Stella graduated with a degree in Economics from the University of East Anglia followed by a Masters in International Banking and Finance from the University of Southampton. After a short career in banking and the hospitality industry she decided to give it all up and follow her lifelong dream. This took her back to college, where she studied Interior and Spatial Design at the Chelsea College of Art and Design. She went on to establish her own practice, Studio Stella Vasel, in 2001.

Stella's high quality work focuses on crisp clean lines, uncluttered forms and great attention to detail. Through great use of light and rigorous geometry, combined with the serene, continuous and unrestricted flow of space and natural materials, her work conveys a feeling of elegant solemnity. Strong sculptural forms are apparent in every project together with her favourite materials - concrete, marble, wood and metal. When it comes to interior decorating, Stella's own predilections tend toward neutral palettes, natural materials in the form of leather, linen and silk and selected objects from different eras. She likes mixing art and crafts, the old with the new, the very simple and the very strong whatever the provenance.

She is not a believer of rules in creative expression. She fully embraces the concept that a room should never allow the eye to settle in one place, but it should provoke the imagination. Stella finds beauty in the fine details around her and designs in a way that leads to a simple way of gracious everyday living. She likes to create fluid environments that feel casual yet chic, luxurious yet relaxing, classical yet timeless. She creates inventive, functional interiors with a strong refined architectural identity.“Interiors should be tailored to how people live, rooms should flow from one area to another and not enclaved in themes. Most importantly, they should reflect the spirit and soul of the people who inhabit them. Designing requires deep understanding and versatility to successfully convert the clients' vision into a spatial narrative”. Each commission is conceived as a one-off project tailored to the space, the personality and lifestyle of each client.

The cohesion - or even clash - between different exclusive and unique materials elevate this identity. Stella's desire is to create unique projects that are a sophisticated counterpoint between aesthetics and rational. "At the studio, we reinvent, we don't like repetition, we force ourselves to dig further and further until we get it right. We design everything from scratch, down to the last detail, and we customize to a great extent. In order to deliver a high standard of bespoke work we collaborate globally with an elite network of artisans." For each project an initial concept is developed, detailed and successfully delivered through to the final stages, providing full interior design solutions and project management for all types of clients, whether private residential or commercial clients, including residential and office developments, hotels and resorts.

"Designing is the only thing I could imagine doing. This is my calling. It isn't even a choice. I was meant to do this and I do it willingly and passionately. It's the most amazing thing."