ABOUT
Meet Gigi
Founder and principal designer of Beautiful Things & Places.
THE FOUNDER
Design that starts with how a family lives
Gruchenska "Gigi" Franca founded Beautiful Things & Places after years of designing, renovating, and furnishing her own family's homes, and quietly helping friends do the same. What began as the thing everyone asked her about became the studio.
Gigi's rooms share a signature: warm neutrals, natural materials, generous proportions, and a mix of tailored upholstery with pieces that have a little age and soul. She believes a home should feel calm the moment you walk in, and that beauty and practicality are not in competition.
Before design, Gigi built a career managing complex projects for a global research company. That training shows up in how BTP runs: clear budgets, honest timelines, organized orders, and no surprises.
She lives in Winter Park with her husband, Bruno, and splits her time between client homes, showrooms, and the never-quite-finished project that is her own house.
WHAT WE BELIEVE
A few principles we design by
I · Timeless over trendy
We choose pieces you will still love in fifteen years and let the trends live in things that are easy to change.
III · Proportion first
The right scale for the sofa, the rug, and the light fixture does more for a room than any single purchase.
II · Natural materials
Oak, linen, stone, wool, plaster, and brass age beautifully and make a room feel grounded.
IV · Honest about budgets
We will tell you where to invest, where to save, and what it will really cost before anything is ordered.
THE NAME
Beautiful things, in beautiful places
The name is a small manifesto. Beautiful things are the objects worth living with. Beautiful places are what happens when they are put together with care. Our job is the "and".