Raised with an appreciation for the hand-crafted and the beautiful simplicity of nature's materials. Nikolai grew up traveling between his parents’ native countries of France and Brazil before ultimately settling in Los Angeles. In his mother’s native Piaui state of northern Brazil, a true renaissance man taught him the basics of building furniture out of local materials. While Nikolai's previous creative outlet had been making music, he found such satisfaction in working with his hands in this new way. This led him to complete studies in product design at Otis College of Art and Design. Nikolai has expanded his focus from making and designing solely furniture to include art and interiors as well.