indigo & ochre design

Shanti Crawford, the owner of indigo & ochre, assisted with paint colors, window treatments, and furnishings for our UWS classic 7. She helped guide us to great selections, as well as serving as a thoughtful mediator when my spouse and I had differing views. Shanti sourced an expert fabricator for the window treatments and fabric work, and, moreover, put us onto a very talented artist, John Coburn, who created a beautiful mural for our hallway, which is a source of delight for us and our guests - see pictures.

Hiring Shanti to help us update our home was a decision my wife and I wholeheartedly agree was a great decision. Shanti is a talented professional with an impeccable eye for design and artistic vision. She is knowledgeable, creative, patient, delightful, and passionate about her work. With her guidance, we prioritized our home projects, developed a game plan, and trusted her vision that it would all work. Shanti took stock of our existing home furniture and then helped us shop for pieces that filled in the gaps. She is skilled at sourcing items and highly budget conscious. We loved working with Shanti, and love our home! We could not recommend her highly enough!

We had the pleasure to work with Shanti on a project for our new Brooklyn Heights apartment. We found her because she had remodeled an apartment that we previously rented and we decided to work with her because, looking at her website, we immediately loved her style, her choices and her taste. All her work is fantastic. We'd also say that we had never encountered before anyone that matched our intentions and ideas as well as Shanti. From the first exchange, it was great to see how engaged she was, how knowledgeable she was and how much she got us. We quickly came to an agreement of what we wanted to do, and we then moved into selecting colours and pieces with her. Again, it was great to see how much she got us and how each one of her suggestion made everything better. Working with her was really pleasant too, and there was never any tension. The work itself run quite smoothly and all the contractors she brought in did an excellent job, and even finished it earlier than expected. What else to say? It's probably the best experience we ever had with a designer. We'd definitely would like to work with her again.

Working with Shantil has been a dream where she was like my fairy godmother making my dream kitchen a reality. I LOVE working with Shanti and hope to work with her again for the rest of my home. I shared my overall vision with her along with a few photos and she instantly got my style and how to translate it to my contractor and other instrumental artisans in transforming my kitchen. She was patient, understanding, and talented in creating a space that was beautiful, cozy, and functional. She was an amazing collaborator and partner to me and my contractor and we created a space that was special and unique. Looking back at the process, I am so happy I brought Shanti in from start to finish. There are not enough stars above to cover how amazing it is to work with her.

I wish I had 100 homes just so I could keep working with Shanti. She is truly amazing!!! Not only does she have a great eye, but she was extremely patient and very sensitive to my budget. She was very clear about what was worth the investment and where a lesser expensive alternative wouldn’t be out of place. She also did a great job “shopping” from what I already had, and allowing me to see my pieces in a whole new light. She is extremely knowledgeable and is very good at sourcing items. I liked her emphasis on vintage and refurbished items, but I also liked that she wasn’t dogmatic about it - sometimes a vintage piece works and sometimes it doesn’t. I can’t say I was the easiest to work with - I questioned everything at first - but I quickly came to trust her eye and wanted my home to be “worthy” of her website. It was really a joy to work with Shanti, and I love, love, love my home!

Shanti was the mastermind behind our apartment renovation in 2018 which included a kitchen and bathroom redesign as well as a complete furniture/decor overhaul. Shanti was was very patient through the design process (which cannot be overstated given some serious indecisiveness) and really helped to guide us in designing a beautiful and functional apartment that far exceeded our expectations. We love the combination of new and old pieces which bring so much more warmth to our space. We love Shanti's aesthetic and our apartment finally felt like "home", for the first time in 8 years, once the redesign was complete. I can say without hesitation that were it not for Shanti's beautiful work, we would have moved on from our apartment years ago. My apartment continues to bring me joy every time I walk in the door, 5 years after completion of the project.

We’ve worked with Indigo & Ochre on several millwork projects and each time the design feels completely unique. Shanti communicates the needs of her clients and her vision so clearly. Her use of color and finishes is unmatched and always results in such warm and inviting spaces. She’s an excellent designer and considerate collaborator that we hope to work with for years to come!

