5 Women in Design Your Instagram Feed Needs

Each month, I write a short piece for Sotheby's International Realty's Women Empowered (WE). Here is September's edition.

If your Instagram feed could use a little less noise and a lot more beautiful interiors, these five women are worth the follow. From highly livable American luxury to bold, layered design, each has developed an unmistakable point of view and, in the process, helped influence what we want our homes to look and feel like.

Here are five women designers currently filling my saved folders.

1. Shea McGee

Instagram: @studiomcgee

Shea McGee has become one of the most recognizable names in American interior design, and for good reason. As the creative force behind Studio McGee, she has built an aesthetic around warm neutrals, natural materials, traditional details and spaces that feel polished without feeling untouchable.

Studio McGee's evolving aesthetic pairs classic design and traditional craftsmanship with a distinctly modern point of view. It is an especially good follow for anyone who wants inspiration they could actually imagine living with, rather than simply admiring in a magazine.

Why I follow: Beautiful, approachable luxury and an endless supply of ideas that translate particularly well to mountain homes.

2. Becki Owens

Instagram: @beckiowens

Becki Owens has built one of the largest design followings on Instagram by mastering a look that feels current without chasing every trend. Her interiors mix clean architectural lines with warm woods, natural stone, soft textiles and just enough contrast to keep all those beautiful neutrals interesting.

Based in Southern California, Owens has translated her signature style beyond client projects into furniture, lighting and home collections, making her one of the more accessible designers on this list. Her feed is especially good for spotting ideas that can actually make the jump from Instagram save to real-life home.

Why I follow: For polished, modern interiors that are aspirational without being impossible to replicate. If you want to know what buyers are saving to their own inspiration folders, this is a good place to start.

3. Amber Lewis

Instagram: @amberinteriors

Amber Lewis has had an enormous influence on the relaxed, layered California look that has spread far beyond California. Think vintage woods, natural stone, earthy textiles, collected furniture and rooms that somehow manage to feel both expensive and completely comfortable.

Her Los Angeles-based firm works on projects around the world, but her aesthetic feels particularly at home in places where architecture and the outdoors are meant to coexist.

Why I follow: Of these five, her style may translate best to Western and mountain living. It feels collected rather than decorated, and luxurious without trying too hard.

4. Athena Calderone

Instagram: @eyeswoon

Athena Calderone is part interior designer, part creative director and part professional tastemaker. Through EyeSwoon and Studio Athena Calderone, she has built a following around interiors that mix architecture, art, vintage pieces, extraordinary stone and European influences.

Her newly renovated Tribeca apartment landed on the cover of Architectural Digest in 2026 and marked a notable evolution from the airy Brooklyn aesthetic that helped make her famous. The new Athena is darker, moodier, richer and heavily influenced by Art Deco and her travels through Europe.

Why I follow: Because whatever detail Athena is obsessing over today has a decent chance of showing up everywhere else tomorrow.

5. Brigette Romanek

Instagram: @brigetteromanek

Brigette Romanek brings serious design credentials with just enough celebrity intrigue to make her feed especially fun to follow.

The Los Angeles designer has created homes for an enviable roster of high-profile clients and is known for sophisticated interiors that never sacrifice comfort for aesthetics. Rather than adhering to one rigid signature look, Romanek mixes contemporary pieces, vintage finds, art and texture to create spaces that feel personal to the people living in them.

Why I follow: This is high-end residential design that still looks like someone fabulous actually lives there.

Worth a Follow, Too

If your saved folder still has room, add Alyssa Kapito (@alyssakapitointeriors), Abby Hetherington (@abbyhetheringtoninteriors), Young Huh (@younghuh) and Justina Blakeney (@justinablakeney) to the list.

The best part about following great designers isn't recreating an entire room. It's noticing the details: the stone someone chose, an unexpected paint color, the way art was hung, a vintage piece mixed into a new home, or a material you wouldn't have considered otherwise.

Consider this your permission to spend a little more time scrolling Instagram. This time, we'll call it research.