated.
3. Get inspired by 3D Warehouse
To get inspiration for her designs, Isolina likes to look at catalogs and exhibitions, especially the Milan Furniture Fair, the largest of its kind in the world. One of her favorite features of a piece of furniture is that it's available in 3D Warehouse! If Isolina can easily use a piece of furniture in her models, it will be much easier to use it in a final design as well.
4. Don't be afraid to iterate
Isolina recommends trying to think about the future of a design: is the design choice a trend that will become obsolete in a couple of years or will it stand the test of time? Finally, Isolina uses the time she saves with SketchUp to experiment: trying out new ideas with the boldness that characterizes the spaces she designs.
Getting to know the world through interior design
Isolina's bold, modern style and penchant for creative risks took her to places she never would have gone if she weren't an innovative interior designer; for example, to a Masonic lodge. Usually, only members get to see the interior meeting rooms in Masonic lodges, but the lodge members knew they needed outside help to renovate their space.
It was a complex project for Isolina because there were rigorous limits to the final design product and also many stakeholders to please. When she renovated the interior meeting room, she created models and renderings that allowed a group of people with no design experience to reimagine their space and be in tune with the big changes. They loved Isolina's design vision, and the interior work proceeded harmoniously thanks to the accurate information her models conveyed to contractors and collaborators.
SketchUp model and V-Ray renderings of a masonic lodge meeting space. Click on the arrows to scroll through the images. Images courtesy of Isolina Mallon.
I always say that without risk there is no glory.
- Isolina Mallon, interior designer
Isolina doesn't hesitate to take risks with her designs to achieve glorious results. Incorporating SketchUp into her interior design workflow facilitates the process of testing new ideas and gaining client buy-in. In addition, SketchUp helps her convey her innovative design ideas to other design and construction professionals so they can help her create custom jobs.
Try SketchUp for free and unleash your creative interior design potential.
About Isolina Mallon Interiors
Isolina Mallon Interiors is a full-service, award-winning interior design studio based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The studio specializes in high-end modern residential interiors in Northern California and Spain. It collaborates with clients, architects, builders, landscapers and craftsmen to create practical and innovative interiors with seamless and consistent cohesion. By taking into account all aspects of the client's life, each room offers a unique narrative. The spaces created are a reflection of the people who occupy them and reveal Isolina Mallon's passion for modern design and her European roots. On her blog, she shares experiences from her journey in the design world from the perspective of contact with clients. You can also see some of her models uploaded to 3D Warehouse.
