about tanya collins

Tanya Collins is principal of Tanya Collins Design, an interior design and decorating firm based in Ottawa. Established in 2006, Tanya has quickly developed a clientele who appreciates her passion for style and design, not to mention her highly personalized and intuitive approach. Her vision for seeing space utilized to its full potential and her flair for creating timeless and fashion-forward interiors are her trademarks. By creating dynamic design tension with unexpected pairings: feminine curvy shapes with masculine linear lines, intense color, graphic pattern, and abstract art with traditional furnishings, antiques and rustic woods with modern architecture, vintage with custom-designed and mass produced with one of a kind, her interiors look more evolved and personal rather than contrived and "done". Overall, they have a chic, clean-lined aesthetic that is classic and sophisticated yet playful and warm. She has a penchant for making a grand and glamorous statement when given the liberty to create drama and impact.

Whether a new build or reconstruction project, Tanya has an eye for maximizing function, flow, light and space. By manipulating the placement of interior walls and windows, balancing light through the interplay of warm and cool paint colors, playing with the scale and proportion of architectural details, and setting up architectural vignettes, no detail is left in question. Tanya has personally lived in an all-white modernist minimal multi- level "loft like" dwelling with catwalks and a soaring 30 foot high ceiling with library ladder but has also lived in a 1910 Edwardian brick home with substantial moulding, panelling, and colorful walls. She understands well the detailing required on both ends of the continuum. Tanya attributes her innate appreciation for design and architecture to her grandfather, who was an early adopter of the emerging Bauhaus movement. He commissioned architect, Henrich Lauterbach, an admirer of Le Corbusier, to construct his "Hasek" villa in 1931 - the first flat-roofed dwelling in the Czech Republic.

Tanya is the Homes Feature Writer for Ottawa Life Magazine (www.ottawalife.com). To date, her work has been sought by the local press notably Style Magazine and Ottawa Magazine, has been featured on the cover of Our Homes Magazine Anniversary Edition, has been used for televised promotion, and has been mentioned in various style blogs and decor portfolios. She is a strong supporter of her community, spearheading the 1st Old Ottawa South Home Tour in 2009 to raise funds for the re-development of the Firehall Community Center and is a regular donor to the Cornerstone Housing for Homeless Women Foundation.

Tanya continues to be inspired by the beauty all around her, whether in nature or in art as seen in the details - color, light, form, and texture. She is thankful for her clients, who challenge her to create in new ways. By sharing her passion and inspiration, she hopes her clients enjoy a greater quality of life.