Eight years ago, Shanti helped us with a small project- slipcovers, shades, etc. Immediately I knew she was the ideal person to tackle long-delayed remodeling in our apartment. Shanti heard what I wanted- simple, beautiful, functional. Let’s keep as much as possible what is already there. What was even better, she understood my taste better than I could explain it. In the years since Shanti has helped us: -Renovate two 1929 bathrooms while retaining their period style and improving functionality for aging in place. One bathtub out, instead walk-in shower with built in bench, other bathtub reglazed to perfection, sinks bigger and higher, ditto for toilets, attractive well-placed grab bars. Beautiful, not geriatric. Shanti arranged with contractor so we did not have to move out; one bathroom done first then the other. Although not optimal way to do the job, we were accommodated. -Update kitchen with new cabinets, counter and backsplash. Drawers instead of doors for improved accessibility, better lighting. My one splurge -a soapstone countertop. Since there was enough material, Shanti suggested a deep soapstone sink with an off-center drain. -Refresh the master bedroom with custom built corner shelving, different bedside tables, lamps, and my own embroidery on the curtains. She suggested online shops. It was a lot of fun to search on my own plus big savings. Ex. Pair of alabaster lamps $125! Shanti takes care of details. I wanted beveled mirrors in the vanities. She gave me options. Overwhelmed by the multiplicity of white subway tile and kitchen hardware, she narrowed it down to three choices. She gave me clever ideas for organizing cabinets with little cost. She edited the designs for embroidery. She is unflappable with big problems. In spite of installers measurements, the stone counter did not fit in the elevator and had to be hand-lifted by a crew of men up three flights of stairs. Shanti calmly supervised. Shanti is a consummate professional. Gone is the dread and stress of future home improvements. We know from experience with her direction and good humor everything will turn out better than we imagined, finished in time and within budget.

Shanti did a masterful job guiding us through decorating our new home. I am thrilled with how it turned out. She is extremely creative and has exquisite taste and vision. She is very professional and shared her vision while incorporating my own concepts. Shanti is very cognizant of costs and timelines and I appreciated that she respected our budget constraints and worked hard to come up with fabulous, unique ideas that were within our range. She helped integrate what we already had into her ideas and they wound up working beautifully together. She also added unique touches to our dining room and living room that I would never have imagined. Shanti is also wonderful at sourcing materials, has multiple contacts that she uses to assist her clients with projects, and often came up with fantastic bargains that I would never have found on my own. I would highly recommend her to anyone looking to decorate their home.

Aside from being an amazing design talent who creates beautiful living spaces with a pretty impressive wow factor that makes people smile. Shanti and Indigo & Ochre team is a well-oiled machine when it comes to running a project. As a closet design and installation firm, we are privileged to work with like-minded professionals who care about their clients' satisfaction first the same way we do! From start to finish, always in constant communication and aware of every aspect of what is happening while the client was inconvenienced for the least amount of time possible. We would highly recommend Indigo & Ochre Design and looking forward to teaming up on future projects. Smart Closets

Shanti has become a lifeline for me. I originally hired her for a BedStuy PH project in 2016, and I continue to work with her today. When Shanti came to see the PH space, she alerted me to some concerning elements that my initial inspector missed. Due to her eye, honesty, and willingness to put her client’s best interest first, I walked away from the contract and commenced again with the home search; this time with Shanti by my side. She saved my family from a financial sinkhole even though it meant the loss of a large project and income for herself. Shanti’s ethics and directness are unmatchable by anyone else in the field. She has consulted with me on potential units and speaks with frankness about the potential for each one. She also works with a contractor that is as kind as and honesty as she - they are quite a team. As I search for my new forever home, I have looked at several options and have taken to consulting with her even before putting an offer on the table. As we are drawing towards making another offer, I have full confidence that my home will become a haven, and have a strong ROI, due to Shanti and Angel. There are very few people in the world like Shanti. I have grown to admire her and I could not imagine creating a home without her wisdom. Shanti has my strongest endorsement, respect, admiration, and appreciation.

Shanti Crawford, the brilliant mastermind behind Indigo & Ochre, is an exceptionally gifted designer and project manager. Her aesthetic is warm, sophisticated, eclectic and unfussy--a unique reflection of her international upbringing, her commitment to ethical manufacturing, and her authentic love and respect for the artists and artisans in her personal network. In addition to her wealth of knowledge and exquisite professionalism, Shanti has a unique understanding of the human element of design. Her approach recognizes that great design is not just about creating beauty, but also about crafting spaces that concretely enhance the lives of their inhabitants. The routines and rituals of our family's life are infinitely more connected and easeful as a result of Shanti's thoughtful, intuitive design choices. She is also a dream to work with. Warm, friendly, dependable, and detail oriented, she strikes the perfect balance between no-stress and no-nonsense. She can see around corners, anticipate how decisions will cascade and impact one another, and communicate seamlessly among parties to solve problems. The ultimate systems-thinker, she holds vast amounts of information in her head at once--truly, I've never met anyone better at this than Shanti. From the sequencing of macro decisions about how plumbing and electrical will impact the shape of a room to the smallest detail about the texture and hue of an ethically-sourced throw pillow, Shanti somehow manages to keep all of the balls in the air, and does so--it seems--without breaking a sweat. There is no one I would have rather worked on this project with than Shanti. Her deep generosity, crackling sense of humor, razor-sharp brain and creative superpowers made what could have been an overwhelming experience into an uplifting and affirming one from beginning to end.