I'm Melissa and I love design.

In 2004 I moved from the San Francisco Bay Area to Los Angeles to study architecture, landscape and furniture design at Art Center College of Design. In 2009 I graduated with a B.S. in Environmental Design and have been working in multiple design disciplines ever since. My main focus at ACCD was sustainable design, which is what inevitably led me to pursue the environmentally regenerative practice of landscape design.
As a species, humans instinctively desire to be in nature, to experience the sublime and then to return to our organized shelter at the end of the day. Landscape design poses the opportunity to reverse engineer our most basic needs; to contain the wilds and create a sense of outdoor shelter. My design sense is rooted in an organized modern framework, but with an Eames-like enthusiasm for textures, colors, scents and occasional moments of maximalism. As a Certified Native Landscaper, I have a particular interest in rewilding and decolonization with native biodiversity in urban and developed settings. In addition, I have a love for plant materials which are compatible with our mediterranean climate, from the succulents of Madagascar, to Australian and South African native plants. Landscape design is the perfect job for someone who craves to always be learning and inspired and this is why I do what I do.
Although I love pretty much all things design, I have a particular love for typography and brand strategy. When I’m not designing, I have many extracurricular activities including art directing Addiction Magazine, exploring the Eastern Sierra backcountry, soaking in natural hot springs, swimming in rivers and writing and recording music, and occasionally touring with musical projects Breezers and Yuba.

Say Hello

Office Location

Highland Park, Los Angeles, CA

melissa@mlcdesign.us