Hi, I’m Milena, the founder of The Whistling Well, a design + wellness studio.

I am a designer, a maker, and an avid reader. As a young child in Korca, Albania, I was constantly drawn to beautiful things—flowers, magnificent wallpapers, elegant furniture, fascinating buildings, captivating pottery. As I learned to read English after our family immigrated, I fell in love with literature and there grew my curiosity and wonder for the human condition. It was quite logical, therefore, that I chose a future career in architecture at 13, and my studies at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia nurtured my love of exploration, making, thinking, and learning.

During those five years, I grew, I questioned, I created and I traveled. I studied abroad at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, traveling broadly in China. I returned to east Asia after graduating with a Bachelor of Architecture, living and teaching English in South Korea. It was an incredible opportunity, and I traveled and explored the inspiring country and culture. I also journeyed to Japan, the first of many to come.

Returning home, I practiced interior design and architecture in store design, working for well known luxury retailers in Philadelphia and New York City. The work was creative, exciting, fast pace and rewarding. After 15 years in various corporate cultures, I found that my truth and passion lived in the intersection of design and wellness.

After undergoing a tidying festival using the KonMari Method™, I was inspired to become a consultant. I had often written about how built environments effected our minds and experience, and after the pandemic, I saw clearly we were all in need of spaces that inspired and served their users. And so design and wellness became the seed from which The Whistling Well grew to be.

Our mission: to provide services that bring you closer to your joy and intentionally create beautiful spaces that promote your wellness.