WHEN MICHAEL HABACHY WALKS THROUGH THE MARKETS OF OAXACA OR THE workshops of Jaipur, he sees something most people miss. Where others notice colorful pottery or intricate stone carvings, Habachy sees these handcrafted treasures finding their way into homes thousands of miles away, carrying with them the stories of the artisans who made them. It’s this unique perspective that has made his Atlanta-based interior design firm, Habachy Designs + Atelier, a bridge between age-old craftsmanship and contemporary luxury.
Habachy’s journey into design began early, rooted in an insatiable creative appetite. “Ever since I could remember, I have always had a passion for creating and making things,” he says. “From building homes out of Lego bricks to shaping things from clay to drawing, I just had a passion for all things art and design.”
When it came time to choose a university path, Habachy knew he wanted to study art and design but struggled to narrow down his focus among the various arts. “I had a hard time deciding between graphic design, fashion design, furniture design and photography,” he recalls. Eventually, he discovered that interior design offered the best of all worlds, allowing him to blend technical precision with creative expression.
The designer’s philosophy, that true luxury is not about price but authenticity, is revolutionary in an industry too often driven by trends and mass production. Since establishing his firm in 2001, Habachy has carved out a niche that highlights the irreplaceable value of human craftsmanship, with projects across the country in luxury residences, hotels, nightclubs, spas and restaurants.
While studying interior design at Georgia State University, Habachy discovered his true calling through an unlikely source: a job at a custom metal fabrication studio. Working with some of Atlanta’s top designers and architects, he was occasionally entrusted to create special pieces for their projects. This experience proved transformative, teaching him that designers don’t have to limit their clients to high-volume commercial pieces found in showrooms.
“I learned as a young designer that we don’t have to always rely on pieces that are mass-produced or found in a store,” Habachy explains. “Instead, we can think outside the box and tailor-make unique pieces for every project. When something is custom-made, you can ensure that it is exactly what you want, functionally as well as aesthetically.”
This revelation became the cornerstone of his practice. The ethos of bespoke design ultimately led to the 2019 opening of his showroom in Atlanta’s prestigious Decorative Arts Center. “We feel that luxury should be tailor-made, and it should look and feel just like a fine fitted suit, custom-made for a unique body,” he says. “The sky’s the limit when it comes to custom furnishings we can create. Basically, whatever you can dream up, we can do it!”
Habachy’s second-greatest passion after design is travel, and it serves as an incredible source of inspiration. Over the years, he has cultivated relationships with some of the world’s most talented craftspeople: ceramicists in Oaxaca, wood-carvers in Bosnia, stonecutters in Jaipur, and rug weavers from Mexico, Morocco, Nepal and Afghanistan.
The showroom itself reflects this global perspective, featuring carefully curated brands that align with his design philosophy. Each piece represents makers who take tremendous pride in their work, often using techniques passed down through generations. Environmental consciousness plays a crucial role in his selections, as does supporting artisans who strengthen their communities while protecting cultural heritage.
“To me, there is nothing more fulfilling than marrying our vision and custom designs with the unique craft produced by these incredibly talented makers,” Habachy says. “The artisans deserve to have a wider audience and market for their beautiful crafts, and our clients benefit as well by having pieces steeped in tradition that they will cherish for years, perhaps generations, to come.”
This commitment to global craftsmanship recently materialized in Habachy’s first rug collection, Gamil (meaning “handsome” or “beautiful” in Arabic), launched in partnership with Jaipur Living. The collection draws inspiration from his Coptic Egyptian heritage, featuring colors, patterns and textures that reflect his cultural roots while embodying his commitment to ethical manufacturing practices.
One of Habachy’s most compelling recent projects exemplifies his design philosophy perfectly. He had the pleasure of designing three residences for one particular client and, eventually, built a lifelong friendship. By the time he and his team started working on the third residence, his client had married, so the designer made it his goal to capture both of their visions and preferences. Habachy created an international aesthetic drawing inspiration from Tulum, Oaxaca and Mumbai. The clients, she from Mexico and he from India, wanted something that reflected their global perspective while feeling authentically warm and inviting.
The design embraced the Japanese philosophy of wabi-sabi, which celebrates things that are perfectly imperfect. All the walls and ceilings were finished in hand-troweled plaster, along with organic and natural materials throughout, and multiple handmade pieces by Mexican artisans, ranging from tapestries and rugs to pottery and hand-carved cabinetry, created the authentic hacienda feel the clients desired.
As Habachy has evolved as a designer, his appreciation for nature has deepened significantly. “The older I get, the more I realize that nature is our most important inspiration, both on a macro and micro level,” he reflects. From rock formations and vein patterns in leaves to bark textures from trees, nature provides an endless source of patterns and design inspiration.
Using his camera’s macro lens, Habachy discovers entire worlds of patterns and design, incorporating these natural inspirations into his work. This appreciation extends to his materials choices, with a strong preference for natural and organic materials whenever possible.
In addition to the artisanal focus, Habachy emphasizes that successful interior design requires significant technical expertise. “Interior design is much more complex than many realize,” he notes. “One of the biggest mistakes homeowners make when going at it alone is underestimating the level of planning and precision required.”
His process begins with scaling 3-D models and photorealistic renderings, allowing clients to visualize concepts and explore materials before construction begins. Comprehensive construction drawings follow, specifying every element and measurement to ensure precise execution. This attention to detail protects both the client’s vision and investment, ensuring the final result matches exactly what they approved.
Lighting receives particular attention in Habachy’s work. Rather than lighting empty spaces, he focuses on illuminating furnishings, art, textures and architectural details. He prefers layering multiple light sources, including decorative fixtures, floor and table lamps, up lights, wall sconces and concealed ambient lighting to create depth, dimension and mood while maintaining consistency in temperature.
Perhaps most importantly, Habachy views art and sculpture as transformative elements that bring character, narrative and emotion into interiors. “Art and sculpture have the power to transform an interior completely,” he explains. “Beyond decoration, they bring character, narrative and emotion into a space.”
For Habachy, art represents connection—the ability to spark conversation, evoke memories or shift how someone feels in a room. When integrated thoughtfully with lighting, furniture and architectural elements, art and sculpture become what he calls the soul of a space, elevating design from simply beautiful to unforgettable.
As the design industry continues to evolve, with people exposed to more inspiration than ever before, Habachy remains committed to his core belief: In a world of mass production, there’s something irreplaceably valuable about the human touch, the imperfect perfection of handcrafted beauty and the deep satisfaction that comes from spaces explicitly designed for the people who
inhabit them. *
Robin Howard is a freelance writer in Charleston. See more of her work at robinhowardwrites.com.
